January 2025 | The Public Health Law News

Dear Reader,

Conference Updates

2025 Public Health Law Conference
September 16-18 in Seattle, Washington.
Registration is open.

NACCHO 360
July 14-18 in Anaheim, California.
Early Bird registration is open until March 28.

2025 Preparedness Summit
April 29-May 2 in San Antonio, Texas.
Early Bird registration has been extended to January 31.

Announcements

Webinar | The Public Health Law Center
The Public Health Law Center at Mitchell Hamline School of Law will recap important legal developments and litigation affecting public health from 2024 in a one-hour webinar hosted at 1:00 pm CT, January 30. Litigation Roundup: What Public Health Professionals Need to Know about Key Cases from 2024 will focus on landmark Supreme Court cases on administrative law as well as discuss trends in preemption cases in federal courts from around the nation. Registration is open now.

Resource | National Council of Urban Indian Health (NCUIH)
NCUIH has published the results of its Urban American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Overdose Needs Assessment. This needs assessment aimed to understand and analyze the impacts of substance misuse and opioid overdoses on Urban Indian Organizations (UIOs) and the urban AI/AN populations that they serve. Learn more about NCUIH's findings and additional insights into overdose prevention.

Fellowship/Internship Opportunity | National Council of Urban Indian Health (NCUIH)
NCUIH is excited to offer internship and fellowship opportunities to undergraduate, graduate, and law students. This remote opportunity allows students to work part-time throughout the semester, accommodating for class schedules and availability, or full-time during the summer. Internships and Fellowships are available for academic credit, or for compensation, dependent on available funding. Explore the positions for Law and Policy Fellow and Public Policy Intern.

Briefly Noted

Arkansas: Whooping cough, tuberculosis cases spiked in Arkansas last year, Department of Health reports
Arkansas Advocate (01/09/2025) Tess Vrbin

California: Newsom declares emergency in California after severe bird flu case confirmed in Louisiana
Los Angeles Times (12/18/2024) Susanne Rust
[Editor's note: H5 Bird Flu: Current Situation]

Illinois: New law targets lead levels
Daily Journal (01/08/2025) Staff
[Editors note: About Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention]

Illinois: IL coroners required to report fentanyl overdose, law begins Jan. 2025
WCIA Champaign (01/01/2025) Molly Sweeney and Gabriella Morando
[Editors note: Fentanyl Facts]

Ohio: Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signs Never Alone Act into law; Patients will be entitled access to an advocate, family member
Dayton Daily News (12/20/2024) Samantha Wildow
[Editor's note: ]

Rhode Island: RI advocates call for homelessness emergency declaration as cold snap hits
WPRI Providence (01/07/2025) Jusolyn Flower and Hannah Cotter
[Editor's note: Homelessness as a Public Health Law Issue]

Global Public Health Law News

Europe: Belgium will ban sales of disposable e-cigarettes in a first for the EU
AP News (12/29/2025) Sylvain Plazy and Mark Carlson
[Editor's note: Learn more about Health Effects of Vaping]

Brazil: Public programme to give poor people cash reduced tuberculosis cases and deaths, study finds
Euro News (01/03/2025) Gabriela Galvin
[Editor's note: Learn about the Global TB Epidemic]

Nigeria: Sign Public Health Council Bill into law - Association begs Tinubu
Daily Post Nigeria (12/16/2024) Gift Oba

Throwback: Quiz Question

Which country banned sale of e-cigarettes in an effort to combat uptake of nicotine products by teens?

The first reader to correctly answer the quiz question will be featured in a mini public health law profile in the next edition of the News. Email your entry to PHLawProgram@cdc.gov with "PHL Quiz" as the subject heading (entries without the heading will not be considered).

Court Filings and Opinions

Texas
The Court of Appeals of Texas, First District, Houston, reversed the trial court's summary judgement for Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings d/b/a Laboratory Corporation of America ("LabCorp") and remanded the case for further proceedings.

In 1995, Texas enacted the Texas Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act ("TMFPA") which created a "state enforcement action" against any entity or person that defrauds the Texas Medicaid program. In 2013, as a result of a qui tam action, the Texas Office of the Attorney General launched an investigation into LabCorp's billing practices for the medical laboratory testing services it provides. Based on this investigation the State alleged that LabCorp had entered into discounted or special pricing agreements with certain non-Medicaid payors/providers for specified services that resulted in those non-Medicaid payors/providers being charged at rates less than the rates LabCorp was submitting to Texas Medicaid for payment, thereby violating the Texas Medicaid best-price regulation requirements and the State's anti-kickback rules. The trial court granted summary judgement for LabCorp. The State and the qui tam Relator jointly appealed the ruling on the best-price allegations (on appeal as "the State"), noting the anti-kickback claims were not included in the appeal.

On appeal, the court examined the statutory construction of the TMPA, specifically the omission provision and the false-statements or misrepresentations provision, to determine whether or not the State was required to prove materiality as a matter of law with respect to certain unlawful acts under the TMPA. The court held that the trial court erred in granting summary judgement to LabCorp because (1) certain claims made by the State do not require a showing of materiality according to the statute, and (2) in the State's remaining claims there is a genuine issue of material fact as to the materiality of LabCorp's alleged false-statements and/or misrepresentations. The trial court's judgement was reversed and the case was remanded for further proceedings.

State v. LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA HOLDINGS
Court of Appeals of Texas, First District, Houston
No. 01-23-00043-CV
Decided on December 31, 2024
Opinion by Justice Peter M. Kelly

West Virginia:
The District Court granted in part and denied in part the motions from Defendants Great Escapes Pelahatchie ("Defendants") to exclude Plaintiffs Amy and David Neely's ("the Neelys") expert witnesses on liability and the report from the Mississippi State Department of Health ("MSDH") Report ("the report").

The Neelys visited a waterpark within Jellystone Park Yogi on the Lake from July 30 to August 1, 2021 with their children, where they used the swimming pool and splashpad. The children were diagnosed with E. coli O157:H7 bacterium following their visit. Defendants agree about these details of the case, but disagree regarding the severity and duration of the injuries claimed from the diagnosis as well as whether the children caught the bacterium from the pools at the waterpark. Defendants requested the exclusion of liability expert testimony from MSDH employees, Minnesota Department of Health Epidemiologist Program Manager, two aquatics experts, and the content of the MSDH report on the E. coli outbreak.

The court denied the motion to exclude the MSDH report, finding it met the requirements under Rule 702 that the content must be both reliable and relevant. As to the Minnesota Department of Health Epidemiologist Program Manager, the court denied the motion to exclude his opinions on epidemiology, but granted the exclusion of his opinions on aquatics and medical causation. The motion regarding the aquatics experts were granted as to the causation of the outbreak, but denied as to all other testimony.

Neely v. Great Escapes Pelahatchie
United States District Court, S.D. Mississippi, Northern Division
No. 3:21-CV-786-DPJ-ASH
Decided on December 16, 2024
Opinion by District Judge Daniel P. Jordan

Covid-19 Court Filings and Opinions

Wisconsin: Covid 19
Cordero Coleman appeals a judgment of conviction and a circuit court order denying his motion for postconviction relief. The primary issue on appeal is whether Coleman's constitutional right to a speedy trial was violated in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which precipitated court shutdowns across the country and resulted in a suspension of jury trials followed by a significant trial backlog in Dane County. We conclude that Coleman's constitutional speedy trial right was not violated, and that his trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to demand a speedy trial or to move to dismiss the criminal charges on speedy trial grounds. We affirm the judgment and order.

State v. Coleman
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, District IV
Appeal No. 2023AP2414-CR
Decided on December 27, 2024
Opinion by Judge Rachel A. Graham

Federal: Covid-19
In March 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security ("CARES") Act to provide economic relief to Americans and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the CARES Act, Congress authorized the Small Business Administration ("SBA") to grant potentially forgivable loans to eligible small businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP"). A subsequent SBA regulation called the "Corporate Group Rule" limited the amount a single "corporate group" could receive in aggregate PPP loans to $20 million.

Plaintiff Forest View Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, LLC ("Forest View") applied for and received a PPP loan but was ultimately denied forgiveness because it was deemed part of a "corporate group" that had already surpassed the $20-million limit. After an unsuccessful administrative appeal, Forest View filed this suit against the SBA, its Administrator, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the United States of America. [1]. Specifically, Forest View challenges the SBA's statutory authority to implement the Corporate Group Rule under the Administrative Procedure Act ("APA"), 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(C), and the SBA's application of the rule to Forest View under 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(A).

Before the Court are the parties' cross-motions for summary judgment, [28], [39], as well as Forest View's related motion for an order compelling reimbursement of funds [48]. For the reasons set forth below, defendants' motion for summary judgment is granted, and Forest View's motions for summary judgment and an order to compel reimbursement of funds are denied. The SBA's final decision denying Forest View forgiveness of its PPP loan is affirmed.

FOREST VIEW REHABILITATION AND NURSING CENTER, LLC v. UNITED STATES SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

United States District Court, N.D. Illinois, Eastern Division
No. 24 CV 1490
Decided on December 30, 2024
Opinion by District Judge Georgia N. Alexakis

About Public Health Law News

CDC's Public Health Law Program (PHLP) works to improve the health of the public by performing research, creating tools, and providing training to help practitioners understand and make law and policy decisions. Every month, PHLP publishes the Public Health Law News with announcements, legal tools, court opinions, job openings & more.

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