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COVID-19

5 Questions with a Health Policy Specialist: Rodney L. Whitlock of McDermott+Consulting

by McDermott Will & Emery | Aug 20, 2020 | Uncategorized

Rodney L. Whitlock, Ph.D
Vice President, McDermott+Consulting
Focus Area: Healthcare Policy
Years at M+: 1.5 years

What is your favorite part about your health policy work at McDermott+Consulting?

Healthcare policy, politics and process is complicated. It is a constant challenge to discern and anticipate the future of healthcare policy for clients. It is the constant intellectual challenge of operating in healthcare policy that I enjoy most about what I do. Specifically, I like that I can bring my 21 years of experience in Congress to my clients, move from subject matter to subject matter and play at a high level. For example, I can go from talking about prescription drugs in the morning then later on in the day dealing with an issue very specific to a client. It’s the challenge of having to be in different spaces at different times of the day that I actually enjoy.

What is the biggest opportunity and greatest challenge facing clients in your area of focus today?

The current global pandemic has significantly impacted healthcare. All of the pressures on pricing and value that existed before the pandemic are now accentuated by the response to the crisis. The recovery from the loss of revenue experienced by providers throughout the year 2020 will be felt for a long time to come. The way practices have changed to accommodate the pandemic will also impact the provision of healthcare services and how they are reimbursed for a long time [...]

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What are the Life Science Transaction Trends in the Wake of the Sanitary Crisis?

by Emmanuelle Trombe | Jul 29, 2020 | Health M&A, Health Private Equity, Life Sciences, Life Sciences Private Equity

In the second installment of McDermott’s webinar series, HPE Europe 2020: What are the Life Science Transaction Trends in the Wake of the Sanitary Crisis?, moderator and McDermott partner Emmanuelle Trombe and industry experts Joseph El Khoury of Natixis, Cédric Garcia of EY’s Life Science Group, Dr. Erich Tauber of Themis Bioscience and Daniel Teper of CYTOVIA Therapeutics shared lessons learned from the first half of 2020, when COVID-19 changed the world. The panelists also discussed the outlook for life sciences transaction trends in the second half of the year and beyond.

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European Healthcare Innovation & Investment in a Post-Pandemic World

by McDermott Will & Emery | Jul 6, 2020 | Digital Health, Health M&A, Health Private Equity, Hospitals & Health Systems, International Health

As part of McDermott’s HPE Europe 2020: Where Do the Opportunities Exist for Investment in the Healthcare Sector? webinar, McDermott London Managing Partner Hamid Yunis moderated a panel of industry experts including; Dr. Michelle Tempest of Candesic, Dr. Joanne Hackett of IZY Capital, Dr. Charles Niehaus and Professor Karol Sikora of Rutherford Cancer Centres, who collectively shared their perspectives on healthcare innovation and investment in a post-pandemic world.

The panelists agreed that COVID-19 has served as a catalyst for change and which has revealed important prospects for the future.

“There has been this zest for change which we’ve been talking about for a long period of time, and this has finally been that breakthrough,” said Dr. Tempest. “Both the professionals and the consumers have suddenly woken up to this new dawn.”

“What I’ve actually seen in the past couple of months is a lot of innovation that we were really wanting to accelerate are now actually happening,” agreed Dr. Hackett. “And it’s because we’re finally able to look to the future and think about future proofing to make sure that our healthcare system is actually going to deliver. I see positivity.”

Dr. Niehaus emphasized that, the real opportunity at the moment is to take the technologies many people were resistant to pre-COVID now acceptable, and use the shift as a “springboard to actually move forward.”

“We struggle with the cumbersome nature of a nationalized system that doesn’t really encourage entrepreneurism,” Professor Sikora cautioned. “The entrepreneurial skills are there — in [...]

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Unpacking Differences in Public and Private Hospital M&A

by McDermott Will & Emery | Jun 15, 2020 | Health M&A, Hospitals & Health Systems, Tax-Exempt

Across the public hospital sector, M&A activity has increased significantly over the past decade. Given the current COVID-19 landscape, many are taking a hard look at their operations to garner a better understanding of what needs to be done to be regain level footing during a tough financial time, while also focusing on a need to uphold their community’s best interest. Broadly speaking, many public hospitals are the sole provider in their communities, so making the right M&A choice is vital – not only for them, but those they serve. Here we will discuss the pressures of public hospitals financially, the trends driving M&A and what external pressures are impacting these hospital’s decisions. For a deeper dive into the issues discussed here, listen to our podcast, Dealmaking in the Sunlight: Navigating Public Hospital M&A.

Financial Pressures

Standalone entities, like many public hospitals, often lack economies of scale and do not have the benefit of spreading risk across a larger organization to soften the economic blows impacting hospitals today. However, these struggles do not go unnoticed, as there are regulatory and legal frameworks in place to help public hospitals perform differently or better when needed. Certain government or municipal hospitals have immunity to antitrust laws, which allows them to partner with organizations within their market (“cross town competitors”).

M&A’s Potential Effect on Public Hospitals

M&A amongst hospitals and healthcare systems has been found to increase revenue, improve debt position, and attract resources to the community. Given that information, [...]

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Top Takeaways: Permissible Provider Collaborations During COVID-19 and Beyond

by Ashley Fischer, Katharine M. O'Connor and Stephen Wu | May 21, 2020 | Health Antitrust, Health M&A

As the healthcare industry continues to cope with the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and form strategic and short- and long-term plans, providers are faced with numerous decisions that have critical antitrust implications. Whether seeking to collaborate with competitors for pandemic response or exploring potential transactional opportunities, there are both traditional antitrust guidelines and COVID-specific developments applicable to these business decisions. We discussed these important issues on our May 20 webinar. Below are top takeaways from the program. For a deeper dive into these issues, listen to our webinar recording.

Competitor collaborations

Antitrust compliance remains an important priority in the US. While companies have been engaged in finding creative solutions to COVID-19 challenges and regulators are expressing a willingness to be more flexible in interpreting and enforcing the law, the pandemic is not a carte blanche to engage in anti-competitive activity.
Regulators are more prone to accept collaborations limited in scope to respond to COVID-19 and its aftermath, and arrangements undertaken at the behest of or in partnership with government actors. Companies should avoid high-risk conduct such as direct exchanges of competitively sensitive information.
Procompetitive agreements not relating to price, wages or market/product allocations remain possible. Companies should conduct an antitrust analysis before entering new collaborations and consider whether it would be helpful or advisable to engage with federal antitrust authorities or state governments to receive feedback.

Avoiding antitrust violations in labor markets

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Top Takeaways: Critical Business Considerations for Life Sciences and Medical Device Companies During COVID-19

by McDermott Will & Emery | May 5, 2020 | FDA, Life Sciences

Life sciences and medical device companies are dealing with an unprecedented crisis. The industry is not only managing the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19), they are also a solution provider. Companies are rapidly adapting products, services, facilities and distribution channels to aid in the pandemic response. Simultaneously, they must maintain shareholder value, navigate highly complex regulatory hurdles and compliance obligations while rethinking strategies for growth in a post-COVID-19 world. McDermott Will & Emery and EY co-hosted a webinar to discuss critical COVID-19-related operational, regulatory and legal developments. Below are top takeaways from the program. For a deeper dive into these issues, listen to our webinar recording.

FDA enforcement discretion is a flexible, risk-based approach, not a free pass. Companies operating under FDA’s enforcement policies to provide COVID-19 countermeasures should have a strategy to ensure that products comply with the standard applicable requirements if the products will still be in distribution after the public health emergency ends. FDA will prioritize areas for follow-up and review after this crisis; clear documentation and protocols describing deviations from standard FDA procedures or requirements will be important in a post-COVID-19 environment.
Clinical trials remain an important FDA priority, and COVID-19 presents an opportunity to transform the clinical development model. The agency has been very flexible in terms of the approaches it is taking to allow trials to continue, including through the use of technology, such as remote patient monitoring, video consent and telemedicine, as well as the use of home health. [...]

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Coronavirus Resource Center | Preparedness Planning for Businesses

by McDermott Will & Emery | Mar 5, 2020 | Digital Health, Hospitals & Health Systems, International Health

In our global economy, Coronavirus (COVID-19) raises serious concerns for employers in all industries. Workers may be on the front lines caring for patients and developing vaccines, travelling for business, or in close contact with individuals who travel or may have been affected. At this time, there is no vaccine or medication approved to prevent or treat the COVID-19 disease. Therefore, preparedness and prevention are crucial. Frontline responders must be especially vigilant as they deliver care and anticipate the challenges this uncharted territory presents.

McDermott’s Coronavirus Resource Center, brought to you by a multi-disciplinary team, will keep you informed of the latest developments and provide comprehensive insight to help you navigate this crisis with your employees, including: