Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Justice Department Drops Drug Misbranding Case
The Wall Street Journal: Justice Department Takes Rare Step Of Dropping Misbranding Case
The Justice Department has dropped a case against a Tennessee couple convicted of using misbranded drugs in their cancer clinics, a rare move that could signal unease in Washington with such prosecutions. Dr. Anindya Kumar Sen and his wife, Patricia Posey Sen, had appealed their jury convictions to the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, using a high-powered legal team that included former federal prosecutor Alex Little and former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement. (Palazzolo, 12/16)
The Associated Press: Accused Woman Of Giving Medicaid Funds For Prenatal Care To Illegal Immigrants Has Case Dropped
A federal judge has dismissed charges against a woman accused of defrauding Medicaid to help women in the country illegally get prenatal care after evidence in the case was lost. Dennison was accused of defrauding the government of more than $1 million over five years by advertising her clinic's services in the Hispanic community, then telling her staff to coach immigrants on getting prenatal care through the Baby Your Baby program if they didn't have a valid Social Security number. Dennison maintains her innocence and says a former medical assistant helped the women get around the law. The assistant has pleaded guilty to a single charge in the case and was cooperating with the government, according to court documents. (Whitehurst, 12/16)
