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Please Click HerePosted on November 16, 2018 by Amy E. Ebeling and Michael R. Wildeck
Sustaining a farm business over generations is something to be celebrated, but at the same time can be an enormous challenge. Besides the positive economic impact to the local community, there is also a public benefit from land held in farms that would otherwise be fragmented among a multitude of other owners. Studies have shown […]
Posted on November 15, 2018 by Amy E. Ebeling
A huge number of baby boomers have created or continued successful family owned farms. As they approach retirement the future of those farms hinges on their ability to successfully transition to a next generation. Less than 30 percent of family farms successfully transfer to a subsequent generation. A clear succession plan is the most important […]
Posted on November 6, 2018 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Three related developments on the OSHA front in October have implications for employers. First, OSHA has walked back its previous interpretation of the anti-retaliation rule it implemented in 2016. That rule prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for or discouraging them from reporting on-the-job injuries and illnesses. OSHA had interpreted the rule, controversially, as prohibiting […]
Posted on November 5, 2018 by Emilu E.C. Larson
The OCC, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the FDIC published an interagency interim final rule effective August 29, 2018. The interim final rule amends the regulations governing eligibility for an 18-month on-site examination cycle. Under the interim final rule, qualifying depository institutions with less than $3 billion in total assets […]
Posted on November 2, 2018 by Mary Ellen Schill
On November 1, 2018 the Internal Revenue Service announced the cost-of-living adjustments for the various qualified retirement plan limits. The vast majority of the limits shown below have increased from last year. Qualified Plan Limit Cost-of-Living Adjustments 401(k) and 403(b) elective deferral limit 2018-$18,500 2019-$19,000 $200,000 compensation limit 2018-$275,000 2019-$280,000 $160,000 defined benefit limit 2018-$220,000 […]
Posted on October 22, 2018 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Last month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposed rule designed to, in CMS’s words, “relieve burden on healthcare providers by removing unnecessary, obsolete or excessively burdensome Medicare compliance requirements for healthcare facilities”. CMS estimates that the annual savings to healthcare providers would be $1.2 billion. The proposed rule is some […]
Posted on September 25, 2018 by Christopher M. Seelen
Farmers may have wondered how a neighbor or someone else filing bankruptcy can keep his or her house. The answer is exemptions. Exemptions are assets that can be kept from unsecured creditors. The Wisconsin Legislature didn’t want debtors on the street with no assets so it created exemptions. The Wisconsin homestead exemption allows a debtor […]
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Ruder Ware Alumni
A recent Advisory Opinion (Advisory Opinion 18-03) from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the Department of Health and Human Services addresses potential kickback issues involved in the donation of telehealth equipment. The OIG has issued opinions addressing technology donation in the past, but not directly involving telemedicine and not involving services that were […]
Posted on August 30, 2018 by Ruder Ware Alumni
A recent Office of Inspector General (OIG) advisory opinion approved a proposal under which a hospital has established a caregiver center that provides or arranges for free or reduced-cost support services to caregivers in the local community (Arrangement). The OIG, basing its opinion on the facts provided, concluded that it would not impose sanctions even […]
Posted on August 7, 2018
Ruder Ware is pleased to announce Attorney John Fisher has been recognized as a Top Author for the 2018 JDSupra (JDS) Readers’ Choice Awards for both Healthcare and Compliance. In the “Healthcare” category, Fisher ranked fifth; in the “Compliance” category, Fisher ranked seventh. Fisher was one of 240 writers selected amongst 50,000 authors who contributed […]