Richard H. Hughes, IV, Member of the Firm in the Health Care & Life Sciences practice, in the firm’s Washington, DC, office, was quoted in Politico, in “Obamacare Decision Makes Way for Debate on What’s Preventive,” by Lauren Gardner.
Following is an excerpt:
Public health lawyers and experts praised Friday’s Supreme Court decision upholding Affordable Care Act-directed coverage of preventive services but cautioned that legal challenges to health policy may now shift toward the evidence underpinning federal recommendations. ...
A shaky scientific rationale for policy decisions could open up HHS to further challenges focused less on authority and more on what constitutes evidence or expertise.
“If you start to do things arbitrarily or capriciously, that becomes a problem,” said Richard Hughes, a lawyer at Epstein Becker Green who represents vaccine makers.
“We’re in an era where science and how the courts look at science is going to be extremely important,” he added.
