Chair's Column
by Paul R. DeMuro, Latham & Watkins LLP, San Francisco, CA

If you are like me, you may wonder how it is that your name badge is always ready and waiting when you go to an ABA Health Law Section (Section) conference. Well, of course it is our expectation if we registered for the conference, but it is nice to be able to have the expectation. If we have signed up for a teleconference, it is great to know we can actually dial into it, and if we have a question, there is always someone to ask. If they do not know the answer, they will find out, and make us feel good about asking.

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Donating Health Information Technology: Tax Issues Create Uncertainty for Donors
by Bernadette Broccolo and Heidi Echols, McDermott Will & Emery LLP, Chicago, IL

Effective October 10, 2006, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") published final anti-kickback safe harbors and Stark regulatory exceptions for the donation (or below-market transfer) of health information technology and related services to referral sources (the "Final Regulations"). In general, the Final Regulations permit hospitals and other permitted donors to donate up to eighty-five percent (85%) of the cost of software and related information technology and training services ("HIT") that are necessary and used predominantly to create, maintain, transmit or receive electronic health records. The Final Regulations are detailed and complex and require compliance with numerous technical matters, including the requirement that the software be interoperable and that the donor and the recipient document the donation in a written agreement.

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Money Talks: Congress Spurs States to Implement Their Own False Claims Acts
by Lezlie B. Willis, Fish & Richardson PC, Dallas, TX

Last year, Congress encouraged individual states to enact their own false claims legislation or improve existing legislation to meet or exceed federal standards by enacting Section 6031 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (the "DRA") on February 1, 2006. Section 6031 provides that if a state has qualifying false claims legislation in effect on January 1, 2007, then the state will get ten percent more of any amount recovered in a false claims case brought under the state's act.

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The New Parent F Reorganization ("NPFR")
by Alan S. Gassman and Kenneth J. Crotty, Gassman, Bates & Associates, P.A., Clearwater, FL

For many years, physician clients and medical businesses have approached the authors' law firm requesting guidance on how to transfer valuable assets out of the operational entity or medical practice. The traditional answer has been that the transfer of appreciated assets from a corporation to its shareholders or an affiliated corporation would trigger taxable income. Recently, the Internal Revenue Service has begun to recognize that Internal Revenue Code Section 368(a)(1)(F) will allow what the authors call the "New Parent F Reorganization". This is a restructuring tool that is vastly underused by the asset protection and healthcare legal communities. Many clients who have valuable assets held in operating entities have been told in the past that they cannot move the assets out tax free.

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Greetings from your HLS Membership Committee!

You could be next! The HLS Membership Committee has been hard at work developing the next membership incentive program running from November 1, 2006 through February 28, 2007. Again, the incentive program will have the same double entry incentive for the Emerging Issues in Healthcare Law Program, scheduled for February 21 -23, 2007 in Florida.

The rules of the program are as follows:

• The time period covered is November 1, 2006 through February 28, 2007.
• To be eligible, the entry/applicant must have either personally joined the HLS as a new member (i.e. entry/applicant was not a HLS member during 2005-06) or recruited a new member to join the HLS during the incentive time period. In the first instance, the new member gets his or her name entered; in the latter, both the recruiting (i.e. current) HLS member and the new member are entitled to enter.
• There is no limit on the number of entries per individual, just keep recruiting! The only restriction is that the HLS membership dues must be paid by program deadline.
• A current HLS member that recruits a new member to attend the Emerging Issues in Healthcare Law Program February 21-23, 2007 receives two entries (So bring someone new to EMI and double your chances to win!).
• Email all entries to Adam Bielawski, Communications and Interest Group Manager at bielawsa@staff.abanet.org. Adam will verify all entries. It is YOUR responsibility to ensure your entry(ies) is received by Adam by program deadline. The drawing will be held on March 1, 2007.

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Tax & Accounting Interest Group

The Tax & Accounting Interest Group focuses on the various challenges facing the Healthcare industry from a tax and regulatory perspective.

The IG is led by Chair Robert W. Friz, Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP, Philadelphia, PA and Vice Chairs Michael A. Clark, Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP, Chicago, IL; Laura Gabrysch, Fulbright & Jaworski LLP, San Antonio, TX ; Judith E. Kindell, Internal Revenue Service, Washington , DC and Karen B. McAfee, Gardner Carton & Douglas LLP, Washington, DC .

If you would like to join the Interest Group, continue by clicking the following link: Health Law Section IG Sign-up Form.

Do you want to communicate your ideas to thousands of other members through the wonders of cyberspace? To contribute a newsletter article on a health law topic, send us your ideas to Adam.Bielawski@americanbar.org