In Law360, Health Care Team Analyzes the Impact of Supreme Court Chevron Ruling on Health and Human Services Agencies

In an article for Law360, health care partner Stephanie Webster, counsel Beth Weinman, and associates Pascale Stain and Nick Curry analyze how the Court’s reversal of the Chevron doctrine in Loper Bright will impact health care and life sciences companies.

“With Chevron's reversal, the scale is no longer tipped in favor of federal agencies, as federal courts are no longer permitted to defer to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes,” said the authors. “Rather, judges will need to decide the meaning of any unclear statutory language themselves.”

“The loss of Chevron deference could also affect how courts adjudicate challenges involving the scope of an agency's statutory authority,” the authors added.

The authors additionally noted that “while the full implications of the decision for healthcare and life sciences companies will only become apparent in time, it is abundantly clear that agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes will only prevail if agencies can convince reviewing courts that theirs is the best construction.”