Tomorrow, on 30 July 2026, the “GKV-Beitragssatzstabilisierungsgesetz” (GKV-BStabG) will enter into force, marking the culmination of a fast-paced and politically contentious legislative process. The reform, which has attracted significant attention, introduces a broad package of cost-containment measures across the statutory health insurance (GKV) system. Several of these specifically target pharmaceutical spending and reimbursement and are highly relevant for pharmaceutical companies.

This blog discusses the new measures with direct relevance for manufacturers and highlights the key changes made between the draft and the final law. In our earlier blog from 28 April 2026, we have discussed the key elements of the draft GKV-BStabG and its potential implications. The final law retains the overall direction of the reform but introduces several important adjustments that will impact pharmaceutical companies.

Continue Reading What does the GKV-BStabG Reform Change for Pharma Pricing & Reimbursement in Germany? And the Reforms Are Not Over: What to Expect From the New German Minister of Health and the Pharma Dialogue?

Executive Summary

On October 4, 2026, more than 150 million Brazilian voters will cast their votes in first-round elections for a new president and all state governors, and will also elect all members of the House of Deputies, two-thirds of the Federal Senate, and state-level representatives. Brazil is the second-largest…

Continue Reading Brazil’s 2026 Election and its Impact to Businesses and Investors

On July 1, 2026, a California legislative committee advanced amendments to SB 690 that would eliminate private suits asserting website-based “pen register” claims under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (“CIPA”), leaving enforcement exclusively to the California Attorney General.  The amendments come amid a surge of lawsuits and demand letters challenging the use of website technologies under the pen register provision, which the committee described as a “poster child for abusive lawsuits.”  According to the committee analysis, “[b]ecause the potential liability can be staggering,” businesses often settle quickly, thereby “encouraging vexatious litigants to continue blasting out demand letters.”

Continue Reading California Legislature Advances Bill Targeting Wave of CIPA Pen Register Lawsuits

On July 22, 2026, the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) voted to approve a Report and Order (the “Order”) and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (the “FNPRM”) that will rework and modernize the FCC’s satellite licensing regime.  Stating that “[a]chieving American space superiority is critical to our nation’s future,” the Order streamlines the FCC’s satellite application and licensing procedures to support commercial deployment of space infrastructure.  The Order also relocates and reorganizes the current part 25 satellite licensing rules to a new part 100.  The FNPRM seeks public comment on how the FCC can further modernize its space technology regime.  The Order and FNPRM follow a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking from October 2025 (the “NPRM”), which we previously covered.

Continue Reading FCC Approves Massive Modernization of Satellite Licensing Regime

On July 22, the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) approved a Report and Order (the “Order”) to simplify the requirements for the broadband consumer label (the “Label”) that all ISPs have been required to provider to consumers since 2024.  The Order is meant to “refocus the rules on ensuring that consumers have the clear, accurate, and concise information about broadband plans” while reducing compliance burdens on providers.  See below for a summary of the key updates.

Continue Reading FCC Simplifies Broadband Consumer Label Requirements

On 10 July 2026, Ofcom published a package of draft materials as part of the third phase of its implementation of the Online Safety Act (the “Act”). While the Act already imposes baseline duties to tackle illegal content and to protect children (where a service is likely to be accessed by them) on all regulated user-to-user and search services, the 10 July package provides a set of additional duties targeted at the UK’s largest and most widely used online services.

The package is comprised of three connected strands:

  • The Register of Categorised Services. Ofcom published its long-awaited register, formally designating services across Category 1, Category 2A, and Category 2B, together with a list of “emerging” Category 1 services.
  • Consultation: Draft Fraudulent Advertising Codes of Practice (Category 1 and 2A): The draft codes of practice set proposed measures for how the largest user-to-user and search services should tackle paid-for fraudulent advertising.
  • Consultation: Draft Additional Duties Code of Practice and Guidance (Category 1 only): The draft codes of practice and associated guidance address user empowerment and identity verification, protections for certain public-interest content, terms of service, complaints, and freedom-of-expression and privacy assessments.

This post focuses on the third strand—the additional duties for Category 1 services.

Continue Reading UK online safety update: Ofcom’s Category 1 proposals and DSIT’s latest response to “Growing Up in an Online World”

State regulators are beginning to grapple with the implications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC (“NRSC”).  Minnesota may have provided the first clear example of how the ruling could reshape state campaign finance regimes. On June 30, the Supreme Court struck down the federal limits on coordinated party expenditures, holding that political parties have a First Amendment right to spend unlimited amounts in coordination with candidates and rejecting the argument that such limits are necessary to prevent corruption. Although the Court did not directly address limits on party-to-candidate contributions or in-kind contributions, the decision immediately raised questions about the constitutionality of such limits, particularly in jurisdictions that, unlike federal law, do not distinguish between coordinated expenditures and in-kind contributions. Minnesota’s response suggests that answers may be arriving sooner than expected.

Continue Reading Early Post-NRSC Domino Falls: Minnesota Stops Enforcing Limits on Certain Party In-Kind Contributions

On June 2, 2026, Colorado Governor Jared Polis vetoed HB 26-1210, a bill that would have imposed requirements for use of “surveillance data” to set individualized prices for consumers or individualized wage setting for workers. The veto is yet another action in a trend of bills focused on regulating “surveillance” or “dynamic” pricing.

Continue Reading Colorado Governor Vetoes Overly Broad Algorithmic Pricing and Wage Setting Bill

On July 9, 2026, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU” or “Court”) delivered its judgment in Sky Österreich Fernsehen (C-234/25), deciding that a streaming offering constitutes a digital service under the Consumer Rights Directive (Directive 2011/83/EU), rather than digital content, where the trader’s offering is of a dynamic nature and goes beyond the stable or continuous provision of specific content. As a result, providers of such streaming offerings cannot rely on the Consumer Rights Directive’s exception to the right of withdrawal for digital content.

The judgment has broad implications for providers of personalised digital services, as it affects whether consumers can cancel a subscription during the 14-day withdrawal period and, if they do, how much providers may charge for use of the service during that period.

Continue Reading CJEU Clarifies the Conditions for Seizure of Business Emails During Competition Inspections

It’s a common scenario: An employee receives a text from a friend asking them to contribute to the campaign of a candidate the friend supports. Without thinking much about it, the employee makes a $500 contribution. Though the employee has been trained on their company’s political contributions policy, it doesn’t…

Continue Reading Election Year Reminder: Pay-to-Play Risks Are Easy to Miss and Costly to Fix