Medicine & the Law

All joint ventures need to be approached with caution, as they nearly always raise issues of compliance with the federal antikickback/fraud and abuse rules, the Stark law, state anti-referral or “mini Stark” laws, and other rules.

The security regulations may require even more time and effort than you spent on the earlier HIPAA privacy regulations.

In Pa.., there are several tools which are available to deter baseless claims. Each has advantages and disadvantages from the defense perspective.

MCARE has raised the profile and responsibilities of the boards and focused them on a new and far more aggressive mission.

With the finalization of the joint venture safe harbors and greater certainty in the Office of Inspector General’s position regarding joint ventures, there has been a revival of physician-hospital ventures.

The OIG issued a draft Supplemental Compliance Program Guidance for the Hospital Industry, detailing additional requirements for hospitals and providing significant additional guidelines that directly affect physicians’ relationships with hospitals.

Although the facts and circumstances surrounding if, when and how a group practice may implode are unpredictable, physicians together with practice legal counsel, can take certain steps to prepare for that eventuality, even if they believe it to be unlikely.

Requirements which relate to subject selection and protection, informed consent, privacy and confidentiality, conflicts of interests, and fee splitting and referrals need to be reviewed regularly by researchers, otherwise they can result in a trap for the unwary.

What is evident one year later is that there is still considerable misunderstanding surrounding the operation of the HIPAA privacy rules.

It is possible to negotiate arrangements with the group enabling the senior doctor to phase down gradually, so that the later years of practice are enjoyable, not grueling.