Medicine & the Law

Even the best run practices often sign agreements which contain provisions that can prove to be troublesome.

We can now begin to assess to what degree the regulations met their stated goal of reducing confusion and easing many of the burdens faced by hospital emergency departments, while still ensuring that individuals will receive appropriate screening and emergency treatment, regardless of their ability to pay.

When necessary, discipline may be implemented, up to and including termination of employment. Implementing uniform practices when managing your employees will likely improve the overall efficiency of your practice, while reducing your legal exposure.

On its face, Pa.’s prompt-pay law appears quite promising. In practice, however, the law has not provided much help for physicians or deterred recalcitrant payers.

Are you relying on that group LTD policy to pay you benefits? If you become disabled, you may be in for the fight of your life.

If physicians are not careful in their approaches to marketing and advertising, they may find themselves in violation of a myriad of federal and state laws and regulations which carry heavy civil and criminal sanctions, as well as licensure discipline.

You have the opportunity to control the transaction and the way in which your transition to retirement or a new career is handled.

It would be wise for physicians to integrate the security measures required under the Security Rule into their current Privacy Rule policies.

Telemedicine's growth, however successful, has been slowed by payment and other legal concerns, such as limits on services that qualify for insurance coverage, state licensure laws, potential malpractice liability, and privacy and security concerns.

While Aetna’s class action settlement appears beneficial, the financial relief for physicians with substantial claims against Aetna for past reimbursement problems may be less than adequate. If in doubt, a physician will protect his or her options by submitting an opt-out notice by the August 29 deadline.