Medicine & the Law

It is time to truly put the ball of responsibility firmly in a patient's court and create documentation vehicles to do so, in a positive, not an adversarial, fashion.

No matter how advantageous these arrangements initially appear, they should never be entered into lightly.

After being served with a frivolous lawsuit, a doctor can request his or her defense lawyer to file a countersuit

Because the "Stark" law is generally understood to prohibit certain physician referrals, physician practices frequently overlook the fact that Stark also places limitations on their compensation plans. This article explores compensation strategies for group practices that comply with Stark.

Some physicians rely on marketing as a method to obtain new patients. Not all marketing programs, however, take into consideration complex federal and state prohibitions against certain types of marketing.

Enforcement actions provide valuable insight into the type of conduct of physician networks and their messengers that the DOJ and FTC view as anti-competitive.

The dollars and obligations are big and the pitfalls are many. Here is a practical legal guide for those about to embark on the journey.

Practices need to confirm, prior to employing a physician or other individual or contracting with a provider or vendor, that the individual or entity is not excluded from participation in federal health care programs.

Even the most honest and scrupulous of practices can find themselves answering questions regarding their billing for services. It is more important than ever that physicians try to avoid any allegations of personal financial benefit, and even fraud or abuse, by appropriately responding when questions about their billing arise

In response to a crisis of cost and availability, a number of alternative risk mechanisms are emerging, including a domestic reciprocal exchange, risk retention groups (RRGs) and captives. How do these alternatives compare to traditional insurance, and what should physicians expect from participation in an alternative risk mechanism?