Medicine & the Law

The increasing incidence of latex allergy has accelerated with the demand for gloves prompted by the spread of the HIV virus. Understand the nature of this growing problem and the ways to insulate your staff and yourself from it.

Failure to abide by key principles when contracting with HMOs may have you sacrificed on the altar of the new health care economy—with the sacrifice being performed by the high priest of bureaucracy.

Some of the more common areas of difficulty are: specific protections of buyer and seller, software license agreements and retirement packages. Consider some advice for negotiating each of these issues.

Expanding technical capabilities of vendors and users of health care information require serious legal considerations regarding the protection of electronically stored and retrieved information. A summary of Pennsylvania’s statutory and regulatory standards of confidentiality, as well as individual privacy laws.

Do you have a duty to protect others who come into contact with your patient who has a contagious disease? Does it matter whether or not the disease is a "reportable" one? The issue of liability to a third party is becoming more timely as new viruses and drug-resistant strains appear.

They remain a fixture in physician employment contracts, shareholder and asset purchase agreements. Physicians must be more attentive than ever to the nature and possible effect of restrictive covenants in their agreements. Courts analyze validity of covenants, reasonableness of their restrictions and remedies for their breach.

For many physicians, the decision to become an employee is fraught with doubt and uncertainty. A great deal of control over decision-making can be maintained by taking certain actions both before and after becoming an employee.

Many issues could arise upon leaving a medical practice. It is essential to negotiate the terms of a Termination Agreement to ensure a smooth withdrawal or split-up. Learn the types of provisions that should be included in the documents.

Physician unionization has been in the spotlight during the past few months. Physicians may join or form a union, but must be mindful of the potential obstacles and barriers involved.

A representative risk pool funding scheme is portrayed, and freedoms and limitations of implied partnerships are discussed as they impact the sharing of profits and losse