January, 2013

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Food and Drug Administration Likely to Tighten Controls on Hydrocodone Combination Drugs

The Health Law Firm

By Lance O. Leider, J.D., The Health Law Firm, and George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee voted 19 to 10 in favor of moving hydrocodone combination drugs from schedule III into the more restrictive schedule II category of controlled substances.

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What the New HIPAA Rules Mean for Health Professionals, Texting and Use of Social Media

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law, and Lance O. Leider, J.D., The Health Law Firm. With the popularity of electronic health records (EHRs), social media and everything in between, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has released stronger rules and protections governing patient privacy.

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South Florida Pharmacy Owner Allegedly Used Dead Beneficiaries to Defraud Medicare

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. A family that owns a number of South Florida pharmacies is allegedly under investigation for Medicare fraud, according to a number of sources. On January 17, 2013, federal authorities raided one pharmacy location in Naples, Florida. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents removed boxes of documents and computers from the pharmacy, according to Naples News.

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VA Physicians and Health Professionals Should Fight Allegations of Substandard Care in Peer Review Matters

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. I have represented physicians, psychologists, nurse practitioners, nurses and other health professionals working in Veterans Administration (VA) medical centers and clinics throughout the United States. My representation has included personnel and employment issues, disciplinary actions, investigations, peer review investigations, clinical privileges actions, fair hearings, National Practitioner Data

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Optimizing Medical Waste Management: A Guide to Best Practices

Feeling overwhelmed by medical waste regulations? This comprehensive guide unravels the complexities of medical waste disposal, ensuring you stay compliant and prioritize safety. Inside you'll find: Clear categorization: Learn to precisely classify medical waste for proper handling and disposal. Labeling & Storage: Discover best practices for clear labeling and secure storage of medical waste.

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Relocating Your Practice? Don't Forget to Notify Your Patients

The Health Law Firm

By Thu Pham, O.D., Law Clerk, The Health Law Firm Relocating your practice can be stressful. There are many things that you need to do such as physically moving all of your equipment, moving your utility services, notifying your insurance companies, notifying the Department of Health (DOH), notifying Medicare and Medicaid and, most important, notifying your patients.

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Are Medicare Investigations Leaving the Hospice Industry on Life Support?

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. It’s no surprise to anyone that Medicare is cracking down on hospices around the country. According to a report by the Office of Inspector General (OIG), eighty-two percent (82%) of hospices’ claims did not meet Medicare coverage requirements.

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Phony DEA Agents Attempt to Extort “Fines” in Central Florida: Telephone Con Men Claim to Have Arrest Warrants

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. Health care providers beware, there is a scam making its rounds in Central Florida. Con men are telephoning citizens, including physicians, and pretending to be Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents in the hope of extorting money from them. It’s a scam we first told you about in December 2012, but have since learned more.

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Former Florida Hospital Employee Sentenced for Stealing Confidential Patient Information

The Health Law Firm

By Lance O. Leider, J.D., The Health Law Firm. A former Florida Hospital employee, who admitted to stealing confidential patient information, was sentenced to spend one year and one day in federal prison on January 14, 2013. He pleaded guilty in October 2012, to one count of conspiracy and one count of wrongful disclosure of health information, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

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Ohio Hospital Pays $4.4 Million to Settle Accusations of Performing Unnecessary Procedures

The Health Law Firm

By Lance O. Leider, J.D., Attorney, The Health Law Firm. A group of doctors accused of performing an unusually high number of heart procedures on patients at an Ohio hospital has settled a whistleblower lawsuit, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). The settlement agreement covers accusations that the doctors and the hospital billed Medicare for unnecessary cardiac procedures from 2001 to 2006.

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Locating a Healthcare Providers Service Organization (HPSO) Insurance Defense Attorney in Florida Company Cases

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. We are sometimes told by the health professionals we represent especially pharmacists, licensed mental health counselors (LMHCs), advanced registered nurse practitioners (ARNPs), massage therapists and physical therapists that after they received a complaint regarding their license from the Florida Department of Health (DOH) they had difficulty finding an experienced attorney in Florida who would acce

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HIPAA Compliance: Can Your Organization Avoid Costly Government Penalties and Fines?

Colington Consulting was established in 2013 and helps organizations achieve HIPAA compliance and ensures clients stay current with the latest enforcement trends. We provide a full range of HIPAA compliance services and consulting. What separates us from our competitors is our knowledge of HIPAA compliance regulations and their application to each of our client’s particular scenarios and requirements.

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Inappropriate Billing by Optometrists Could Result in An Audit and Significant Repayment

The Health Law Firm

By Thu Pham, O.D., and George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. Optometrists' scope of practice has expanded significantly in the last 10 years. With that expansion has come a more complicated medical billing process. Inappropriate billing could result in an audit by insurance companies, the state Medicaid program, the Medicare program or other third party payors, and a request for repayment of the amount of money paid due to the inappropriate

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Massage Therapists Need Good Professional Liability Insurance with Broad Coverage

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. Whether you’re an independent contractor, an employee of a chiropractor, physician or spa, or you travel to clients’ homes, insurance is essential for all massage therapists. Not only can professional liability insurance protect you in the event of a lawsuit, but it may also pay your legal defenses in the event of a complaint against your license to practice or for other legal problems.

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Health Care Professionals Fired for Refusing to Get Flu Shots

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. The warnings have been loud and clear from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This influenza season is off to an early and serious start. With that in mind, a number of states are requiring all health professionals in the state to receive the flu vaccination.

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Central Florida Nurse Accused of Illegally Obtaining Prescriptions for Painkillers

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. A Central Florida nurse is in trouble with the law for allegedly writing fake prescriptions and illegally obtaining painkillers for herself, according to the Orlando NBC affiliate, WESH television. The nurse was allegedly arrested during the week of December 31, 2012.

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The Big Payoff of Application Analytics

Outdated or absent analytics won’t cut it in today’s data-driven applications – not for your end users, your development team, or your business. That’s what drove the five companies in this e-book to change their approach to analytics. Download this e-book to learn about the unique problems each company faced and how they achieved huge returns beyond expectation by embedding analytics into applications.

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Burden of Proof in Administrative Cases Involving Discipline of Professional Licenses - Part 2

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. I am often asked about the burden of proof that must be met by the state Department of Health (DOH) in professional licensing disciplinary cases. This could be a complaint against a physician, dentists, mental health counselor, nurse, psychologist, pharmacist or anyone else.

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Licensees must Be Certain to Maintain Their Continuing Education Requirements

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. Those who are licensed by the Department of Health (DOH) must be sure they are maintaining their continuing education requirements by taking the required courses in a timely manner. We have attended at least one professional board meeting recently where there was concern expressed about licensees failing to meet their continuing education requirements.

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Burden of Proof in Administrative Cases Involving Discipline of Professional Licenses - Part 1

The Health Law Firm

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. I am often asked about the burden of proof that must be met by the state Department of Health (DOH) in professional licensing disciplinary cases. This could be a complaint against a physician, dentists, mental health counselor, nurse, psychologist, pharmacist or anyone else.

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San Diego-Based Specialty Pharmacy Settles Whistleblower Lawsuit for $11.4 Million

The Health Law Firm

By Lance O. Leider, J.D., and George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on December 27, 2012, that a specialty pharmacy, based in San Diego, California, has agreed to pay a $11.4 million settlement. That payment is to resolve allegations that the company used kickbacks to persuade doctors to write prescription for its products.

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Everything You Wanted to Know About FACIS, but Didn’t Know to Ask

Speaker: Amy Anderson

FACIS® helps organizations mitigate patient and organizational risk. Maintaining compliance and safeguarding against fraud and abuse in today’s changing healthcare landscape can be challenging. Most healthcare organizations screen and monitor providers against the OIG but that’s only ONE of FACIS®’ primary sources. FACIS® pulls data for every taxonomy from the lowest level employee to the highest level licensed professional.

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Three-Year Medical School Degree: Putting Physicians on the Fast Track to Practicing Medicine

The Health Law Firm

By Danielle M. Murray, J.D. To combat the nationwide shortage of primary care physicians and the increase in student debt, several medical schools around the country are offering the chance for students to finish school in three years, instead of four. According to a number of news articles, these programs are geared specifically toward medical students looking to practice primary care.

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Whistleblowers Accuse Nursing Care Company of Medicare Fraud

The Health Law Firm

By Danielle M. Murray, J.D. The Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is investigating a Tennessee-based nursing care company. The company runs more than 200 skilled nursing homes (SNFs), assisted living facilities (ALFs), retirement living communities, home care services, and Alzheimer's centers across the country.