Posted on October 21, 2022 in Medical License Defense

Many different healthcare professionals need hospital admitting privileges. While doctors are perhaps most commonly thought of as using hospitals to practice medicine, other professionals, such as nurses who work in birthing centers next to hospitals, need admitting privileges, too. Not being able to admit patients to a hospital could put patients at risk of serious injury or death, and healthcare workers simply may not be able to do their job without hospital admitting privileges. Unfortunately, loss of hospital privileges can happen for a number of reasons. If you are being threatened with loss of admitting privileges or have already lost your admitting privileges, make sure you work closely with an Illinois medical license defense attorney.

Why Do Healthcare Professionals Lose Hospital Admitting Privileges?

People lose hospital admitting privileges for many reasons, although the most common are for issues related to not following hospital protocol and accusations of providing poor patient care. However, other reasons - such as abuse toward colleagues or falling short on an improvement agreement designed to increase the standard of your practice - may trigger the loss of admitting privileges as well.

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 Posted on October 14, 2022 in Medical License Defense

One of the ways the government is trying to respond to the urgent national opioid epidemic is by sending the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) after practitioners suspected of overprescribing opioids to patients. While there are many doctors who have rightfully been investigated and held responsible for overprescribing opioids, others have gotten caught in the cogs of a machine that is desperately trying to prove that it is doing something - whether that something is actually helpful or not.

Even if you are certain you are not guilty of overprescribing opioids to your patients, it is essential to take an investigation by the DEA seriously. If the Illinois medical board is concurrently conducting a separate investigation, the DEA’s findings may influence that investigation. While you may not have violated any laws regarding opioid prescriptions, the board may be interested in other potential violations, in distancing itself from you for other reasons, or in responding to a complaint that is a result of a personal vendetta. No matter the reason, you need to take an investigation seriously and have a professional license defense attorney’s help.

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 Posted on October 07, 2022 in Medical License Defense

Standards for doctor-patient relationships are understandably high. Doctors and other healthcare workers are in a position of authority over their patients, and a doctor who is found to have engaged in an inappropriate doctor-patient relationship may be at risk of losing his license. In addition to putting themselves at risk of accusations of medical malpractice, deviating from the standard of care by having even a voluntary relationship with a patient can be an act of negligence by medical professionals. Of course, acts of sexual assault or violence against a patient can similarly result in sanctions against licensure, as well as criminal investigations and punishments.

However, medical practitioners are people and people make mistakes. Furthermore, while practitioners are generally permitted to have consensual relationships with former patients, there may be a question as to whether the professional relationship was legitimately terminated prior to the relationship taking place. If you are a medical professional facing sanctions for allegedly engaging in inappropriate relationships with your patients, contact an Illinois medical license defense attorney for help.

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 Posted on September 26, 2022 in Medical License Defense

There are many professions in Illinois that require a professional license. There are boards that oversee the different types of licenses, with most of them falling under the umbrella of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). Each board has their own set of rules and regulations that stipulate what is required and what is forbidden for someone to be approved for their license. One of the factors that could make it difficult for an applicant to obtain a license is if the applicant has been convicted of a crime.

What Type of Criminal Record Will Not Have an Impact on a License Application?

Generally, there are certain types of criminal record entries that should not have an effect on a license application. These include:

• Any arrests and adjudications that occurred when the applicant was a juvenile

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 Posted on September 17, 2022 in Medical License Defense

Unfortunately, not all investigations of a professional license holder by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) are resolved with the allegations or complaints dismissed. There are cases where the board will find that the license holder violated a regulation and that some level of discipline is warranted.

In many situations, the professional will enter into some type of settlement agreement with the board that oversees their license (i.e., Illinois Medical Board, Illinois Nursing Board, etc.) in order to be able to continue practicing. But what happens if the license holder is accused of violating the settlement agreement? Does a violation mean an automatic suspension or revocation of a license?

Settlement Agreements

There are a variety of different reasons why a professional would be given the opportunity to enter into a settlement agreement to avoid loss of their professional license. For example, settlement agreements are often used in situations where the board finds there is enough evidence of a substance abuse issue for the license holder. In some cases, the professional may need to comply with daily check-ins either in-house or with one of the many companies that employers can contract with to oversee employee drug testing.

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 Posted on September 10, 2022 in Pharmacy License Defense

 Making pharmaceutical errors can have a significant detrimental impact on a pharmacy owner or pharmacist. The Illinois Board of Pharmacy and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) can take harsh action, classifying a pharmaceutical error that results in serious injury or death as malpractice. In addition to the civil legal ramifications brought forth by the alleged victim and/or their family, a pharmacist and the facility that employs them can also lose their licenses.

Incorrect Medication to the Patient

If a patient is given the wrong medication, it can cause serious or even fatal side effects. Unfortunately, these mistakes do occur, especially in pharmacies that have a large volume of prescription medications they fill on a daily basis. This can happen for any of the following reasons:

• The medication has a similar name as the name of the medication the patient was supposed to be given. Take, for example, Catapres® (clonidine) and Klonopin® (clonazepam). The generic names for both of these medications are very similar, but if the drugs are mixed up, the patient can experience loss of seizure control, hypotension, and other dangerous side effects.  

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 Posted on August 26, 2022 in Medical License Defense

On January 1, 2022, the No Surprises Act (NSA) went into effect. This federal law gives doctors and other licensed health care professionals, medical facilities, hospitals, and insurers significant and often complex regulations that must be adhered to in order to avoid serious sanctions that could include hefty fines and loss of medical licenses.

What Does the NSA Cover?

Lawmakers passed the NSA as a way to protect patients from unexpected medical charges and force providers to be more transparent when it comes to what they are charging. National statistics show that at least 20 percent of patients have received shocking emergency medical care bills with unexpected charges at some point in their lives.

The law limits the amount of liability a patient has on deductibles, copays, and coinsurance they are responsible for if situations prevent them from obtaining services from providers in their health insurance network and they are forced to obtain medical treatment from out-of-network providers at in-network facilities. 

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 Posted on August 18, 2022 in Medical License Defense

 Our Illinois professional license defense law firm has written many blog posts regarding the types of behaviors and activities that can result in the suspension of a professional license, including insurance fraud, substance abuse, and criminal convictions. But there are also other reasons why the state may take action against your professional license that you may not realize. One of those reasons is if you owe unpaid income taxes to the state of Illinois.

Actions by the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR)

Under Illinois law, the majority of residents – with some exceptions – are required to file a state income tax return. Businesses are also required to file state income tax returns, including medical offices and other healthcare facilities.

Your tax return will determine whether or not you owe taxes or if you are entitled to a refund. If you owe the state money but fail to pay when you send your tax return in, the IDOR will send you a bill for the amount you owe. That bill will also show the penalty and interest the state is charging you for not paying your taxes on time.  

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 Posted on August 11, 2022 in Medical License Defense

In January 2020, the recreational use of marijuana became legal in the state of Illinois. Under the law, anyone over the age of 21 is allowed to cumulatively possess 30 grams of cannabis flower, five grams of concentrate, and cannabis-infused products containing up to 500 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

But medical professionals are often held to a different standard when it comes to marijuana, even if it is legal. There may not be criminal consequences for using cannabis products, but you could be putting your medical license in jeopardy under certain circumstances.

Using Marijuana Products

If you are a doctor, nurse, or other medical license professional, you may be legally allowed to use marijuana products in Illinois under the following circumstances:

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 Posted on July 22, 2022 in Medical License Defense

Our professional license defense law firm has written extensively about the serious consequences physicians face if they are accused of medical insurance fraud, including loss of medical license even criminal charges. However, dentists can also be accused with insurance fraud and face the same type of consequences. If you have been accused of dental insurance fraud, contact an Illinois professional license defense attorney right away.

Dental Insurance Fraud

Dental fraud is any intentional misrepresentation or deception of treatment needed in order to obtain unauthorized benefits. According to the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association, more than $12 billion is lost to dental fraud every year.

One method of fraud that is becoming more common is the alterations of digital X-rays using software programs to create images that show bogus tooth decay, missing tooth structure, lesions, fractures, and more.

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