Each year when I renew my medical license, I am asked if I want to make a voluntary donation to the state Professionals Health Program (PHP). Well, what is a PHP program? They go by different names in different states, but the concept is the same. In North Carolina, its mission is as below: Our … Read more
Professional liability policies include a list of exclusions. It will not pay out for such exclusions. One exclusion related to a contention of “Sexual Conduct.” Exclusion: “Liability arising from any Claim that includes contentions or descriptions of Sexual Conduct by you or anyone for whom you may be legally responsible.” That policy defines Sexual Conduct … Read more
Utah’s new law on informed consent & transgender care for minors may have unintended consequences for surgeons Buyer’s remorse. We’ve all had it. Who hasn’t wanted a do-over? Assorted states acknowledge it. In North Carolina, certain purchases trigger a “right to cancel.” There are others. These made the list because the Attorney General’s office received … Read more
If you are a physician trying to protect your medical practice from false claims online and to bolster your reputation, you have several review-building program options—eMerit from Medical Justice (that’s us!), Birdeye, Weave, and Reputation Defender are some of the big ones. eMerit vs. Other Review-Building Programs While competitors promise some of the same core … Read more
America is the land of second chances. Many years ago, if you could not pay your debts, you could be moved to a debtor’s prison. Even in the US. Many Colonial American jurisdictions established debtors’ prisons using the same models used in Great Britain. James Wilson, a signatory to the Declaration of Independence, spent some … Read more
Medical malpractice lawsuits are public records. And sometimes they make the news. Sometimes they’re online. If a case was filed in court, it’s accessible to the public. (Arbitration agreements, on the other hand, are private matters. That’s another story for another day.) Say you’ve scheduled a surgery on a new patient. You go over the … Read more
On August 14, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) published its long-anticipated Final Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (“Final Rule”), marking a significant development in the regulation of online reviews and endorsements (16 CFR Part 465). One section is labeled § 465.5 Insider Consumer Reviews and Consumer Testimonials. It discusses whether officers … Read more
Remember diagramming sentences in your youth? Too soon. The tools lawyers use are words and punctuation to transmit intended meaning. One reason contracts are so long is to avoid ambiguity. Enter the Oxford comma. What is it? [T]he Oxford comma – or serial comma – is the last in a list of three or more … Read more
Can You Store Protected Health Information on iCloud? No. The information stored on a cloud provider must be transported to and stored securely. How secure? Reasonably secure. iCloud likely meets that test. In addition, there must be a signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA) in place before Protected Health Information PHI is transferred between organizations. This … Read more
In making investments, mutual funds note that past performance is not always an indicator of future performance. Which brings us to the case of Raynaldo Riviera Ortiz Jr., a Dallas-based anesthesiologist. On November 20, 2024, he was sentenced to 190 years in prison. Why? A jury determined he injected dangerous drugs into patient IV bags, … Read more
