representation for Florida Colorado Louisiana D.C. Virginia board of massage therapy complaint investigations

By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law

We often hear from clients with professional licensing complaints and Department of Health investigations who have insurance coverage with Healthcare Providers Service Organization  (HPSO) Insurance but could not find a lawyer who accepts it. They come to us after disciplinary action has been taken against their license to appeal or reverse it.

Our law firm and attorneys have represented individuals covered by HPSO Insurance for over 25 years. HPSO covers and pays for legal matters in various areas, such as administrative hearings, professional license complaints, investigations, depositions, HIPAA violations, and more.

Under these policies, the insurance company will pay the legal fees and costs related to your defense. However, usually, you are required to locate and retain the appropriate attorney to represent you.

1. Seek and retain an attorney who accepts your insurance, whether it is HPSO Insurance, NORCAL Insurance, The Doctors Company (TDC) Insurance, CPH & Associates Insurance, Pharmacists Mutual Insurance, Philadelphia Insurance, or another national company. This will ensure that you have an attorney who will give you the lower rates the insurance company had negotiated and will have a good working relationship established with your insurance company. If an attorney with our firm cannot represent you, we will try to find one who will.

2. The primary qualification for any attorney you hire to represent you should be their experience working with health professionals in the same field. If the attorney is not familiar with your area of health practice or the type of hearings involved, it may be difficult for that attorney to get up to speed to represent you properly.

3. If you come across an attorney who states that they will help you make a statement to the investigator or assist you in the investigation but does not appear at hearings, this is the wrong attorney. You need an attorney that can represent you from start to finish.

4. You also want to retain the services of an attorney who has appeared before your professional board or state licensing authority in investigations and hearings, especially formal or informal administrative hearings.

5. Often, you will encounter an attorney who only wants you to accept a consent order, stipulation, or settlement agreement. Remember that these are all merely “plea bargains,” by signing this, you will be pleading guilty to whatever offenses are charged. In most cases, you will be innocent and must request a formal administrative hearing to prove this instead of signing the consent agreement (or order).

6. You don’t need an attorney in your city, state, or location. Almost all the work on the case can be done by telephone and e-mail. You usually have only one meeting or hearing with the agency, and depending on the type of hearing or meeting, it could be located in many different locations. Our attorneys will travel to those locations for meetings and hearings with you.

7. Beware of attorneys who hold themselves out in Internet advertising as health attorneys or professional licensed defense attorneys but are other types of attorneys. We see this greatly from medical malpractice plaintiff attorneys, criminal defense attorneys, and attorneys who sue insurance companies. Be sure you retain only an attorney who concentrates their practice on defending those in the specialty of massage therapy and physical therapy, board of physical therapy and massage therapy complaints, investigations, and hearings.

8. If you can’t find an attorney to meet your immediate needs through an Internet search, you may contact your insurance company or professional association and ask if they have a list of attorneys who can do the legal work you require.

For example, you may reach Healthcare Providers Service Organization (HPSO) at (800) 982-9491; you can reach CPH & Associates at (800) 875-1911 or (312) 987-9823; you can access additional policy info from American Massage Therapy Association Insurance (AMTA) by going to their website here: https://www.amtamassage.org/massage-insurance/overview

To learn more about professional liability insurance and why you should have it, read my prior blog here.

The attorneys of The Health Law Firm provide legal representation to massage therapists and physical therapists, physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, massage therapists, mental health counselors, registered nurses (RNs), assisted living facilities (ALFs), home health agencies (HHAs), nurse practitioners, lab technicians, occupational therapists, physical therapists (PTs), social workers, physician assistants, psychologists, and other health professionals in many different legal matters.

Services we provide include representation before your professional board in DOH investigations, administrative hearings, civil litigation, professional licensing matters, defense of allegations concerning HIPAA privacy violations and medical record breaches, and many others.

In cases in which the health care professional has professional liability insurance or general liability insurance, which provides coverage for such matters, we will seek to obtain coverage from your insurance company and will attempt to have your legal fees and expenses covered by your insurance company.  If allowed, we will agree to take an assignment of your insurance policy proceeds to submit our bills directly to your insurance company. We also defend health professionals and health facilities in general and business litigation matters.

To contact The Health Law Firm, please call (407) 331-6620 or toll-free (888) 331-6620 and visit our website at www.TheHealthLawFirm.com.

About the Author: George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., is Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law. He is the President and Managing Partner of The Health Law Firm, which has a national practice. Its main office is in the Orlando, Florida, area. www.TheHealthLawFirm.com The Health Law Firm, 1101 Douglas Avenue, Suite 1000, Altamonte Springs, FL 32714, Phone: (407) 331-6620 or Toll-Free: (888) 331-6620

Attorney Positions with The Health Law Firm. The Health Law Firm always seeks qualified attorneys interested in health law practice. Its main office is in the Orlando, Florida, area. If you are a member of The Florida Bar and are interested, forward a cover letter and your resume to: [email protected] or fax to: (407) 331-3030.

“The Health Law Firm” is a registered fictitious business name of and a registered service mark of The Health Law Firm, P.A., a Florida professional service corporation, since 1999.

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