AHCA Exemptions From Employment Disqualification for Florida Health Professionals

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

Florida law requires that health professionals (including physicians, nurses, physical therapists, nurse practitioners, professional counselors, and social workers, among others) obtain a Level 2 background screening before working in a facility licensed by the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA).  This includes third and fourth-year medical students, resident physicians, and nursing students.  Often an arrest from years ago, sometimes decades ago, will be located during this screening.  A letter stating that the individual is disqualified from employment or requiring an explanation may result.  What do you do?

Level 2 Background Screens.

A level two background screening requires your fingerprints.  It is done by checking the National Criminal Information System (NCIS) database maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).  The […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:16-04:00December 4, 2023|Categories: Health Facilities Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on AHCA Exemptions From Employment Disqualification for Florida Health Professionals
Read More

DOJ Drops Charges in Appalachia Opioid Case After Supreme Court Ruling

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

On August 12, 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it dropped charges against the remaining defendants in a case against a former Ohio drug distributor. In 2019, Miami-Luken, two of its executives, and two pharmacists were charged with unlawfully conspiring to distribute millions of addictive painkillers across rural Appalachia.

The Original Indictment.

The DOJ issued an indictment against the five defendants in 2019 and charged all with conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. It alleged Miami-Luken had sent millions of Class II and III narcotic painkillers to pharmacies that served rural towns in Appalachia. The indictment said that this occurred from about 2008 to 2015 when the opioid crisis was at its height.

During that time, the government alleged that Miami-Luken […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:16-04:00December 2, 2023|Categories: Pharmacy Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on DOJ Drops Charges in Appalachia Opioid Case After Supreme Court Ruling
Read More

New Study Faults Coding Structures For Increased Medical Billing Costs in U.S.

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

A study publicized in August 2022 revealed that the complex coding structures used in the United States drive up medical billing costs. This helps to make the U.S. one of the most expensive countries for health providers to get paid. According to the study, researchers used a micro-level accounting of billing and insurance-related (often abbreviated “BIR”) expenses in different national settings at six provider locations in five nations: Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and Singapore. This most recent study supplements a prior study measuring such costs in the U.S.

The findings, published in Health Affairs Journal, revealed “BIR (billing and insurance-related) costs in the U.S. are generally much higher than the costs in other countries.” This means that all the extra costs […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:16-04:00November 30, 2023|Categories: Health Facilities Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on New Study Faults Coding Structures For Increased Medical Billing Costs in U.S.
Read More

List of Florida Nursing Schools Issuing Phony Diplomas in Operation Nightingale Increases to 19

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

A recent announcement by the Washington State Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission (NCQAC), now known as the Washington State Board of Nursing, has listed 19 Florida schools that it states are or were involved in the fraudulent scheme investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as “Operation Nightingale.”


What Are the Names of the 19 Phony Florida Nursing Schools?

The 19 schools that NCQAC states were involved in taking nursing students’ money and issuing fake transcripts are:

Carleen Health Institute
Carleen Home Health School II
Ideal Professional Institute, Inc.
Jay College of Health LLC
Med-Life Institute – West Palm Beach
Med-Life Institute of South Florida
Med-Life Institute School of Nursing
Palm Beach School of Nursing
Quisqueya Health Care Academy
Quisqueya School of Nursing
Sacred Heart International Institute Inc.
Siena College of Health
Siena College of Health II LLC
Siena […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:17-04:00November 13, 2023|Categories: Nursing Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on List of Florida Nursing Schools Issuing Phony Diplomas in Operation Nightingale Increases to 19
Read More

Doctor’s Defamation Suit Against University over Use of Resident Physicians Moves Forward

Author HeadshotBy George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law and Hartley Brooks, Law Clerk, The Health Law Firm

On July 11, 2023, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky allowed a doctor to move forward with one of his defamation claims against the university’s provost for allegations made to support his termination.

A medical doctor and oral surgeon at the University of Kentucky (UK) sued the university and university officials on multiple grounds, including making a defamation claim against the university’s provost. The defamation claim stems from the Statement of Charges made by the provost in the physician’s termination proceedings.

The Statement of Charges claims that the doctor stole from the UK, took credit for patient care services that a resident performed, caused the College of Dentistry to submit false claims to […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:17-04:00October 30, 2023|Categories: Health Facilities Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on Doctor’s Defamation Suit Against University over Use of Resident Physicians Moves Forward
Read More

Iowa Appellate Court Reverses $6 Million Nursing Home Negligence Decision Because of Hearsay Testimony

Author HeadshotBy George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A, LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law and Hartley Brooks, Law Clerk, The Health Law Firm
On June 21, 2023, the Iowa Court of Appeals overturned the verdict in a nursing home negligence case that awarded $6 million in compensation and damages to the plaintiff. The case was reversed and remanded for a new trial because the trial court judge admitted inadmissible hearsay testimony into evidence. The testimony being appealed was that of staff members who claimed to have heard “reports” and “rumors” of alleged abuse by a nurse on staff toward not only the resident in question but other residents.
Hearsay in Iowa law is defined as “a statement, other than one made by the declarant while testifying at the trial or hearing, offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted.” […]
By |2024-03-14T09:59:17-04:00October 27, 2023|Categories: Pharmacy Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on Iowa Appellate Court Reverses $6 Million Nursing Home Negligence Decision Because of Hearsay Testimony
Read More

U.S. Government Renews COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, Extending Health Benefits for Millions of Americans

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

On July 15, 2022, the United States again renewed the COVID-19 public health emergency, allowing millions of Americans special access to free tests, vaccines, and treatments. The public health emergency was initially declared in January 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic began. Since then, the Department of Health and Human Services has renewed it each quarter. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra officially renewed the declaration extending it through October 13, 2022. View it in full here.

Ensuring Continued Access to Special Services During the Public-Health Emergency.

The declaration allows the U.S. to grant emergency authorizations of drugs, vaccines, and other medical countermeasures. As a result, it can administer those products to millions of people at no out-of-pocket cost. It’s also enabled millions of […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:18-04:00October 12, 2023|Categories: Mental Health Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on U.S. Government Renews COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, Extending Health Benefits for Millions of Americans
Read More

Female Scientist Files Suit Against Duke School of Medicine For Discrimination, Retaliation

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

On August 10, 2023, a female scientist in the anesthesiology department at Duke University’s School of Medicine filed a complaint against the school under Title VII and the Equal Pay Act. She told the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina that Duke paid her less than her male colleagues, increased her hours without increasing her pay, and threatened her with demotions after complaining about it.

According to the complaint (lawsuit), she was the first female principal investigator (PI) to work in Duke’s hyperbaric medicine center. The term “principal investigator,” as used in scientific research, means an individual with a medical degree or Ph.D. appointed directly by third parties (usually the sponsors) to lead and oversee funded scientific research projects on their behalf.

Alleged Hostile […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:18-04:00October 11, 2023|Categories: Medical Education Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on Female Scientist Files Suit Against Duke School of Medicine For Discrimination, Retaliation
Read More

Doctor’s Defamation Suit Okayed for Termination by University over Use of Resident Physicians

Author HeadshotBy George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law and Hartley Brooks, Law Clerk, The Health Law Firm

On July 11, 2023, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky allowed a doctor to move forward with one of his defamation claims against the university’s provost for allegations made to support his termination.

A medical doctor and oral surgeon at the University of Kentucky (UK) sued the university and university officials on multiple grounds, including making a defamation claim against the university’s provost. The defamation claim stems from the Statement of Charges made by the provost in the physician’s termination proceedings.

The Statement of Charges claims that the doctor stole from the UK, took credit for patient care services that a resident performed, caused the College of Dentistry to submit false claims to […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:18-04:00October 10, 2023|Categories: Medical Education Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on Doctor’s Defamation Suit Okayed for Termination by University over Use of Resident Physicians
Read More

HCA Healthcare Data Breach May Affect 11 Million Patients

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

On July 11, 2023, HCA Healthcare, which operates 180 hospitals in the U.S. and Britain, said a hacker may have stolen the personal data of about 11 million patients in a data breach. A press release warned patients that critical personal information had been compromised, including their full name, city, and when and where they last saw a healthcare provider.

What Happened to the Patient Data?

Data samples, including addresses, phone numbers, e-mails, and birth dates, were posted to DataBreaches.net (an online forum popular with cyber crooks) by a hacker trying to sell them. However, after publication, an HCA spokesperson told CNBC that the sample data set published was only a “marketing campaign” (or fake data) and was not an individual patient’s real medical assessment.

Who is Affected?

The […]

By |2024-03-14T09:59:18-04:00October 10, 2023|Categories: Nursing Law Blog|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |Comments Off on HCA Healthcare Data Breach May Affect 11 Million Patients
Read More
“The Health Law Firm” is a registered fictitious business name of George F. Indest III, P.A.
The Health Law Firm, a Florida professional service corporation, since 1999.
Copyright © 2022 The Health Law Firm. All rights reserved.
FacebookInstagramLinkedInTwitterYouTube
Go to Top