Total Health Law Blog
Our healthcare and business law firm works with many providers and medical practices to ensure compliance with state and federal laws, rules, and regulations for given procedures, treatments, and prescriptions. A hot topic and sometimes controversial category of drug right now is weight loss drugs (also called weight management drugs). A provider should generally prescribe a drug or treatment pursuant to a patient-provider relationship when the drug is medically necessary and appropriate, but some states have laws and rules specifically governing prescribing weight loss drugs. If your state has rules or guidance on prescribing weight loss drugs, it’s important, of course, to follow that guidance. This blog post outlines potential state guidance using Florida’s weight loss statute as an example. If you need assistance understanding your state’s guidance on weight loss treatments or would like to discuss this blog post, you may contact our healthcare and business law firm at (404) 685-1662 (Atlanta) or (706) 722-7886 (Augusta), or by email, info@hamillittle.com. You may also learn more about our law firm by visiting www.hamillittle.com.
Some states have not taken any public stance on weight loss drugs. But if the state in which you practice has published such guidance, then it is important to follow it. Furthermore, even if your state has not taken any public stance, it may be useful to review guidance from other states to create “best practices.” Let’s examine the Florida statute governing weight loss treatment. Continue reading ›
Our healthcare and business law firm often represents medical practices, including primary care practices, specialty practices, and med spas, in the initial set up phase of their practice. Whether a Management Services Organization (“MSO”) is necessary or advisable for your practice usually requires a detailed review of your business structure and state laws. If an MSO is advisable for your practice based on the Corporate Practice of Medicine (“CPOM”) doctrine in your state, this post provides 3 key provisions that should be within your Management Services Agreement (“MSA”). If you have medical practice set up or MSO questions or would like to discuss this blog post, you may contact our healthcare and business law firm at (404) 685-1662 (Atlanta) or (706) 722-7886 (Augusta), or by email, 
Our healthcare and business law firm works with healthcare providers and businesses like 
Our healthcare and business law firm works with healthcare businesses to assist in compliance matters, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. The HITECH Act was designed to strengthen HIPAA in many ways. A question our healthcare business-owning clients often have is whether patients with insurance can choose to pay cash instead of billing to insurance. This post focuses on what the HITECH Act states on this subject. If you have a question about the HITECH Act or would like to discuss this blog post, you may contact our healthcare and business law firm at (404) 685-1662 (Atlanta) or (706) 722-7886 (Augusta), or by email, 
Our healthcare and business law firm consistently works with physicians who are dealing with complications resulting from adverse reporting to the National Practitioner Data Bank (“NPDB”) as well as entities in deciding what reports may be appropriate for certain situations. Whether you are on the side of the provider or reporting entity, it is important to understand the types of NPDB reports that are permitted. This post outlines the four types of reports. If you have a question about the NPDB or would like to discuss this blog post, you may contact our healthcare and business law firm at (404) 685-1662 (Atlanta) or (706) 722-7886 (Augusta), or by email, 
Our healthcare and business law firm works with numerous medical practices in compliance and regulatory matters. Many medical practices are unaware of the requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”), and in particular the requirements to accommodate individuals with auditory disabilities (including individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing). The ADA does not just prevent disability discrimination by employers. Title III of the ADA applies to “public accommodations.” A public accommodation is a business that is open to the public or provides goods or services to the public and specifically includes a “professional office of a health care provider.” 28 CFR 36.104; 
Our healthcare and business law firm works with many behavioral health providers in establishing and operating their ABA associated businesses. We have a particular focus on such companies and will be producing a series of helpful articles to assist providers in navigating various operational and business hurdles to ensure they are able to effectively treat their patients.
As a healthcare and business law firm, we have many clients who participate in or wish to participate in pain management clinics. A previous blog post of ours provided an 
Our healthcare and business law firm works with many physician and other health care providers who own their own medical practice. The Georgia Medical Board and Georgia Legislature, as well as many other state medical boards and legislatures, have noted concern with consumer confusion with the numerous titles held by non-physician health care practitioners. For instance, “In a survey done a few years ago by the AMA, 39% of patients thought a Doctor of Nursing Practice was a physician and 11% weren’t sure. Half were either completely wrong or confused by a title. More than half (61%) thought a Doctor of Medical Science was a physician, which is completely incorrect.” M. Blackman, J. Commins, “
Both concierge medicine and direct primary care practices have become popular alternatives to the traditional insurance medical practice model.