We all make mistakes, but if you are a licensed physician in the state of Florida and fail to keep and maintain adequate business records, your license could be suspended or denied and you could face fines of up to $10,000 for each violation. These fines may not be covered by your liability insurance.

If you are a Florida-licensed physician and have received an administrative complaint from the Department of Health (DOH), you are probably concerned about how this may affect your license. To set up a FREE no-obligation consultation with attorney Jeff Howell or attorney Rickey Strong, contact the law firm of Howell, Buchan & Strong, Attorneys at Law at 850-877-7776. We represent licensed physicians statewide, including out-of-state clients who are concerned about the status of their Florida license.

According to Section 458.331(1)(m), Florida Statutes, the Florida Board of Medicine may discipline your license if you are found to have

[f]ail[ed] to keep legible, as defined by department rule in consultation with the board, medical records that identify the licensed physician or the physician extender and supervising physician by name and professional title who is or are responsible for rendering, ordering, supervising, or billing for each diagnostic or treatment procedure and that justify the course of treatment of the patient, including, but not limited to, patient histories; examination results; test results; records of drugs prescribed, dispensed, or administered; and reports of consultations and hospitalizations.

Rule 64B8-10.002(3), Florida Administrative Code (FAC), specifies that records must be kept “for a period of at least five years from the last patient contact.”

According to Rule 64B8-8.001(2)(m), FAC, the penalty for even a single violation is anywhere between a reprimand and two-year suspension of your license followed by probation and fines of between $1,000 and $10,000 for each violation. If you have a prior disciplinary history, the stipulated fines are between $5,000 and $10,000 for each violation, and probation or suspension of your license. Your disciplinary history is a matter of public record, and will be viewable by patients and prospective employers.

However, these penalties are not set in stone. The Board of Medicine can take into account any number of aggravating or mitigating factors to increase or lesson the penalties set down in the rules. When you have an experienced health care attorney fighting for you, you stand a much better chance of receiving the lowest possible penalty, and even of getting the complaint against you dismissed.

Contact the law firm of Howell, Buchan & Strong, Attorneys at Law at 850-877-7776 to set up your FREE no-obligation consultation with attorney Jeff Howell or attorney Rickey Strong today. DOH has experienced attorneys on its side. So should you!