In Case of Emergency: Preparing Your Practice for a Disaster

but in many instances the case settles out of court. However, there were two cases where Asad ended up going to trial and testifying on the witness stand. In those cases, the plaintiff and defense attorneys questioned Asad about the case, his treatment and diagnosis. “They might have questions about causation, whether I think that the symptoms and the diagnoses I’m giving to the patient was caused by the injury, was it something preexisting or was it something preexisting that got worse with the injury,” he said. Asad said that many personal injury patients don’t often get the appropriate treatment they need. These patients seek treatment with their primary care providers, but are turned away because the providers aren’t in network with personal injury insurance companies and aren’t set up to handle medico-legal cases. However, at Universal Neurological Care, Asad can treat personal injury patients in any capacity. “You can see a physician like myself where we’re in network with all the insurances, but we are also able to work with car insurances and can also handle legal cases where the attorney holds the bills until the case settles. So that gives us a little wider breadth in terms of being able to treat people.”

Letter of Protection and Payment

Patients may not realize that some health insurance plans will not pay for medical care for injuries that came from a car accident. This is because they expect them to have the automobile insurance carrier of the one responsible for the accident pay for the medical bills. The auto insurance company expects patients to pay for all the medical expenses upfront, then submit all the bills at once to settle the case and make them an offer. Doctors tend to expect this to happen and therefore won’t treat auto injury patients through their regular health insurance.

This is why it is important to have a letter of protection. The injured patient’s attorney will send a letter of protection to the doctor agreeing to pay the medical bills using any money awarded by settlement or verdict award. This allows the patient to receive the care they need on credit, with future payments for treatment guaranteed. The doctor agrees to wait until the conclusion of the case to get paid. Letters of protection are legally binding documents and stipulate that medical providers cannot demand immediate payments from patients. Once a settlement is reached or the trial is won, then the doctor receives compensation for the care they provided. However, if a settlement is not reached or the case is lost, the patient has to pay their medical provider for all the bills they owe. Many injury cases require testimony from a medical expert and having the proper expertise is crucial to a case. As lawyers and physicians work together, they can provide the best chance for a successful case for patients and clients.

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“As lawyers and physicians work together, they can provide the best chance for a successful case for patients and clients.”

Continuing Education:

Requirements & Licensure Renewal

NOTE: Licensees of the Florida Board of Medicine are required to renew their licenses biennially to maintain the right to practice.

Allopathic (MD)

The Department of Health (DOH) divides MDs into two groups. One group holds licenses that expire at midnight on January 31 of even-numbered years, while the other group expires at midnight of January 31 on odd-numbered years. The Domestic Violence course and Prevention of Medical Errors course must be approved by any state or federal government agency, nationally affiliated professional association, or any provider of Category I or II AMA Continuing Education. For other methods of obtaining continuing medical education per biennium, visit https://flboardofmedicine. gov/renewals.

FIRST RENEWAL

• One hour of HIV/AIDS

• Two hours of Prevention of Medical Errors (Course must include information regarding the five most misdiagnosed conditions.) SECOND RENEWALS AND BEYOND

• Two hours of Prevention of Medical Errors (Course must include information regarding the five most misdiagnosed conditions.)

• Two hours of Controlled Substance Prescribing (Required for medical doctors who are registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and authorized to prescribe controlled substances.)

• 38 general CME hours, including two hours of Domestic Violence for every third biennium

Photo by Gustavo Fring, courtesy of Pexels