New Stark Law regulations posted on July 31, 2008 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) revise and expand the prohibition on physician referrals for designated health services (DHS) to entities with which they have financial relationships. A recent Health Care Alert from Krieg DeVault LLP provides a more detailed analysis of these changes.
Effective July 1, 2008 there is a significant change in the law in Florida concerning the employment of chiropractic physicians, and the law carries felony level criminal penalties.
Under the statute, F.S. 760.4167, any entity, including licensed health care clinics, that employ chiropractic physician and is not owned entirely by licensed chiropractic physician(s) are statutorily prohibited from exercising control over the practice of chiropractic medicine. The scope of the statute extends to the hours a chiropractor works, pricing of chiropractic services, any equipment used by the chiropractor, and the advertising and selection of patients, among other requirements.
The statute makes any employment arrangement with a chiropractic physician entered into before July 1, 2008 that does not comply with its terms null and void.
Worse, any violation of these provisions is a third degree felony punishable by a maximum of five years in prison.
