How to File a Complaint Against a Doctor in Florida

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The Florida Department of Health is the regulatory agency responsible for protecting the public in the world of healthcare.

They require medical professionals of all kinds to attain a certain level of education in order to gain license to practice in the state. They further require medical professionals to maintain that licensure through ongoing education and a stellar record of patient care.

When one or both of these requirements are threatened, the professional may risk fines, imprisonment, loss of licensure, or a combination of these. This applies to professionals in every aspect of healthcare, from physicians and dentists to their support staff.

When a patient feels their doctor has violated their code of ethics or responsibility, they are encouraged to file a complaint with the state. The FDH will investigate these complaints and determine whether or not action is warranted. The process can be lengthy and tedious, and in some cases, legal counsel may be recommended.

How to File a Complaint Against a Doctor in Florida

In the state of Florida, patients, colleagues, and employees can easily file a complaint against an individual practitioner, a business, or both.

This process begins online, but depending on the nature of your complaint, you may be directed to the Florida Department of Health, Agency for Health Care Administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Statewide Medicaid Managed Care, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, or another agency to continue to process your complaint.

Where and how you file will depend on the focus of your complaint. For example, if you believe that your doctor is fraudulently charging or overcharging you for services, you may need to go to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

If you would like to file a complaint based on a HIPAA violation, you will have to file with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Each of these agencies has a different set of forms and procedures to follow as you go through the process.

Florida Medical Board Complaints

If you wish to file a complaint of malpractice with the Florida Medical Board, the process is especially tricky. They make it very clear that while they will investigate the matter and potentially levy fines or pull licensure, they will not represent any patients in civil matters.

Additionally, the process of filing is complex, and it is not always easy to know what should happen next or what is required of the complainant.

Florida Healthcare Law Firm Can Answer Your Questions



If you’ve had a complaint filed against you, the best thing to do is hire an attorney who can assist you. Choose a law firm that has experience with healthcare law specifically as these cases can get complex.


If you have questions related to healthcare law in Florida, contact Florida Healthcare Law Firm today for assistance.

3 Ways to Prepare for a Compliance & Regulatory Services Consult

compliance and regulatory services

compliance and regulatory servicesAt our health law firm, we offer complete and thorough compliance and regulatory services consults. Here’s how we ask our new clients to prepare for our visits. 

At the Florida Healthcare Law Firm, we meet with hospital, health plan, and clinic executives every day. We build audit schedules that work, and we conduct training programs to keep staff on track. 

While we’re both quick and efficient, we do rely on our clients to prepare for visits from the health law firm. Here’s what we ask all new clients to do. 

  1. Collect All Compliance & Regulatory Services Training Materials 

A lack of staff training often leads to privacy or other legal violations. To conduct an analysis and ensure we’re building the right plan, we must know how you’re working with new staff. 

We’d like to see these documents:

  • Employee manuals 
  • HIPAA training documents 
  • Staff evaluation forms 

Anything you’ve given your staff to help them learn the rules is appropriate for our study and perusal. 

  1. Gather Important Staff to Meet With the Health Law Firm 

We’ll conduct an initial discussion with a leader within the organization. But at some point, we’ll want to talk with plenty of people in charge. 

We might want to speak to these people:

  • IT manager
  • HIPAA compliance officer 
  • Human resources director 
  • Marketing director 

We might also like to talk with anyone who trains new employees or negotiates contracts on your behalf. Knowing who these people are right now and ensuring they’re available to speak with the health law firm will save time.

  1. Document Past Legal Issues 

One medical malpractice payout happens every 43 minutes in the United States. If you’ve had difficulty with compliance and regulatory services in the past, you’re not alone. And we’ll want to know everything about what went wrong. 

Pull together any documentation related to your past lawsuits, including summons information, payouts, and defense strategies. We’ll also want to know what you’ve done to prevent similar problems in the future.

We Are Here to Help 

Consider us the health law firm in Florida. Our talented and experienced team is here to help organizations both large and small, and it’s easy to get started. Schedule a consultation today. 

Forward Looking: How to Prepare for 2021

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We’ve all learned a lot in 2020, but are we prepared for what 2021 will bring? The change of the calendar won’t make the pandemic go away, but you can prepare your medical practice.

Continue reading

This Florida Healthcare Law Firm Can Spare You from Legal Headaches

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Florida Healthcare Law FirmFor physicians who are overwhelmed with legal issues this year, the outstanding attorneys at florid healthcare law firm will simplify even the most complex issues and spare you from unnecessary stress and financial burden.

Let’s face it…2020 has been a year of unprecedented challenges. The pandemic has shone a spotlight on the overwhelming medical-related issues faced by hospitals, physicians, dentists, practices and facilities throughout the country. Every decision you make as a medical professional now has additional ramifications. The consequences are daunting. Don’t waste precious time and money trying to navigate this field of legal headaches alone. At Florida Healthcare Law Firm we can guide you, advise you and ensure that all of your legal matters are handled with expert care. Why? The answer is simple: We don’t dabble in medical legal matters; we specialize in them. With more than 150 years’ collective experience, our expert team is ready to help with every type of medical-related business. From Covid-19 legalities, telemedicine and telehealth—which are hot issues right now—to managed care contracts, treatment center start-ups, selling or buying a practice, defense against a ZPIC audit, hiring and firing or interpretation of standard policies and procedures, we’re there for you every step of the way.

When you meet with a Florida Healthcare Law attorney, you’re guaranteed the best in the business—custom consultations with you, the client, in mind. After all, we’re the state’s first and only boutique legal business, so you get the service you want. We’ve helped small practices, $90 mammoth facilities, urban centers, rural hospitals, pharmacies, laboratories, durable medical equipment companies and ambulatory surgical centers. We’ve successfully negotiated financial raises and taken care of licensure, certification and accreditation issues. Why use up your time better spent with patients when you can schedule a complimentary appointment with our seasoned legal team and discuss your needs? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain, especially with our flat-fee pricing and a money-back guarantee. Lower your legal stress level this year; it’s one positive thing you can do to manage your medical business during this difficult time. Contact the professionals at Florida Healthcare Law Firm today.

Dentist Employment Contracts

https://floridahealthcarelawfirm.com/our-team/chase-howard-attorney-florida-medical-lawyer/

https://floridahealthcarelawfirm.com/our-team/chase-howard-attorney-florida-medical-lawyer/By: Chase Howard

A dentist’s first employer agreement is just as important as their last one. While all contracts include basic terms regarding compensation and restrictions, many simply do not contemplate important terms that have impacts on Dentist’s daily lives. Understanding, and negotiating, your contracts is the most valuable investment you can make prior to entering into a contract.

To understand what’s in your employment contract, simply read it over a few times. To understand not only how those terms affect you, but also what isn’t in your contract, hire an experienced health care lawyer.Continue reading

Physician Engagements: Who Do I Really Work For and Does it Matter?

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By: Randy Goldberg, Co-Counsel

I am a successful physician who works for a thriving practice that is affiliated with a local hospital or Ambulatory Surgical Center (“ASC”).  The hospital/ASC was so impressed with my professionalism and skills that they retained me to perform certain additional duties and services for them.  Of course, they are paying me for my time and services.  This is great, I love my work, I am generating two sources of respectable income – all is good.

Not so fast!

As can sometimes be the case, all is good while there is smooth sailing and while the money is coming in.  However, once there is a bump in the road, a hiccup in a procedure, or a third party employee files a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”); the Florida Commission on Human Relations (“FCHR”); Department of Labor (“DOL”) or any federal or state agency complaining about some alleged incident in their workplace. Their filing of a lawsuit can be against you individually, against your practice or against the hospital/ASC.  Not to mention, a lawsuit can be filed by a patient or third party against the practice or the hospital/ASC.  Then what?Continue reading