New Drug Monitoring Program

Georgia Professionals - Keep an Eye on New Drug Monitoring Program

No one will make headlines by claiming that we have a prescription drug problem throughout the country. The issue is already well-known, and solutions to address the problem are myriad. Professionals like doctors and pharmacists are often caught in the middle, sometimes accused of enabling those addicted to these drugs by provided continued access via subscriptions.

Yet, those accusations typically ignore the immense challenges faced by healthcare providers when trying to navigate the complex rules and regulations related to drug monitoring. Luckily, upcoming changes to Georgia monitoring rules will provide more flexibility for professionals and an increase of information on state prescriptions, hopefully leading to a decrease in abuse.

THE PRESCRIPTION DRUG MONITORING PROGRAM (PDMP)

Like virtually all other states, for several years Georgia has had an active state database that monitors prescriptions of certain highly addictive drugs, like oxycodone and hydrocodone. The idea is that the database can raise red flags if suspicious prescriptions are given to a single individual-allowing closer investigation to determine if the patient is abusing the drugs. But the program is not without its flaws.

In Georgia, this Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) is under the purview of the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency, and even the head of the agency admits that there are many gaps in the current program. Critics argue that the current rules are too restrictive, severely limiting who can view the database and handcuffing those individuals from warning others about the information contained in the PDMP.

CHANGES TO THE LAW

The Georgia legislature recently updated the law to address many of those problems. The new rules are set to take effect this month, in July 2016, and it is critical for doctors, pharmacists, and other professionals to understand the changes. Some important updates include:

• Licensed staff can now view the PDMP. Under older rules, only actual doctors and pharmacists could look at the data. This created a logistical issue, as busy professionals had to leave patients to physically view the files. The task of checking the PDMP to flag for potential addiction can now be given to others within an office.

• Drug data will be tracked for two years. Previously, data was only tracked for a single year. The increased time frame will provide a larger set of information to help detect more potential problems.

• Law enforcement will have increased access to the PDMP. In the past, officers were required to have a search warrant to view the data. That requirement was a tough burden that limited when law enforcement agencies could realistically act on the warnings of doctors and pharmacists.

Lawmakers and safety advocate admit that an underlying goal of the new law is also to increase actual use by medical professionals in the state. Early estimates suggest that only about 25% of state doctors have set up an account to use the PDMP. Use of the PDMP is not mandatory, and the new law will not change that. However, the loosening of the restrictions may prompt more medical offices to take advantage of the features.

Contact a Georgia Professional Defense Attorney

If you have questions about how this law may affect your practice, be sure to reach out to legal professionals. Our team at Frances Cullen, P.C. provides experienced defense services and counsel to licensed professionals throughout Georgia in all administrative and criminal matters. Contact us today to see how we can help.

Why Choose Levy Pruett Cullen to Help Defend Your Professional License

 

At Levy Pruett Cullen, we are problems solvers. We're very good at looking at a case. We try to take our time initially and really evaluate the case and determine what the best solution is and try to get there in the most expeditious way possible.

Most individuals who are facing a licensing case or a criminal matter or any kind of issue that can threaten their professional livelihood are uncertain and that is very hard to live with. Sometimes it takes a while to resolve these cases - it doesn't require lots of what I call running in circles - what we try to do is look at the best way to resolve a case but also search for the most straightforward solution instead of trying to jump through too many hoops to reach our goal. We work well with others. I think that's our other strength. We have a lot of resources in the community.

Our attorneys have 25_ years of experience and can avail ourselves of resources on both the prosecutorial and defense counsel. We also have the health care resources to aid our clients in reaching their ideal goal. Give us a call today.

Pharmacy Law Explained

Levy Pruett Cullen represents pharmacists, pharmacies, and pharmaceutical companies seeking to become licensed in the state of Georgia. We have represented numerous pharmacists and pharmacies regarding misfilled prescriptions, compounding errors, failing reports on pharmacy audits, licensure issues of varying degrees as well as several out of state pharmacy seeking to become licensed in the state of Georgia.

Pharmacy law is extremely complicated. It involves state and federal laws those rules including rules governed by the federal agencies and state agencies. It also involves work with the Georgia Board of Pharmacy, the Drug Enforcement Agency and Georgia Drugs and Narcotics. We have worked with all of these agencies and have contacts with all these resources to help resolve these kinds of issues. We've worked closely with pharmacists and pharmacies here in the state of Georgia but have also worked extensively with out-of-state companies seeking to become licensed as a wholesaler or distributor here in Georgia. Because the laws and rules are complicated for seeking licensure it requires legal assistance. We can help pharmacists, pharmacies and out of state companies seeking to become licensed here with a host of issues.

We've also worked extensively with those who have failed to become licensed and become cognizant of that and are seeking to resolve that issue with the state of Georgia.

At Levy Pruett Cullen., we try to resolve those issues as quickly and as expeditiously as possible. Call us today!

Requirements for Professional Licensing or Renewal in Georgia

Many applicants for a license, and many licensees who have to meet certain requirements in the state of Georgia to maintain their license, do not meet all requirements. This may be because of past education that doesn't meet current requirements, or current issues that make it impossible to meet the educational requirement of maintaining a license or some other similar related issue.

At Levy Pruett Cullen, we've assisted numerous applicants in obtaining what's called a rule waiver or a variance so that they could become licensed in the state of Georgia. By doing this we use our expertise to demonstrate to the board that you are qualified to meet licensee's requirements even though you may technically fall short of a board rule requirement that would otherwise make you ineligible. We have done many of these board waivers and the variances to assist people to become licensed have been very successful with many of the people we've worked with. It may be the case that you cannot meet a current requirement to renew your license due to a medical issue or other issue wherein you can't meet an educational requirement for example we have worked with individuals and professionals where that's been the circumstance, and we have been successful in having them maintain their license with a rule waiver variance.

At Levy Pruett Cullen, we have the experience, we know how to address these issues. The above is the kind of legal issue that requires a legal professional. Don't take it lightly if you want to maintain your license and your livelihood. At Levy Pruett Cullen we can assist you with this. Call us today!

How Do Physicians Get Licensed in the State of Georgia?

At Frances Cullen P.C., we have represented a number of physicians who have had to take a hiatus from practice for several different reasons and are seeking to become licensed. In one case, I represented a physician who had not practiced for 25 years due to a past criminal conviction. We were able to work toward his goal of becoming licensed and he is now a physician practicing in the state of Georgia.

In another case, I represented a physician who had not worked as a doctor for over 10 years due to impairment issues. We successfully worked together to make sure that we were in the best position possible so that he could reach his goal of becoming a licensed physician again and working as a physician. We know how to handle these type issues. In terms of applicants, we've worked with many from out of state or foreigners who might not meet licensure requirements because of the changes in the licensing requirements over the years in the state of Georgia.

Changes in licensing requirements may often require the assistance of legal counsel due to certain forms that have to be provided and to also make sure that your application will stand out as cleanly as possible and put your best foot forward.

There's an expression that your first impression is your best impression. What we do in terms of applicant cases is make sure that the first impression is the one that the medical board is going to remember and the one that's going to take you through becoming a physician in the state of Georgia. We have worked through so many problems with physicians to obtain their goals and we can work with you to reach your goals.

At Frances Cullen P.C., we go straight to the heart of your matter and we help you achieve your goals. Contact an Atlanta healthcare law attorney today!

How to Report a Board Action to Another State?

As a professional licensing attorney I am often asked what to do about reporting a board action to another state or if you fail to report an action to another state. Each case is individual in making a decision as to how to proceed - on these kinds of issues it's very important to take the right steps if you have an action pending in a state that may have to be reported to other states or if you need to remedy the reporting of a past action that was not reported to another state.

Most states have laws or rules that require reporting of an action on one state to another state within 30 days. But these regulations vary, and have to be looked at individually. Moreover there could be penalties and severe consequences if you fail to report and then try to catch up. It is really best to have an attorney, who is familiar with these issues, look at this for you and do an assessment of what your case is; what needs to be reported; and how and when it should be reported.

You should also be aware that if you have multiple licenses and you have a case pending against you that there will be consequences in the other states that could result in what's called the reciprocal allocation or mirroring of the action that happened in the state where the issue is proceeding.

At our firm we are familiar with these kinds of actions. We have worked with numerous professionals to report actions that are imposed by a state licensing board to other states and to remedy the failure to report in other states. We are familiar with most of the other state laws, rules, and have worked to remedy those kinds of issues. If you need professional advice on this type of reporting, call an Atlanta healthcare attorney at Frances Cullen P.C. and seek legal advice if this is an issue that you're facing.

What Are The Two Types of Medicaid Fraud?

There are two types of medicare fraud cases. There are cases by service providers and those by medicare recipients. At Frances Cullen P.C. we represent healthcare providers and service providers of medicare services in seeking to defend them against potential investigations and actions brought by the state fraud medicaid control unit - also known as MFCU.

We have represented physicians, dentist, pharmacists, pharmacies, psychologists, speech pathologists, dentists and other healthcare providers with these kinds of claims and reached many good conclusions for our clients. Fraud is a crime and could potentially result in a criminal action, a criminal conviction and possible imprisonment. You need to take any potential investigation seriously and act quickly.

At Frances Cullen P.C. we have 25 years of legal experience in representing healthcare professionals and we can help to defend those kinds of actions. Our wide experience in both criminal cases and in medical review cases gives us a very strong background to defend these types of cases better than those who are dedicated to criminal defense only. We bring our medical background to your case as well as a criminal background and we will defend you honestly and efficiently. Give us a call today!

How Can Physicians Defend Themselves Against Peer Review Actions?

A peer review action can affect the rest of your life as a physician. This is something to take seriously. You also need to seriously consider complaints filed by other employees that may affect you because those are the kinds of things that can create a track record for you, and can result later in a peer review hearing.

It will be much harder if you have to defend against several issues rather than one issue. If you become aware that you're the subject of any kind of review action or that you have been asked to come to some kind of medical executive committee meeting, you need to call us right away.

You will need good sound advice on how to deal with these issues and how best to defend yourself. Often physicians think they're so smart that they can defend against these actions themselves and that they can explain away what occurred. It's often not that simple and it's often that there are other people who have gathered information that you may not be aware of. Legal intervention is the best way to address everything out there and define what it is that is really an issue in your case.

At Frances Cullen P.C., we work with numerous physicians to assist them in becoming credentialed at the facility of their choice and working through potential credentialing issues. In one case we worked with a physician where he had been suspended from his medical staff and that it had been reported to the national practitioner database. We were able to resolve that issue and to prove that the issue did not fit and shouldn't rise to the level of suspension and that the suspension was not warranted. We managed to make sure that the physician was placed back on medical staff and that the national practitioner database report was voided.

This is the kind of legal intervention that you need and you need it early on. Instead of waiting until something becomes a serious action that can affect you for the rest of your professional career, you need to reach out quickly and make sure that you address any potential issues. At Frances Cullen P.C. we can help defend against these potential actions. Contact us today.

How Can Chiropractors Defend Their License?

As a licensed professional your license is very important to your livelihood and you must protect it. You may be faced with a complaint or you may have a criminal action that you need to report to a licensing board that could result in potential disciplinary action. This can affect your license and thereby your livelihood. Often chiropractic services are reimbursed by insurance companies and a licensed action will affect that reimbursement. We want to protect your license and your livelihood. We represent numerous chiropractors before the board in Georgia. we have represented chiropractors who've been accused or have been convicted of various crimes and must report that to the Georgia Board.

In one case we were representing a chiropractor who was subject of a felony crime and imprisonment and we managed to get him suspension, followed by a probationary sentence so that he could return to his practice of chiropractic services even while under a criminal probation. We have also worked with chiropractors who have lost their license due to a criminal past and/or criminal convictions that have tried to regain it after a period of absence from practice.

There have also been cases where we have represented chiropractors with cases of boundary violations and in cases involving improper treatment of patients. These are the kinds of issues where you need guidance to get you through the process and make sure that your presentation before the Georgia Board is going to be smooth and effective. Your first impression is your best impression, and what you want to do if you were contacted by a board investigator. Do not speak with the board investigator - it is best to contact local council and get help immediately. At Levy Pruett Cullen we can assist you with this process. we have the experience and the knowledge to do it right. Give us a call!

How To Get a Dental License in Georgia

At Levy Pruett Cullen, we have represented many dentists in cases before the licensing board and applicants seeking to become licensed in the state of Georgia. Dentists can be the subject of many types of complaints - often filed by a patient, a patient's family, a former employer or an employee. These kinds of complaints are serious. The Georgia Board of Dentistry looks at every complaint filed.

There is a standard process that you will go through; The process includes the complaint phase, investigation phase and often investigatory interview. We urge you not to go meet with an investigator or go to an investigative interview without legal counsel. You will need help in guiding you through the process. These kinds of cases are cases of first impression. When you provide records, you need to make the best possible impact and provide your dental records in response to a board request. You need to make sure you put your best foot forward when you go to your interview, and you need to be properly preparation. You may think that all your years of training and education put you in a place to do this by yourself; but as you have invested in your career, we have invested in ours. We know how to guide you through the process better than you will be able to find from doing your own research and trying to handle it yourself.

We also assist in a lot of applicants seeking licensure in the state of Georgia. There are laws and rules that you must meet to become licensed in the state of Georgia. Often, applicants from other states may have been educated some years past and not meet the current requirements; Or they do not meet the current requirements because of how they handled their examinations or dental examination. We have worked with numerous dentists to obtain licensure in the state of Georgia by seeking a rule variance or waiver. We're looking to see if the board has issued an initial decline of licensure and whether there's a means to appeal that denial that has been successful in our other attempts to assist dentists trying to get licensed in the state of Georgia. If you are a dentist facing a potential licensing action or criminal action, or seeking licensure here in the state of Georgia, we can assist you. We are have years of experience in how to guide you through the process and get you the best possible result.