Numerous states have enacted laws prohibiting the corporate practice of medicine, directly and indirectly. These types of laws are crafted to prevent non-physicians from influencing or interfering with a physician’s professional judgment and furthermore, affect the ability of business entities to enter into agreements with health care professionals. In contrast, Florida permits the corporate practice of medicine with certain exceptions (e.g. dentistry and optometry). Florida courts and the Florida Board of Medicine have indicated that notwithstanding specific statutory prohibitions, Florida law does not prohibit the practice of medicine by health care professionals as employees of a business entity. To better regulate such conduct and to protect the public from bad actors, Florida passed the Health Care Clinic Act requiring health care clinics to obtain a license (unless an exemption applies).
The Health Care Clinic Act (the “Act”) was initially enacted in 2003 and has been amended over the years. This legislation was developed to specifically control the practices of health care facilities that are not directly owned by health care professionals. In other words, this law is focused on requiring facilities that have non-physician owners that are not otherwise licensed to obtain a clinic license. Under the Act, a “clinic” is defined as “an entity at which health care services are provided to individuals and which tenders charges for reimbursement for such services…” By “tenders charges for reimbursement,” the definition means the clinic bills third-party payors (e.g., governmental (Medicare) or private commercial insurance). Exemptions from the Act include ownership by a hospital, pharmacy, or physician, among others (See Fla. Stat. § 400.9905(4)(a)-(q)). If exempt, AHCA offers health care clinics the opportunity to apply for a “certificate of exemption” but this is voluntary. However, many do as it is typically requested by third-party payors for clinics claiming an exemption to produce a copy of the clinic’s certificate of exemption during enrollment and renewal.
Clinic registration and oversight was first placed under the authority of the Florida Department of Health, but has since been transferred to the Agency for Health Care Administration (“AHCA”), the same agency that licenses other types of health care businesses. This requirement should not be taken lightly. Establishing, owning, operating, managing, maintaining a health care clinic, or offering or advertising services that require clinic licensure without a license when an exemption does not apply is a felony under the Act (See Fla. Stat. § 400.9935(4)).
If you have any questions regarding Florida’s health care clinic licensure process, please do not hesitate to contact attorney Matthew M. Fischer (matt@fischerlawpa.com). Matthew specializes in health law related issues and is a former Assistant General Counsel at the FBI and Senior Attorney Advisor at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.