The Importance of a Good Attorney for Health Care License Defense
Experience Counts in License Defense
I just heard from a health care professional who related a tale of woe in which he had a matter of discipline imposed by another state. The matter was reported to Michigan through a sister-state reporting agency, and a Michigan Administrative Complaint was issued.
Since the professional didn't know any Michigan attorneys, he did what people often do: ask for recommendations. He received the name of a Michigan attorney, whose sister was in the same health care field as he. However, the attorney had never handled a Michigan health care licensure discipline case. The result was not a good one.
After spending fourteen thousand dollars in legal fees, and receiving some advice from this inexperienced attorney, this professional's license is forever disciplined in Michigan. Furthermore, the sanction has been reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank. In fact, this professional has never even practiced in Michigan.
From what I learned during our conversation, there was a lot that could have been done early on for this man's Michigan license, had he only contacted an experienced administrative law attorney to handle his discipline matter. Having gotten only part of the story, I question whether he should have had any sanction at all in Michigan. What's more, the cost of experienced representation would certainly have been less than the fourteen thousand dollars he paid.
The moral of the story: When your ability to practice your profession is at risk, hire an attorney who is experienced in administrative law, and specifically in the defense of health care licenses. Your livelihood is too important to trust to someone who doesn't know how to protect it.