Are you a medical resident, fellow, or practicing physician looking to enter into a contract for employment? Do you have questions about whether that non-compete is valid and whether that buy-in is too high? Do you have questions about your existing contract? Or questions about healthcare law and practices in general?
Is your employer refusing to allow you to review the practice’s books and records prior to your buy in? Have you been terminated from your employment with a practice or hospital for suspicious reasons?
At VWLuke, we can assist physicians with the answers to these questions and can help you review the terms of your existing or proposed contract. We can also assist you with choosing key areas to negotiate and negotiating your contract appropriately.
We highlight the term ‘key’ areas to negotiate on employment contracts because many employment contracts in today’s market are, well, less than negotiable. Unfortunately, practices frequently seek what we consider to be unreasonable restraints on your ability to compete with them post-employment, and many require that you ‘buy in’ to the practice at a price that has little if any basis on the true value of the practice (and is more likely to be based upon what it cost the original members of the practice to establish the practice). Depending upon the position, it may be worth the price you’re asked to pay in terms of restrictions or literal sums, but in other instances, you may be better off by accepting another offer or opportunity.
With that said, one of the most important functions that an attorney can provide is assistance with understanding what your rights and duties under a proposed contract are. Even if we cannot reasonably negotiate the terms of a contract without sacrificing the offer itself, we can ensure that you enter into a proposed contract with a firm understanding of what your responsibilities are and what limitations you must endure.
If you're a physician group or employer of physicians and are interested in a balanced employment contract that offers protection for the practice without imposing unduly burdensome requirements on the hired physician, we can assist with that as well.
Collections and Business matters
Having a hard time collecting from that insurance company? Insurance contracts are frequently complex, and sometimes coverage is promised, but payment is not forthcoming. This is especially true in the area of oncology services where infusion therapy is often stated as covered, but payment is withheld for one reason or another.
If you accept workers compensation cases, there are frequently disputes regarding whether the care rendered was reasonable and necessary or supported by evidence-based medicine. With the advent of network based care in workers compensation, many of these cases must be resolved within the rules of the network. In the remaining instances, the State actually provides a forum within which to seek resolution of payment where there is a dispute.
In either instance, our firm might be able to assist you with recovering unpaid sums owed for medical services rendered.
One of the primary roles that we serve is as business advisors. As you know, running a practice - large or small - is intense and time consuming. At VWLuke, we can help relieve the pressure of legal compliance by helping you navigate the sea of laws that touch and affect physician's practices from employment issues to interpretations of Stark Law complications.
