Urgent message: “Winning” a lawsuit in which you’re the defendant runs a distant second to avoiding lawsuits altogether—never mind if you’re on the losing end and have to pay a judgment. Understanding relevant regulations and laws is the best way to stay out of court. Today’s healthcare providers must carefully navigate their way around complex laws and regulations which regulate, restrict, and impact their practices. Urgent care providers who fail to navigate within these laws …
Read MoreWhen to Fight a Claim for Unemployment
Urgent message: While unemployment insurance claims can cost an urgent care center through higher future premiums, there are multiple considerations for when a center should contest or approve an unemployment claim. Urgent care centers, as service businesses, frequently experience a high rate of turnover among their less skilled, frontline staff—eg, receptionists, clerks, and medical assistants. Whether an employee quits or is terminated for cause or performance, a common issue for urgent care center owners is …
Read MoreWho Owns Patient Medical Records?
Urgent message: While historically there has been an understanding that patients own the information contained in their medical records, and that providers own the record itself, the current lack of a federal law governing the ownership of medical records poses a conundrum when those records are stored electronically. New challenges demand innovative solutions—often in the form of new technologies that make life easier. Certainly technology has advanced healthcare to improve and lengthen our lives. Yet, …
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Should an Urgent Care Operator Check the National Sex Offender Registry When Hiring Employees?
Urgent message: Failure to identify risks in a new hire’s background can result in “negligent hiring” liability for an urgent care operator, but there are also limitations in what information a center can seek on an applicant. The approximately 7,100 urgent care centers in the United States employ physicians, NPs, PAs, RNs, medical assistants, technicians, and receptionists who provide walk-in patients with medical care for minor health conditions without an appointment. Most urgent care centers …
Read MoreIncome Tax Liability from Phantom Income
Urgent message: How physician and entrepreneur investors structure their urgent care center may expose them to an income tax liability from phantom income, but there are steps they can take to ensure there are sufficient funds to cover it. Introduction Income taxes are one of life’s certainties for most working Americans. Typically, however, income taxes are paid only on cash received during the course of a year. For example, a Form W-2 received by an …
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Don’t Post That! Protecting Patient Privacy in the Age of Social Media
Urgent message: Using social media platforms helps your community get to know your urgent care center. But be sure that you protect your patients’ privacy when doing so. Introduction Social media has great utility for urgent care centers, providing invaluable opportunities to connect with the local community and offering a host of educational tools for providers and patients. The explosion of myriad social media platforms, however, has created a variety of new channels for exposure …
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October 2016
HIPAA-Compliant Disposal of Office Equipment Containing Personal Health Information
Urgent message: Urgent care centers must dispose of fully depreciated office equipment such as computers, copiers, fax machines, and telephones containing protected health information in a manner that complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. How this column helps you: gives you guidelines for protecting your patients’ privacy. Introduction Since 2009, 42 million patients have been affected by privacy breaches entailing their protected health information (PHI).1 Many of these breaches stem from the …
Read MoreCritical Due Diligence Issues for Buyers and Sellers of Urgent Care Centers
Urgent message: Because deal activity for urgent care centers has been on the rise, prospective buyers and sellers of urgent care centers should understand key issues in preparing a center for sale or acquisition, sharing information, and ensuring compliance with the doctrine of corporate practice of medicine and with other health-care regulations. Introduction No segment of the U.S. health-care services industry has seen more merger and acquisition activity over the past few years than the urgent care market (which includes occupational health). Dozens …
Read MoreThe Importance of Having a Solid Job Description for Every Position in the Urgent Care Center
Urgent message: Having concise, complete, and up-to-date job descriptions for all employees in an urgent care center will pay off with better role performance, fewer employment disputes, and hopefully the elimination of the possibility of legal action. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc, Experity Between 2012 and 2022, according to the U.S. Economic Census, health-care employment is expected to increase by 2.6% annually—or by 5 million jobs. This rate is approximately five times that projected for …
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