6 Ways to Have Your Medical License Revoked in California

There are many ways a physician can suffer the humiliation, pain and frustration of having his or her medical license revoked, often times before a very unsympathetic and heartless Medical Board of California. 

Over many years of experience we have found that certain patterns of conduct often result in revocation and want to provide our clients and potential clients with the following list of the top 6 ways to have your California medical license revoked, and how a California medical board license attorney can help you keep your license and career.

Prescription Negligence

Overprescribing of opioids and other highly addictive medications resulting in a patient death. 

The California Medical Board has for the last several years embarked on somewhat of a witch hunt also known as the “death certificate cases” which is a retroactive effort by the Board to investigate physicians prescribing medications, often times with no intention to do any harm, to patients who have passed away under circumstances reported by the coroner as concerning or suspicious.  These cases often result in an unfair and aggressive disciplinary action against the prescribing doctor, even if he or she did not improperly prescribe pain or other addictive medications, which may or may not have contributed to the death of the patient at issue.  In these cases, it is imperative to have highly experienced counsel assist you if you are being investigated or have received an “Accusation” from the Medical Board of California seeking to revoke your license.  These cases are prosecuted in a very aggressive manner, and you should immediately retain counsel to protect yourself, your license and your career.  

Criminal Conviction

Conviction of a felony level offense.

This is somewhat self-explanatory, but depending on the circumstances of the criminal complaint against the licensee, the Board may or may not seek revocation, and depending on the severity of the allegations, may often seek a “Cease Practice Order” which attempts to immediately suspend the physician’s license pending a resolution of the Accusation which is filed soon thereafter.  These matters must be handled in a very expeditious manner, as every day of delay results in a longer period of license suspension, not to mention potential erosion of the physician’s reputation and ability to practice medicine and serve his or her patients.  Immediate retention of counsel is imperative in these situations, as time is of the essence and the expeditious resolution of such a case is of utmost importance.

Misdemeanor Crime

Conviction of certain misdemeanor crimes, which may have been reduced from felony to misdemeanor status pursuant to a plea agreement in the criminal court.

Even if a physician was charged with a felony offense which was later reduced to a misdemeanor, or sometimes even dismissed by the prosecutor, the Board will conduct its own investigation or go “behind the plea” and perform its own investigation of the facts and evidence against the doctor in the criminal matter.  Many times, if a case originally filed as a felony was reduced to a misdemeanor pursuant to a plea agreement, the Board will still take a very serious tact and seek revocation of a physician’s license, depending on the circumstances.  It is imperative to have counsel well before termination of the criminal matter, as our attorneys can often assist criminal defense counsel in convincing the prosecution that a reduction in the conviction level in the criminal case is not only warranted, but fair.  Our attorneys have a great deal of experience assisting in such negotiations and are proud and are eager to assist if you find yourself in such a situation.

Insurance Fraud

Involvement in, a conviction for, or aiding and abetting in the commission of insurance fraud, whether at the Federal, State, or private insurance levels.

Many times, physicians find themselves involved in very serious Medicare, MediCal, or other insurance fraud matters, and a conviction or even investigation for such activities can often result in revocation if the matter is not handled aggressively and proactively by experienced counsel.

Malpractice or Negligence

Medical malpractice or other instances of patient harm due to the actions or inaction of a physician. 

Even if you feel that you have done your due diligence in the care of a patient, complaints and accusations from a valid or perceived mistreatment on the side of a patient can lead to formal investigations and license revocation.

Substance Abuse

Improper use of alcohol or drugs which result in impairment to the physician, whether the impairment occurs in the course and scope of the practice of medicine or not.

Allegations of physician diversion of medication, improper use of medications or alcohol, or even mental health impairment allegations can often result in an effort to revoke a physician’s license.  These cases are often challenging and require highly experienced counsel to navigate and achieve a result which avoids revocation.  Our attorneys have vast experience in this area as well and can assist you if you find yourself in this unfortunate situation.  Do not handle this matter alone, but immediately retain experienced counsel to assist you.

These are just a few examples of the most common ways we have seen physicians and other healthcare providers in California face revocation of their licenses.  These are not “do it yourself” matters but require highly experienced counsel to assist you and to aggressively defend your license against the intense efforts of the Board to revoke you.  Therefore, it is imperative to have highly experienced counsel defending you and your license and that is why we are pleased to offer our potential clients a free initial conference with our highly experienced counsel.  Please give us a call today or use our online form to discuss your situation, even if you are not yet facing criminal or other disciplinary allegations against you.