Plastic Surgeons

For traditional physician groups and solo practitioners, we ensure your PA is structured for optimal governance and compliance with all professional entity restrictions.

We leverage the powerful dual benefits of robust liability protection and enhanced management flexibility, ensuring your PLLC meets all state requirements for licensed professional members.

We unlock the potential for non-physician investment by expertly structuring your practice as a standard corporation or LLC. Crucially, we navigate the pivotal Health Care Clinic License requirement from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) for non-physician-owned entities billing insurance.

For practices with multiple visionaries, we draft ironclad partnership or shareholder agreements. We proactively define and codify every crucial aspect: from roles and capital contributions to profit allocation, decision-making, and strategic dispute resolution and exit mechanisms.

We flawlessly execute the official filing with the Florida Department of State to legally create your entity. Our meticulous approach ensures every detail, from your legal name and registered agent to stock authorizations or a specialized professional purpose statement, is perfect.

This is where our legal diligence provides its greatest value. We custom-draft the internal constitution of your practice—the bylaws for your PA or corporation, or the operating agreement for your LLC or PLLC. These documents are tailored to govern your operational and financial affairs, detailing management structures, owner obligations, profit distributions, and the very rules of your collaboration. We build the legal framework that prevents future internal conflict and aligns with the unique vision of the founding practitioners.

from all relevant city and county authorities.

We determine the necessity of and seamlessly manage the application for an AHCA-issued Health Care Clinic License. We also verify and manage all Florida Department of Health (DOH) physician licensure requirements.

The OSR process is notoriously meticulous for plastic surgeons. If your practice performs surgeries like liposuction exceeding 1,000 cubic centimeters of supernatant fat or any Level II or III procedures, registration is mandatory. We manage the entire exhaustive process, from documenting your facility and physician qualifications (including ACLS certification) to ensuring staff certifications and hospital transfer agreements are in perfect order.

We distinguish state licensure from crucial board certifications (like the American Board of Plastic Surgery), ensuring your advertising meets Florida’s stringent transparency requirements. We meticulously manage the verification of all qualifications to enable participation with insurance plans and managed care organizations.

We handle your DEA Registration for prescribing controlled substances, secure your National Provider Identifier (NPI) required for all billing, and spearhead Payor Enrollment with Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial insurers, a process that can often take months.

This is a paramount concern for plastic surgeons, governed by stringent standards in the Florida Administrative Code. We provide comprehensive guidance to ensure you exceed all requirements, including:

• Registration: Managing your mandatory Office Surgery Registration (OSR) for specified surgical levels or liposuction volumes.
• Procedure Limitations: Ensuring your practice adheres to all rules on surgery levels, anesthesia administration, procedure duration (e.g., the 8-hour limit), and patient discharge timelines.
• Staffing and Equipment: Verifying all surgical and recovery staff meet qualification and certification (ACLS/BLS) mandates and that your office maintains all required emergency equipment and medications.
• Transfer Agreements: Securing and maintaining a compliant transfer agreement with a licensed hospital.
• Inspections: Preparing you for the mandatory DOH pre-registration inspection and subsequent annual inspections, helping you avoid common pitfalls and achieve accreditation to waive annual reviews.
• Evolving Rules: We provide continuous monitoring and strategic counsel on legislative and regulatory changes, like the proposed “Hillary’s Law,” to keep you ahead of the curve.

We review all marketing materials to ensure they comply with the Board’s strict rules against false, deceptive, or misleading advertising, including proper use of specialty recognition and disclaimers.

Should an issue arise, we provide a vigorous defense against allegations of malpractice, improper advertising, kickbacks, or other common grounds for discipline, protecting your license from reprimands, fines, suspension, or revocation.

We go beyond templates to implement robust, written privacy and security policies, conduct effective staff training, establish powerful access controls, and create a clear breach notification protocol to meet all federal standards.

We navigate the complexities of FIPA, which has a broader scope than HIPAA and includes its own stringent data security and breach notification requirements. We ensure you can meet the critical 30-day deadline for notifying the Florida Department of Legal Affairs of a major breach and understand the 10-day notification requirement from third-party agents, protecting you from civil penalties that can reach $500,000.

We draft specific, unambiguous patient authorizations for the use of PHI in marketing and create compliant protocols for handling patient record requests that meet all federal and Florida timelines.

The legal landscape has shifted. We provide critical guidance on this 2023 law’s new data localization requirements, ensuring any patient data stored offsite is physically maintained in the U.S. or Canada. We also vet all business relationships to ensure compliance with restrictions related to “foreign countries of concern,” protecting your IT infrastructure and vendor choices from these new regulatory threats.

This is a strict liability statute where intent is irrelevant. We analyze and structure all financial relationships involving “designated health services” (DHS) to fit squarely within a protective exception, such as the in-office ancillary services (IOASE) or bona fide employment exceptions. We also navigate Florida’s own self-referral laws.

This criminal law prohibits any remuneration to induce referrals. With severe penalties including imprisonment and exclusion from federal programs, compliance is non-negotiable. We meticulously structure your arrangements to meet the narrow requirements of federal “safe harbors,” providing a powerful defense against prosecution.

This broad Florida law makes it a felony to pay for patient referrals, regardless of the payor. A critical recent amendment has made this law far more dangerous, now exempting only arrangements “expressly authorized by” a federal AKS safe harbor. This makes defending many common arrangements, like marketing agreements, far more challenging. Our firm provides urgent, expert guidance to re-evaluate all your financial relationships and restructure them for compliance with this stricter interpretation.

We ensure your employee compensation structures are fully compliant with this statute, which prohibits payments that induce referrals for ancillary services within a group practice.

We create policies and procedures that are highly specific to the plastic surgery procedures you perform, your patient interactions, and your unique marketing activities.

We develop and implement mandatory training programs for all staff on HIPAA, OSHA, fraud and abuse, and billing compliance, complete with full documentation.

We understand that generic plans create a false sense of security and leave dangerous compliance gaps. Our programs are customized to address your specific risk profile, creating a truly effective defense.

We prepare you for and defend you against aggressive insurance audits, including those from Medicare/Medicaid contractors like RACs and the more intensive ZPICs/UPICs. We manage the complex appeals process and defend against devastating payment suspensions.

We proactively negotiate your contracts with commercial insurers to secure fair reimbursement rates and favorable terms, analyzing your agreements and benchmarking rates to maximize your leverage.

We help you develop impeccable, contemporaneous medical records that unequivocally justify the medical necessity for any procedure billed to an insurer. We provide deep expertise on Local Coverage Determinations (LCDs) to ensure your documentation for procedures like breast reconstruction, reduction mammaplasty, or rhinoplasty is bulletproof. This is paramount for procedures Medicare may flag as potentially cosmetic, which require prior authorization.

We assist in creating documentation protocols and appealing any adverse payor determinations, protecting you from denials and recoupment demands.

We review your daily workflows, patient care procedures, and facility standards to ensure they align with all DOH and Board of Medicine regulations, from informed consent to emergency preparedness.

Our indispensable IT assessments evaluate your compliance with the HIPAA Security Rule and Florida’s FIPA. We conduct formal risk analyses to identify and neutralize threats to your electronic PHI. Crucially, our assessments now fully integrate the new data localization and vendor restrictions under CS/SB 264, requiring heightened scrutiny of all your IT vendor contracts to avoid significant new legal risks.

We create the foundational documents for your patient records, including a compliant HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP) and Acknowledgment of Receipt.

Generic consents are inadequate and perilous. We draft tailored, robust consent documents for high-risk procedures like BBLs and implants, meticulously detailing all risks, limitations, and realistic outcomes to meet Florida’s specific legal requirements and provide a powerful defense against malpractice claims.

We provide clear guidance on when and how to use this standardized Medicare form to inform a beneficiary that a service may not be considered medically necessary, transferring financial responsibility to the patient.

For reconstructive cases involving personal injury litigation, we draft legally binding and enforceable LOPs that ensure you are paid from settlement proceeds.

We draft and negotiate critical agreements for your key personnel. For physicians, we structure every component—compensation, malpractice tail coverage, termination clauses, and enforceable non-compete agreements under Florida law—to protect your practice. For consultants, we create well-defined agreements that protect your intellectual property and ensure confidentiality.

For multi-owner practices, our foundational agreements are designed to ensure harmony and strategic alignment. We delineate partner rights, management structures, and crucial buy-out and dissolution mechanisms, ensuring compliance with all Florida statutory requirements.

We scrutinize every detail of your equipment purchase and lease agreements, protecting you from unfavorable terms like “evergreen” renewal clauses or payment obligations for malfunctioning equipment. All leases are structured to comply with Stark Law exceptions where applicable. For technology and EHR software, we ensure agreements guarantee HIPAA/HITECH compliance and, critically, adhere to Florida’s new CS/SB 264 data localization and vendor requirements.

We negotiate your medical office leases, securing favorable terms on duration, build-out allowances, and use restrictions, understanding the long-term commitment these leases represent. When you purchase property, we manage all due diligence, zoning compliance, and navigate the complex Health Care Clinic Licensure requirements that may be triggered by your ownership structure.

This is the most critical phase. For buyers, we conduct a forensic investigation into the seller’s financials, assets, contracts, and, most importantly, their compliance history with HIPAA, Stark, AKS, and OSR. For sellers, we prepare you for this intense scrutiny, helping you organize all documentation and resolve any outstanding issues to enhance your practice’s value.

The choice between an asset sale (which limits liability inheritance) and an equity/stock sale has profound tax and legal consequences. We provide the strategic counsel to choose and execute the structure that best serves your financial interests.

We are masters of the Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA). We meticulously craft and negotiate every key clause: from the purchase price and payment terms to the critical representations, warranties, and indemnification provisions that protect you from post-closing liabilities.

A botched transition can lead to patient complaints and HIPAA violations. We manage the entire process, including all legally mandated newspaper and Board of Medicine notifications, the HIPAA-compliant transfer of all medical records, and the assignment of all employee, vendor, and payor contracts. We ensure your transaction is compliant with all regulatory statutes to avoid any risk of being voided post-closing.

We often utilize the sophisticated Professional Corporation (PC) and Management Services Organization (MSO) model. This structure, which we expertly design, allows for non-physician participation in the business while navigating complex fee-splitting prohibitions.

We establish crystal-clear protocols for physician supervision of all non-physician providers. We ensure every team member is properly licensed and operates strictly within their legal scope of practice for services like injectable fillers, laser treatments, and more.

We guarantee your ads avoid misrepresentations, never create false expectations, and properly identify your credentials and board certifications with any required disclaimers.

We ensure all your claims are truthful and backed by “competent and reliable scientific evidence,” with all necessary disclosures presented clearly and conspicuously.

We advise on the ethical guidelines from bodies like the ASPS, ensuring your marketing reflects the highest standards of professional conduct.

We review and approve all content on your website and social media platforms to ensure it is factually accurate, verifiable, and free of prohibited guarantees. We help you leverage these powerful platforms while navigating the immense risks related to advertising rules and HIPAA.

We conduct periodic, comprehensive reviews of all marketing collateral—from brochures to digital ads—to ensure ongoing, bulletproof compliance with all Florida and federal rules.

We design agreements where marketers are paid defensible flat fees or hourly rates for bona fide, clearly defined marketing services, completely delinked from the volume or value of referrals.

Following specific OIG guidance, we can structure permissible arrangements where you pay a fair market value fee per lead, not per patient acquired, ensuring the service is classified as advertising, not a prohibited referral payment.

A generic consent is worthless here. We create a separate, explicit, HIPAA-compliant patient authorization for any image or video used in marketing. This document clearly specifies what will be used, for what exact purpose, where it will be displayed, and for how long, while preserving the patient’s right to revoke.

We ensure you obtain a similar HIPAA-compliant authorization for any testimonial that could identify the individual as a patient, and we ensure the content is genuine and not misleading.

Responding to online reviews is a HIPAA minefield. We provide strategies for managing your online reputation, allowing you to respond to reviews professionally without ever confirming patient status or disclosing any PHI in a public forum. We also ensure your patient agreements do not contain illegal non-disparagement clauses that violate federal law.

We take control of the process, from the initial DOH complaint review and ISU investigation to the probable cause determination.

We understand the numerous grounds for discipline under Florida Statute § 458.331, from malpractice and kickbacks to false advertising. We manage all communications with investigators, gather exculpatory evidence, and build the strongest possible defense to protect your license from the full range of potential penalties, including reprimand, fines, suspension, or revocation.

We draft legally sound contracts for your physicians and key personnel, clearly defining all terms of employment, including compensation, duties, and crucially, enforceable restrictive covenants like non-compete clauses.

An employee handbook is a critical legal instrument, not just a list of rules. We create a comprehensive, customized handbook that serves as a powerful defense against employment claims. It will clearly outline all your essential policies, from anti-harassment and HIPAA compliance to workplace safety and disciplinary procedures, all tailored to the unique environment of a plastic surgery practice.

We are not generalists who dabble in healthcare law. Our firm maintains a relentless focus on serving the unique legal and business needs of healthcare providers, with profound, specific experience in the challenges and opportunities confronting Florida plastic surgeons. We understand the artistry of your work, the importance of patient trust, and the intricate business dynamics that fuel a premier practice.

Our reputation is built on the success of our clients. We have a demonstrable history of navigating complex transactions, winning high-stakes disputes, and building compliant, profitable practices from the ground up. Our greatest achievements are the thriving, secure practices of the surgeons we are proud to represent.

Our legal team is comprised of seasoned attorneys with substantial, focused experience in healthcare law, complex business transactions, regulatory compliance, and high-stakes litigation—every skill set your practice demands.

We are architects of success, not just analysts of problems. We believe in preventing legal crises before they ignite. Our counsel is designed to be a strategic partnership, anticipating challenges and seizing opportunities to help you achieve your most ambitious goals.

We have eliminated the common frustrations of working with law firms. We are built on a foundation of clear, consistent, and responsive communication, ensuring you are informed and empowered at every stage of our partnership. We are also pleased to offer our full suite of services in Spanish—Hablamos español—to serve all members of Florida’s vibrant community.

We are committed to transparent, predictable, and fair billing practices. We reject opaque hourly billing in favor of clear, value-based pricing, building a partnership based on trust and shared success.

We invite you to schedule a complimentary, completely confidential consultation to discuss the specific legal needs of your plastic surgery practice. This initial strategy session is an opportunity for us to understand your vision and for you to experience our expertise and approach firsthand, with absolutely no obligation.