URGENT COVID-19 Professional Licensing Update

Pritzker Paves Way for Expedited Healthcare License Reinstatement

IDFPR Issues Emergency Variances and Extensions

With the vast majority of Illinois residents working from home – or not working at all – because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) has announced several variances and extensions that impact all 1.3 million Illinoisans with professional licenses. It is likely that these first five variances, issued on March 18th, 2020, will not be the last.

Healthcare Workers: Expedited Reinstatement and Streamlined Out-of-State Licensing

In fact, at his Saturday, March 21st daily coronavirus press conference, Gov. JB Pritzker issued a plea to retired healthcare workers to join the fight against the virus, indicating that the state would expedite licensing and waive fees for any healthcare professionals seeking reinstatement. “Applications will be processed on an expedited basis, and we’ll be coordinating with hospitals and health care sites throughout the state to deploy these re-enlisted medical professionals to the frontlines,” Pritzker said.

Today, March 23rd, IDFPR announced several actions to implement this directive. Specifically:

  • Physicians whose licenses are expired or inactive for less than three years can temporarily restore their license, for no fee or continuing education requirement, to work under the direction of Illinois Emergency Management Agency (“IEMA”) and the Illinois Department of Public Health (“IDPH”) or in a long-term care facility, hospital, or federally qualified health center (“FQHC”). Application for physician reinstatement can be found here.
  • Physician Assistants whose licenses are inactive or in non-renewed status for less than three years can also temporarily restore their license, for no fee or continuing education requirement, to work under the direction of IEMA and IDPH or in a long-term care facility, hospital, or FQHC. Applications for reinstatement can be found here.
  • Licensed practical nurses, registered professional nurses, advanced practice registered nurses, and respiratory care therapists whose licenses are inactive or in nonrenewed status for less than five years can also temporarily restore their license, for no fee or continuing education requirement, to work under the direction of IEMA and IDPH or in a long-term care facility, hospital, or FQHC. Applications for reinstatement can be found here.
  • Out-of-State physicians, nurses, physician assistants, pharmacists, and respiratory care therapists may practice in Illinois if they are licensed in another state and are in good standing. These licensees must be operating under the authority of IEMA/IDPH or at a long-term care facility, hospital or FQHC, and must meet the standards of care mandated by the respective health care acts. They must provide contact information and dates of arrival and departure on forms provided by IDFPR. This temporary practice approval expires on September 30, 2020. Applications for an Out-of-State Temporary Practice Permit can be found here.

In addition to these healthcare-focused changes, other COVID-19 variances issued by IDFPR include:

Upcoming License Renewal Extensions

Any professional licenses issued by the Department that have renewal dates between March 1st, 2020 through and including July 31st, 2020 are granted an automatic extension to renew to September 30th, 2020.

Continuing Education Obligations

All current licensees whose license renewal deadlines fall between March 1st, 2020 and July 31st, 2020 shall have up to, and including, September 30th, 2020 to complete their continuing education coursework.

The Department is also allowing licensees to complete their continuing education coursework remotely without requiring live attendance. The variance allows for interactive webinars and online distance education courses in addition to currently permitted methods.

Louis Fine: Chicago Professional License Defense Attorney

This is an unprecedented and challenging time for everyone, including licensed professionals. During this crisis, I remain committed to being a resource, counselor, and advocate for all Illinois licensees as they navigate the rapidly changing legal, regulatory, and practical landscape.

If you have questions or concerns about your professional license or how these variances and other COVID-19 changes affect you, please contact me immediately. Call (312) 236-2433 or fill out my online form to arrange for your free initial consultation. I look forward to meeting with you.

Cognitive Decline Among Older Physicians Leading to Increased Screening

For every accomplished physician who dreams of retiring early, there is one who can’t imagine giving up the work that brings them so much personal and professional satisfaction and financial security. Every year, 20,000 American doctors turn 65, but only half of them retire by then. Thousands of physicians continue to practice well past their 70th, even 80th, birthdays. It is estimated that one in every eight practicing doctors in the U.S. is over 65, overseeing 50-70 million office visits and 11 million to 20 million hospitalizations each year.

One In Eight Doctors Over 70 Found to Have Significant Cognitive Deficits

With so many patients receiving care from physicians 65 and up, many hospitals and healthcare systems are also increasing their scrutiny of the cognitive abilities and faculties of these senior clinicians. Major institutions such as Scripps Health Care, Intermountain Healthcare, Stanford Hospitals and Clinics, and Penn Medicine have implemented mandatory cognitive screens for older practitioners.

At Yale New Haven Hospital, for example, all applicants 70 or older who seek reappointment to the medical staff are required to have an objective evaluation of cognitive function as part of the two-year reappointment process. What a recent round of that testing revealed was that one in eight doctors who participated in the screening had cognitive deficits that were likely to impair their ability to practice medicine independently.

Testing or No Testing, Cognitive Issues Raise Professional Licensing Concerns

The wisdom and efficacy of such testing programs is subject to debate, with many arguing that age-based screening is empirically unjustified or inherently discriminatory. Whether subject to required testing or not, however, all older physicians who continue to treat patients later in life will at some point face difficult questions about their abilities and the prudence of continuing to practice.

Confronting issues of cognitive decline, if not impairment, is no easy task, personally and professionally. But recognizing any such concerns is also an ethical imperative. Continuing to practice while suffering from cognitive impairment significant enough to raise concerns about patient safety can subject a physician of any age to disciplinary action and the loss of their license.

The Illinois Medical Practice Act (the “Act”), for example, makes it a basis for suspension or revocation of a license for a physician to practice if they have a:
• Mental illness or disability which results in the inability to practice under this Act with reasonable judgment, skill or safety.
• Physical illness, including, but not limited to, deterioration through the aging process… which results in a physician’s inability to practice under this Act with reasonable judgment, skill, and safety.

The Act also imposes reporting requirements on certain health care executives regarding “impaired” physicians, defined as those who lack the ability “to practice medicine with reasonable skill and safety due to physical or mental disabilities as evidenced by a written determination or written consent based on clinical evidence including deterioration through the aging process or loss of motor skill… of sufficient degree to diminish a person’s ability to deliver competent patient care.”

Doctors, for all their talents, are as vulnerable as anyone else to the inevitable effects of time and aging. While debate may continue as to the best way to identify and remediate instances of age-related cognitive or physical impairment, doctors who practice well into their golden years need to combine their clinical judgment with self-awareness when evaluating the wisdom of continuing to treat patients. Failing to do so puts both patients and professional licenses at risk.

Louis R. Fine: Chicago Physician License Defense Attorney

Throughout my career, I have been protecting the livelihoods and professional futures of physicians and other health care providers before the IDFPR, combining insight and experience with zealous and strategic advocacy.

The moment you are contacted by IDFPR or learn that you are under investigation is the moment that you should contact me. I will immediately begin communicating with IDFPR prosecutors and work with you to develop the strategy best suited to achieving the goal of an efficient, cost-effective outcome that avoids any adverse action. Together, we will protect your Illinois physician’s license and get you back to your patients and your career.

Please give me a call at (312) 236-2433 or fill out my online form to arrange for your free initial consultation. I look forward to meeting with you.