A Small Number of Big Problems Make Up the Most Complaints Against Illinois Doctors

There are 43 specified grounds for disciplinary action against Illinois doctors set forth in the state’s Medical Practice Act. Running afoul of any one of those grounds can result in career-altering action by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). More often than not, the genesis of disciplinary proceedings against Illinois physicians come from citizen complaints. And while a typical year will see at least one complaint involving each of the statutory bases for discipline, some violations, as Orwell might say, are more equal than others. Knowing what the most common complaints are can help Illinois doctors redouble their efforts at avoiding mistakes or misunderstandings that can put their practices at risk.

If You Practice Medicine in Illinois, You Will (Likely) Be the Subject of a Complaint

Over the course of a career, even the most outstanding doctors are likely to face at least one complaint about their conduct by a patient or other individual, whether in the form of a filing with the IDFPR or in a civil medical malpractice complaint. The Board receives approximately 3,000 complaints against Illinois doctors every single year. The majority of those complaints are citizen complaints submitted in writing or through the IDFPR website. Complaints also come from other state agencies, from licensing and regulatory boards in other states, and as mandatory reports from professional liability insurers, professional associates, hospitals, or other health care institutions.

Unprofessional Conduct and Substandard Care Lead the Pack

According to IDFPR statistics, 75 percent of the total number of complaints it receives arise from the same 10 alleged violations of the Act. The most common complaint against Illinois physicians received by the Department are allegations of “unprofessional conduct,” or, as set forth in the Act, “engaging in dishonorable, unethical or unprofessional conduct of a character likely to deceive, defraud or harm the public.”

Within this broad and somewhat ambiguous definition, some of the more common examples of “unprofessional conduct” that can lead to the suspension or revocation of a physician’s license or other disciplinary action include:

  • Physician abuse of a patient
  • Inadequate record keeping
  • Falsifying records
  • Fraudulent insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid claims
  • False or misleading advertising
  • Prescribing drugs in excess or without legitimate reason
  • Failing to meet continuing medical education requirements
  • Dishonesty
  • Conviction of a felony
  • Delegating the practice of medicine to an unlicensed individual

Complaints about the quality of care provided by a doctor grievances – substandard care, improper care, misdiagnosis, delayed treatment, incompetence, etc.-  are right behind allegations of unprofessional conduct. Sexual misconduct and substance abuse issues also are the subject of an alarmingly high number of complaints to the Department.

Whatever the basis of a complaint, and regardless of whether you believe it has any merit, if the IDFPR has become involved, you need an experienced Illinois physician licensure defense attorney to become involved.  With so much at stake, trying to go it alone before the Department is a mistake from which you may never recover.

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.

Defending Yourself Before the IDFPR is a Gamble You Can’t Afford

If you find yourself on the receiving end of a complaint, the subject of an investigation, or facing a disciplinary proceeding before the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), don’t bother defending yourself.

That’s not to say your license, reputation, and career aren’t worth fighting for; quite the opposite, actually. But the policies and procedures that govern IDFPR investigations, hearings, and imposition of sanctions are unique and complicated, and often times unwritten and informal; even skilled and experienced attorneys who do not practice before IDFPR can find themselves at a loss when dealing with licensure issues. You may be the target of a completely meritless client/patient complaint; you may have all of the facts on your side and the documentation or witnesses to prove it. But all of your arguments and evidence may never see the light of day if you don’t know the proper way to present your case.

Your lack of knowledge of the process and how IDFPR prosecuting attorneys think and work also means you may miss out on opportunities to resolve your case sooner, cheaper, and with a more positive outcome. The ability to effectively reach a negotiated resolution with prosecutors depends on understanding the range of consequences, the risks involved in proceeding to a full hearing, and the likelihood of obtaining a successful result. Unless you have had extensive experience defending your professional license (which is hopefully not the case), you will be at an overwhelming disadvantage in negotiations with IDFPR prosecuting attorneys.

Even worse, the process can be manifestly unfair and stacked against you. Experienced and aggressive prosecutors have your license in their sights, and the hearing officer who will determine your fate is not necessarily independent and unbiased. IDFPR hearing officers are employed and paid by the IDFPR, just as the prosecuting attorneys are. Whether a hearing officer is consciously biased or not, the fact that their paychecks are coming from the very same folks who are seeking to discipline a respondent creates an implicit conflict of interest and calls into question the fairness of the entire process.

You are no doubt smart and know your profession well, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can or should handle an IDFPR investigation on your own.  Your reputation, career and livelihood are at stake.  Now is not the time to take a flyer and hope for the best.

Louis Fine: Chicago Professional License Defense Attorney

As a former Chief Prosecuting Attorney and administrative law judge for IDFPR, I have seen the serious consequences that an adverse enforcement decision can have on professionals who suddenly find their future in disarray. I understand how and why the Department decides to pursue investigations, how it handles negotiations, and how to approach formal proceedings in a way that gives my clients the best possible chance of a positive and expeditious outcome.

Please give me a call at (312) 236-2433 or fill out my online form to arrange for your free initial consultation. Together, we will get you back to your clients and your career.

Illinois Nurses: Take Care of How You Treat the IDFPR or Risk Losing Everything

There are lots of things you can look forward to in the mail – birthday cards, paychecks, that cool thing you just ordered from Amazon. But if you are a nurse in Illinois, an unexpected envelope from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) is not one of them. There’s a good chance that the envelope contains either a complaint which a patient has lodged against you and/or a notice that you are under investigation for alleged violations of your professional obligations.

Whether you are a Registered Professional Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), or Advanced Practice Nurse (APN), don’t panic if that envelope does come and make sure you avoid these other IDFPR “don’ts” as well. But you’d rather not get such potentially devastating news in the first place.

In addition to the many bases for disciplinary action that are related to the performance of your duties as a nurse, there are also many ways to get in trouble related to your duties to the IDFPR. The IDFPR does not like being ignored, lied to, or denied information relevant to your license and professional history. Here are three ways your interactions with the IDFPR can lead them to threaten your ability to continue practicing:

  • Ignoring the IDFPR. Burying your head in the sand is the worst possible thing you can do if and when the IDFPR contacts you. You are subject to discipline if you:
    • Fail, within 90 days, to provide a response to a request for information in response to a written request made by the IDFPR by certified mail.
    • Fail to report to the IDFPR any final disciplinary action taken against you by another licensing jurisdiction, any peer review body, any health care institution, any professional or nursing society or association, any governmental agency, any law enforcement agency, or any court or a nursing liability claim related to acts or conduct similar to acts or conduct that would constitute grounds for action as defined in this Section.
    • Fail to report to the IDFPR your surrender of a license or authorization to practice nursing or advanced practice nursing in another state or jurisdiction.
    • Failing, within 60 days, to provide information in response to a written request made by the Department.
  • Burying bad news. If you are disciplined in another jurisdiction, you need to report that to the IDFPR. They say the cover up is always worse than the crime, so make sure that you:
    • Report to the IDFPR any final disciplinary action taken against you by another licensing jurisdiction, any peer review body, any health care institution, any professional or nursing society or association, any governmental agency, any law enforcement agency, or any court or a nursing liability claim related to acts or conduct similar to acts or conduct that would constitute grounds for action as defined in this Section.
    • Report to the IDFPR your surrender of a license or authorization to practice nursing or advanced practice nursing in another state or jurisdiction.
  • Lying. Period. You lie or intentionally deceive the IDFPR, you will lose your license; it’s just that simple. Specifically:
    • Material deception in furnishing information to the Department.
    • Fraud, deceit or misrepresentation in procuring or applying for a renewal of your license.
    • Attempting to subvert or cheat on a licensing examination.
    • The use of any false, fraudulent, or deceptive statement in any document connected with your practice.
    • Willfully making or filing false records or reports in your practice, including but not limited to false records to support claims against the medical assistance program of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (formerly Department of Public Aid) under the Illinois Public Aid Code.

In addition to your communications directly with the IDFPR, your communications to the world at large through social media can put your license at risk. What you post on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or other social media platforms can be used as evidence against you in any disciplinary action brought by the IDFPR. Depending on what you post, you social media use can itself be a basis for discipline if it violates patient confidentiality, reflect immoral conduct relating to your practice, or otherwise violates any other basis for discipline as set forth in the Illinois Nurse Practice Act.

Louis R. Fine: Chicago Nursing License Defense Attorney

If you’re a licensed Illinois nurse, 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 IDFRP 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 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.

Want to Lose Your Illinois Real Estate Broker’s License? Here Are 5 Good Ways to Do It.

There may be 50 ways to leave your lover as Paul Simon sang long ago, but there are just as many ways for Illinois real estate brokers to leave their licenses vulnerable to revocation by Illinois regulators.

Real estate brokers in Illinois are subject to some of the most stringent licensing requirements of any profession in the state. The steps that need to be taken and qualifications that need to be met to obtain a broker or managing broker license are extensive and complex. The missteps that could lead to the loss of a license are equally voluminous. Every day, Illinois real estate brokers need to be vigilant in their words and their deeds to avoid raising the eyebrows of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR).

A full list of the (43!) reasons the IDFPR could revoke, suspend, or refuse to renew an Illinois real estate broker’s license can be found in Section 20-20 of the Illinois Real Estate License Act. But for purposes of our Section 20-20 vision in this post, here are five great ways to lose your Illinois real estate broker’s license:

  1. Lies, lies, lies. Whether in a conversation, an e-mail, an advertisement, or otherwise, if you make a misrepresentation or a promise you know you can’t keep, you’ll find yourself facing IDFPR disciplinary action. Specifically, this includes:
    • Advertising that is inaccurate, misleading, or contains a substantial misrepresentation;
    • Making any false promises of a character likely to influence, persuade, or induce;
    • Pursuing a continued and flagrant course of misrepresentation or the making of false promises through licensees, employees, agents, advertising, or otherwise;
    • Using any trade name or insignia of membership in any real estate organization of which the licensee is not a member;
    • Engaging in dishonorable, unethical, or unprofessional conduct of a character likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the public.
  1. Conflicts. Acting for more than one party in a transaction without providing written notice to all parties for whom the licensee acts.
  2. Money/escrow funds. Playing fast and loose with other people’s money, even without any nefarious intent, is an easy way to lose your license. This includes failure to account for or to remit any money that belongs to others, failure to maintain and deposit escrow funds in a special, separate account that satisfies all regulatory requirements, and comingling client and personal funds.
  3. Files and documents available for review. You need to make sure you keep all documents and files in order and quickly available to the IDFPR and/or clients. Specifically, you could lose your license if you:
    • Fail to provide escrow records and related documents maintained in connection with the practice of real estate within 24 hours of a request for those documents by IDFPR personnel;
    • Fail to provide information requested by IDFPR, or otherwise respond to that request, within 30 days of the request;
    • Fail as a sponsoring broker to timely provide information, sponsor cards, or termination of licenses to the IDFPR upon request;
    • Fail to provide copies of documents to a party who has executed and requested such documents.
  1. Lack of judgment or abilities. If a licensee has engaged in a pattern of conduct which could indicate the loss of ability to practice the profession with reasonable judgment, skill, or safety due to substance abuse, age or illness, the IDFPR can begin license revocation proceedings even in the absence of any complaints or harm.

Louis R. Fine: Chicago Real Estate License Defense Attorney

If you’re a licensed Illinois real estate broker, 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 IDFRP 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 license and get you back to your clients 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.