License Defense for Doctors (MD and DO) in Miami

Whether you are an MD or a DO, we help you answer the investigation, challenge an administrative complaint, and, when the facts are in dispute, take the case to a hearing before an independent administrative law judge.

Dennis Gonzalez Jr. is a former Miami-Dade prosecutor who has been defending people since 2012. When a license case and a criminal case grow out of the same facts, we handle both sides together. Our office answers 24 hours a day.

Who Regulates Doctors in Florida

• MDs are regulated by the Board of Medicine under Chapter 458 of the Florida Statutes.
• DOs are regulated by the Board of Osteopathic Medicine under Chapter 459.
• Both boards sit within the Florida Department of Health. The department investigates and prosecutes complaints; the board decides the case. Chapter 456 sets the general rules that apply to every health care profession the department regulates.

Common Grounds for Discipline

The practice acts list many grounds. Some of the ones that come up most, summarized in plain terms from s. 458.331 (MDs) and s. 459.015 (DOs), and from s. 456.072 for all health care practitioners:

• Medical malpractice, gross malpractice, or repeated malpractice, as the statutes define those terms.
• Prescribing problems: prescribing, dispensing, or administering a legend drug or controlled substance outside the course of professional practice; prescribing scheduled drugs to yourself; presigning blank prescription forms; violating the controlled substance prescribing requirements.
• Records: failing to keep legible medical records that justify the course of treatment.
• Being unable to practice with reasonable skill and safety because of illness, alcohol, drugs, or a mental or physical condition.
• Criminal cases: being convicted or found guilty of, or pleading guilty or no contest to, a crime that relates to the practice of medicine or the ability to practice, regardless of adjudication.
• Fraud and false statements: deceptive or fraudulent representations in the practice, false reports or records, kickbacks or fee-splitting for patient referrals, and misleading advertising.
• Sexual misconduct with a patient.
• Practicing beyond your scope, improper delegation, or failing to supervise physician assistants, advanced practice registered nurses, and others working under your supervision.
• Discipline in another state or jurisdiction.
• Failing to report: for example, failing to report a criminal conviction or plea to the board in writing within 30 days.
• Violating a board order or ignoring a department subpoena.

How a Complaint Becomes an Administrative Complaint

The process is set by s. 456.073 of the Florida Statutes:

1. The complaint. The department investigates a complaint that is in writing, signed, and legally sufficient. It can also open an investigation on its own, and in some cases on an anonymous complaint. The department can keep investigating even if the person who complained withdraws.
2. Notice to you. When the department investigates a physician, it must promptly send you or your attorney a copy of the complaint or document that started the investigation, unless an exception applies. Physicians have 45 days after service to submit a written response, and the probable cause panel must consider it. Do not send that response without a lawyer. The department can also investigate without notifying you if the conduct under investigation is a criminal offense.
3. The investigative file. After the department recommends a finding of probable cause, you can make a written request to inspect the investigative file and file a written response within 20 days of the department's mailing, unless the department grants more time.
4. Probable cause. A probable cause panel of the board decides whether probable cause exists. Instead of finding probable cause, it can issue a letter of guidance. If it finds probable cause, the department files a formal administrative complaint.
5. Confidentiality. The complaint and the investigation stay confidential until 10 days after probable cause is found, or until you waive confidentiality.
6. Time limit. In general, an administrative complaint must be filed within 6 years after the incident. That limit does not apply to cases involving criminal actions, diversion of controlled substances, sexual misconduct, or impairment, and it can be extended, up to 12 years after the incident, when fraud, concealment, or intentional misrepresentation prevented discovery.

Choosing Your Hearing: The Election of Rights Form

When the administrative complaint is served, it must tell you that you have the right to request a hearing and to be represented by counsel. You will typically receive a form to choose how to proceed. That hearing-request form is commonly called an election of rights; the phrase is a name used in practice and does not appear in the statutes or the uniform rules. Your choices:

• A formal hearing before an administrative law judge of the Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) when you dispute the facts. Florida law requires a formal hearing if there are any disputed issues of material fact.
• An informal hearing before the board when you do not dispute the facts.
• A settlement, such as a consent order. Any settlement must be approved by the department.

The deadline matters. The papers you receive must state the deadline that applies to you. Under Florida's uniform rules for agency hearings, it is 21 days from receiving written notice, unless another law sets a different period, and missing it can waive your right to a hearing. Call us the day the complaint arrives.

At a formal hearing you can present evidence, cross-examine the department's witnesses, and argue your case. The judge issues a recommended order with findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a recommended penalty. Each side then has 15 days to file written exceptions. The board issues the final order, and it cannot reject the judge's findings of fact unless, after reviewing the entire record, it finds they were not based on competent substantial evidence or that the proceedings did not comply with the essential requirements of law. For physicians, the department must prove grounds for suspension or revocation by clear and convincing evidence. A party adversely affected by the final order is entitled to judicial review in a Florida district court of appeal.

For the full step-by-step process, see our Administrative Hearings & License Defense page.

Possible penalties under s. 456.072(2) include a reprimand or letter of concern, a fine of up to $10,000 per count, probation, restrictions on practice, remedial education, refunds, suspension, and permanent revocation. If the violation is for fraud or a false or fraudulent representation, the statute requires a $10,000 fine per count.

Emergency Suspension: When the License Can Be Taken First

Florida law allows the State Surgeon General, or a designee, to suspend or restrict a license by emergency order, before any hearing, if there is an immediate serious danger to the public health, safety, or welfare. The order must state the specific facts and reasons, a regular disciplinary proceeding must also be promptly started, and the order can be appealed right away.

For some situations the law goes further. Under s. 456.074, the department must issue an emergency suspension order when a health care practitioner:

• pleads guilty or no contest to, or is convicted or found guilty of, regardless of adjudication, a felony under Chapter 409 (Florida's public-assistance chapter, which includes Medicaid), Chapter 817 (fraudulent practices), or Chapter 893 (drugs), or under the federal drug or Medicare and Medicaid laws listed in the statute;
• pleads guilty or no contest to, or is convicted or found guilty of, regardless of adjudication, certain listed federal fraud, false-statement, and related offenses relating to the Medicaid program, even misdemeanors;
• pleads guilty or no contest to, or is convicted or found guilty of, regardless of adjudication, a felony of reproductive battery or a homicide felony; or
• is arrested for any of the offenses listed in the statute, which include sexual offenses and sexual misconduct, kidnapping, false imprisonment, human trafficking and smuggling, offenses involving children, and certain related offenses.

The department also must suspend when the State Surgeon General finds probable cause of sexual misconduct that is an immediate danger to the public, and it may suspend or restrict after a positive drug test without a lawful prescription (you get 48 hours from notice of the confirmed result to produce one). For physicians with prior malpractice findings involving three or more patients, a new probable cause finding triggers review for an emergency order.

When There Is Also a Criminal Case

For a doctor, a criminal case and a license case often travel together, and what you do in one can decide the other:

• A plea counts. A guilty or no contest plea counts against your license regardless of adjudication. A withhold of adjudication does not make the license problem go away.
• Certain pleas trigger automatic suspension. A guilty or no contest plea to a felony under Chapter 409, 817, or 893 (or the listed federal laws) means a mandatory emergency suspension, regardless of adjudication. Those same felony pleas and convictions can also bar license renewal for years under s. 456.0635.
• You must self-report. A conviction or plea has to be reported to the board in writing within 30 days.
• Information is shared. The department can share its investigation with law enforcement and other regulators.

Before you accept any plea, the license consequences have to be part of the deal. We look at both cases at the same time. See our pages on Health Care Fraud, Medicaid Fraud, Medicare Fraud, Insurance Fraud, Drug Crimes, and Practicing Without a License.

What to Do If You Receive a Letter from the Department of Health

1. Do not call the investigator to explain. Anything you say can become evidence.
2. Do not send a written response on your own. The panel reads it. It should be prepared with a lawyer.
3. Write down the date you received the letter and keep the envelope.
4. Preserve your records: charts, billing, prescriptions, and communications. Do not change anything.
5. Tell us about any arrest or criminal investigation, even if it seems unrelated.
6. Call us. The earlier we are involved, the more options you have.

Want to File a Complaint Against a Doctor?

If you were harmed by a doctor, you can file a complaint with the Florida Department of Health. What the law provides:

• The complaint must be in writing, signed, and legally sufficient, meaning it states facts showing a violation. The department may ask for supporting documents.
• The department must keep you and the patient informed of the status of the investigation, and if probable cause is found, give you a copy of the administrative complaint and explain how you can take part.
• If probable cause is not found, you will be told and can send additional information within 60 days.
• At a hearing, the person who filed the complaint has the right to present oral or written communication about the violations or the penalty.
• People who report in good faith are protected from civil liability; the protection does not apply to bad faith or malice.

A board complaint does not get you money for your injuries. If you were hurt by medical care, you may also have a civil claim, and those claims have strict deadlines. Call us to talk about both.

Why Choose Dennis Gonzalez Law, P.A.

• Former Miami-Dade prosecutor.
• Defending people since 2012.
• License case and criminal case handled together when they arise from the same facts.
• Super Lawyers recognition and an Avvo Rating of 10.0.
• Bilingual office — se habla español.
• We answer 24 hours a day. Call (305) 209-0384.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to respond to the Department of Health's letter?

For physicians, the statute allows 45 days after service of the complaint to submit a written response. Get a lawyer involved well before then.

Can my license be suspended before I get a hearing?

Yes, by emergency order, when the State Surgeon General finds an immediate serious danger to the public. For certain pleas, convictions, and arrests, the emergency order is mandatory. You can challenge an emergency order in court.

I got a withhold of adjudication. Do I still have a license problem?

Possibly yes. The statutes count pleas of guilty or no contest regardless of adjudication.

Is the complaint public?

Not at first. It stays confidential until 10 days after probable cause is found, unless you waive confidentiality.

Do I have to go to a hearing?

No. You can dispute the facts at a formal DOAH hearing, go to an informal hearing before the board if the facts are not disputed, or resolve the case by settlement. Which path is right depends on your facts.