What Are the Patient Brokering Laws in 2021?
Patient brokering laws in 2021 for drug and alcohol addiction treatment centers are nationwide. It is paramount for all drug rehabilitation providers and sober livings to be well educated on these. Especially the local regulatory climate in West Palm Beach FL. and California.
Many addiction treatment centers, sober livings, and marketers are misinformed about their marketing contracts. Recently the Tomasso brothers thought they were covered with their marketing contracts. Many of these contracts are not in compliance and owners and marketers need to be Crystal clear on what the law requires.
From a Palm Beach Post article by Jorge Milan Palm Beach Post Staff Writer,
“The Tomasso brothers, both residents of Boca Raton, entered into a “marketing employment contract” on Dec. 1, 2016, that “was actually for the referral of patients from Ronald’s sober home” to a substance-abuse facility run by James Tomasso’s wife, the report said.”
Drug rehab marketing employment contracts, like the one the Tomasso brothers signed, are used by treatment facilities to circumvent Florida’s patient-brokering law, which states it is unlawful for any person to offer or pay any commission, bonus, rebate, kickback, or bribe … to induce the referral of patients or patronage to or from a health care provider,” according to Delray Beach police, which investigated the case.
Counsel Hirshfeld, Esq. Discusses Drug Rehab Marketing Adhering to Laws
The patient brokering law originated with drug rehabs in Florida. They are know spreading across the United States. California is experiencing the implementations in 2020. David will be discussing some fundamental and wide-spread misconceptions on patient brokering and kickbacks that leave many open to legal issues. He will be sharing practical tips on how to make ethical arrangements with marketers more defensible. Below are some questions we plan on asking him.
David Hirshfeld, Esq. is licensed to practice in Florida and New York. He currently owns a nationally respected law firm Hirshfeld PLLC. He has has spent his 23-year legal career advising clients with respect to:
- business arrangements among licensed health care providers
- unlicensed entities in the business of healthcare, insurers and other third-party payors.
For the past five years, he has focused almost exclusively on the substance abuse treatment segment. David was one of FARR’s original board members, and represents:
- SAT providers
- physician groups
- clinics
- clinical labs
- lab managers
- marketing
- lead generation companies
- billing companies
- recovery residences
He is occasionally asked to advise private equity concerns as well as other law firms. David has also served as full-time in-house counsel to several insurance companies, a healthcare marketing company, and an SAT provider.
Healthcare and Drug Rehab Patient Brokering Laws
David Hirshfeld, Esq. is very well-versed in laws governing the corporate practice of:
- medicine
- fee-splitting
- patient brokering laws
- kickbacks
- self-referrals
- the scope of practice and supervision
- privacy
- insurance
- false claims
- healthcare marketing
- general laws governing business entities
As part of representing healthcare businesses, he has become expert with respect to:
- general legal issues arising from space and equipment leases
- loan documents
- employment and contractor arrangements
- human resource issues
- wage-and-hour law, arrangements among owners within a business
- other general business arrangements not specifically related to health care or insurance
California drug rehabs are now experiencing many business and operational changes. The laws are forcing them to incorporate legal business and marketing strategies. Many substance abuse treatment facilities are getting educated on drug rehab SEO marketing to attract new clients.
California Drug Rehabs Marketing Arrangements Still Not Legal
California drug rehabs are now understanding the patient brokering laws. Many recovery centers and sober livings current contracts may not protect them from criminal liability from patient brokering laws. With the current status of the addiction treatment industry, it is critical that owners and operators have contracts that are as defensible as possible.
Many are relying on recommendations from inexperienced legal counsel and peers. There are still gray areas and operating ethically in compliance with the law is critical. Here are some topics we plan on asking Mr. Hirshfeld;
- Many people seem to believe that they are free to compensate marketers based on the numbers of patients or the amount of revenue they bring to a treatment provider as long as the marketer is hired on a W-2 basis. Is it really that simple? Are you adhering to the patient brokering laws?
- In addition to carefully choosing whether to characterize the marketer as 1099 or W-2, are there any other steps that treatment centers can take to help shore up their marketing arrangements from a regulatory perspective?
Please post any questions or comments on patient brokering below.
Addiction Professional Conferences Addressing Patient Brokering Laws
Behavioral Health Network Resources Addiction Conferences EMP Series tackles these issues head-on. Learn proven and ethical rehab marketing strategies providing long-term solutions to the addiction treatment centers problem of maintaining a health census. We are working on our next events in Florida and California in 2019. If you would like to sponsor or exhibit please contact our CEO, Charles Davis at ceo@behavioralhealthnetworkresources.com.
These new laws have effected how treatment center market their services. Many are now seeking was to rank organically on Google. This has the lowest cost per aquisition over all other marketing. The other alternative is Google Ad Words. This now requires Legit Script certification at $995 and an annual fee of $1995. Once the treatment centers have the certification they then are competing with big players and paying for every click. Drug rehab SEO costs much less in the long run.