Employer, Employee, or Subcontractor: what is your status?

With apologies to Joyce McDougall, this is a plea for a measure of formality:

Are you an employee or a subcontractor? Do you have employees or subcontractors working for you? How do you know? Sometimes the job title doesn’t match the responsibilities, and when that happens confusion makes its grand entrance. Part of this difficulty is the natural result of importing employment classifications originally designed for industry into the field of healthcare.

It seems obvious, but the business of mental health practice isn’t the same as that of a retail establishment. It also isn’t the same as a factory or restaurant. Yet, mental health practitioners utilize the same body of law to address workplace disputes and this can result in some confusion. Ultimately the determination of employee/subcontractor status is usually determined by consulting the Internal Revenue Code, but that doesn’t stop employers, employees, and subcontractors alike from trying to gain an advantage via these labels.

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HIPAA: Once a covered entity, always a covered entity?

Rightly or wrongly, HIPAA is perceived by many clinicians as an administrative nightmare. For those who aren’t already compliant, the task of becoming HIPAA compliant isn’t one that clinicians relish. Most clinicians who have practices that need to be HIPAA compliant accomplished this task a long time ago.

For those who/that are covered entities, is there a way to get away from HIPAA? Can clinicians who no longer wish to be “covered entities” opt out of compliance with HIPAA?

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Finding an Attorney for Your Mental Health Practice

Consultation with an attorney is activity that most mental health clinicians engage in on an infrequent basis. As a general matter, mental health practice is a profession that sees a relatively low number of lawsuits. In addition, many clinicians have the option of consulting with an attorney provided by their professional liability carrier (see the previous article on this topic) should the need arise for a consultation regarding professional negligence or the prospect of administrative action. Yet, there are many instances when clinicians feel compelled to consult with an attorney of their own. There are many reasons why clinicians choose to hire a private attorney, the most common reasons being:
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