Texas Medical Board

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Despite the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure’s clear admonishment that a person’s successfully completed Deferred Disposition (available for Class C offenses in Municipal and Justice Courts only) cannot be used against them, the Texas Board of Nurse Examiners and Texas Medical Board continue to use such a record as a basis for disciplinary investigations and…

In late December of last year, the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons filed a federal lawsuit against the Texas Medical Board seeking various injunctive and declaratory relief against what it characterizes as the abusive practices of the Board. The AAPS complaint contains numerous allegations running the gamut from Board manipulation of the anonymous complaint process, a conflict of interest by the former head of the disciplinary committee, an ongoing policy of arbitrarily rejecting the recommendations of Administrative Law Judges, breaches of confidentiality during the disciplinary review process, and Board retaliation against physician criticism. 

In a press release, Executive Director of the AAPS, Jane M. Orient stated that the AAPS felt compelled to file the lawsuit on behalf of its Texas members given that individual physicians were too afraid of possible TMB retaliation to take action on their own. The AAPS identifies itself as a non-profit entity with thousands of members throughout the country, including Texas, dedicated to preserving the traditional doctor-patient relationship and effective medicine. One of the organization’s overriding purposes is identified in their complaint as the protection of its members “from arbitrary and unlawful government action” such as that alleged to have been perpetrated by the TMB.

A central allegation of the complaint claims that Texas Medical Board President Roberta Kalafut actively manipulated the anonymous complaint process to harass and discipline physicians, including some of her Abilene competitors. According to the pleadings, Mrs. Kalafut had her husband file the anonymous complaints which she then ensured were actively pursued by the Board. Mrs. Kalafut has responded to the press by stating that this claim is completely untrue, noting that none of the anonymous complaints which led to disciplinary action came from Abilene. The AAPS complaint also targets outside abuse of the anonymous complaint process. It alleges that a New York insurance company arranged to have an anonymous complaint filed against a Texas doctor who had treated five of its insured members, who were all pleased with their treatment, so as to avoid paying their costs. The suit seeks an injunction against future receipt of anonymous complaints and a declaratory judgment that such complaints violate a physician’s due process rights under color of state law.

The second main allegation involves Keith Miller’s tenure as Chairman of the TMB’s Disciplinary Process Review Committee, a topic I have previously blogged about. Mr. Miller resigned in the fall of last year amid criticism of his continued position as disciplinary chairman while he simultaneously served as a plaintiff’s expert witness in scores of medical malpractice cases throughout Texas. The complaint points out this conflict of interest and Board officials’, such as President Kalafut, admitted awareness of it as reason for the federal court to compel the reopening of the disciplinary cases heard by Miller.

The final primary allegation of the AAPS involves the TMB’s arbitrary rejection of negative administrative rulings. The complaint itself points out a case where the TMB sought a disciplinary sanction against a doctor’s license who had requested, as per his hospital’s standard rate, that a patient pay $81 dollars for a copy of her medical records. In response to the patient’s complaint the Board’s disciplinary committee, headed by Keith Miller, demanded that the doctor pay a $1000 fine as part of a sanction that would be reported to the National Practitioner’s Databank. After the doctor appealed the case and an Administrative Law Judge ruled unequivocally that the TMB had no legal authority on which to take such an action, the Board simply reinstated its findings and doubled the fine. The suit seeks an injunction against any further arbitrary rejections of administrative rulings by the TMB and a declaratory judgment that such rejections violate both due process and equal protection.

Finally, as additional matters the complaint alleges that physician’s inability to speak out against the TMB and its policies for fear of retaliation, amounts to a denial of free speech. In support of this claim, the complaint points to several instances where Board members have allegedly publicly defamed doctors critical of the TMB. The suit also attacks the Board for allegedly giving confidential records regarding a physician to a hospital with which the doctor was involved in a private dispute. Continue Reading AAPS Files Federal Lawsuit Against the Texas Medical Board

The resignation last week of Keith Miller, MD, a 2003 Perry appointee to the Texas Medical Board, has sparked an outpouring of relief and further recriminations from the beleaguered doctor’s many critics.[i]  A longtime member of the TMB’s disciplinary committee, Dr. Miller claims his resignation is due to the enactment of a rule law barring Board members from serving as expert witnesses in medical malpractice cases. Dr. Miller, who has a long history of serving as a plaintiff’s expert in such cases, believes his resignation was necessary to prevent any appearance of a conflict of interest.[ii]

Opponents of Dr. Miller have alleged that he has exploited his position on the Enforcement Committee, which has the power to revoke and restrict a physician’s state medical license, in his role as an expert witness.[iii]  They claim his involvement in disciplining doctor’s who have violated the Medical Practice Act, including standard of care allegations, at the same time that he has maintained close connections with the plaintiff’s bar and served as an expert, has placed a cloud of impropriety on the Board. In fact opponents could point to his resignation in response to a new Board Rule addressed to precisely this issue as vindication of this claim. 

However, critics of Dr. Miller’s tenure have further accused him of improperly using his position on the TMB to transform the Enforcement Committee into a virtual arm of the insurance industry.[iv]   Board Rules allow anonymous complaints to be made to the TMB which can then serve as the basis of a disciplinary action. Aggrieved physicians have alleged that insurance providers who are dissatisfied with the level of care provided to a covered patient have used such anonymous complaints as a way to punish doctors and maintain low cost levels. Such physicians point out that it is not actually the standard of care which motivates these anonymous complaints but rather a doctor’s decision to supply care whose cost exceeds insurance company guidelines and therefore hurt profits. These maligned anonymous complaints originate from the insurance providers and not the actual patients. In fact the patients whose care is supposedly at issue are frequently surprised when notified of the pending disciplinary action and often testify in favor of their doctor.

Continue Reading Member of Texas Medical Board Resigns Amid Flood of Criticism

Many doctors consider the possibility of a disciplinary action based on inadequate or improperly kept medical records to be remote. Yet, the Texas Medical Board will oftentimes use a complaint based on other grounds, such as an alleged standard / quality of care violation, as an opportunity to thoroughly investigate a licensee’s compliance with Board Rules concerning the maintenance of medical records. Even if the original complaint is found baseless, the TMB has the right to pursue disciplinary sanctions for any other violations found during their investigation, and in a quality of care case this investigation will certainly include a thorough review of medical records.

Under the Texas Administrative Code, the Texas Medical Board has adopted official agency rules regarding the proper maintenance of medical records. For example, § 165.1 contains numerous mandatory guidelines concerning the maintenance of “adequate medical records.” Title 22 Texas Administrative Code § 165.1. Moreover, pursuant to the Medical Practice Act, the TMB has the same authority to pursue the full range of disciplinary sanctions for non-compliance with this provision as it does for any other Rule. Texas Occupations Code § 164.051(a)(3).Continue Reading Investigatory Gymnastics by the TMB: Quality of Care & Documentation

Recently controversy erupted when an investigative reporter from CBS 11 discovered that a two-time Physician of the Day at the Texas Legislature, Dr. Nilon Tallant, has a criminal history. Run by the Texas Academy of Family Physicians, the Physician of the Day program consists of approximately ninety doctors who volunteer to treat patients on Capitol Grounds. Volunteers, like Dr. Tallant, are typically then introduced before the Legislature and receive official recognition for the day. An embarrassed Academy and Legislature are now trying to shift responsibility for their own oversight onto the Texas Medical Board.

Critics of the Board blame their ignorance of the criminal conviction on the lack of information on the TMB’s website regarding Dr. Tallant’s “self-reported” criminal history contained on his online physician profile. While true, this contention ignores the fact that there is ample information on Dr. Tallant’s conviction and Board disciplinary history readily available on the TMB and State Office of Administrative Hearings websites. The same online profile with a blank space under the section for self-reported criminal history notes that Dr. Tallant’s medical license was revoked from 1996 to 2001. Anyone performing a background check would presumably be interested in knowing the basis of the revocation. In fact, on the same page the profile contains a link to Dr. Tallant’s complete disciplinary history before the TMB including the original 1996 order expressly revoking his medical license based in part on his plea of guilty to criminal charges. At least two other modified orders from 2000 and 2001 similarly note his conviction.Continue Reading Research is Fundamental

In lieu of public discipline, the Texas Medical Board has the option of offering a Confidential Rehabilitation Order (Private Order) to a physician who suffers from certain drug or alcohol related problems and/or mental health problems or disorders. Outlined under Title 22, Section 180.1 of the Texas Administrative Code, the purpose of an order is to create an incentive for a licensee or applicant to self-report and seek early assistance / treatment, thereby avoiding any harm to the public due to the deterioration of the physician’s ability to practice medicine. Successful completion of a Confidential Rehabilitation Order serves as an alternative to a public disciplinary order which must be reported to the National Practitioner Databank and can have adverse effects on a medical doctor’s ability to practice. A Private Order is Non-Public so there is no way the public, prospective employer’s or other health care entities should know that the physician’s medical license is subject to a Board Order.

The regulatory guidelines regarding who is eligible and under what circumstances a Confidential Rehabilitation Order can be issued are complex. An experienced attorney can help guide a physician through this process, accumulate supporting documentation, and ensure the licensee does not make a decision that will make them ineligible for a private order.

The issuance of a Confidential Rehabilitation Order is at the sole discretion of the Board. Under the Board’s rules, Staff and the Board may consider issuing a private order when:

  1. the licensee or applicant suffers from an addiction caused by medical treatment;
  2. the licensee or applicant self-reports intemperate use of drugs or alcohol and has not been the subject of a previous Board order related to substance abuse;
  3. a court has determined that the licensee or applicant is of an unsound mind;
  4. the licensee has a physical or mental impairment as determined by an examination; or
  5. a licensee or applicant admits to suffering from an illness or a physical or mental condition that limits or prevents the person’s practice of medicine with reasonable skill and safety.  

Title 22 Texas Administrative Code § 180.1(c).
Continue Reading What is a Confidential Rehabilitation Order?

The Texas Medical Board does not have the power to discipline a physician’s medical license / registration for an isolated arrest and subsequent conviction for driving while intoxicated. However, Board Staff will open an investigation into all physicians who have been arrested for DWI to determine if the physician suffers from a medical or physical condition which may impair their ability to practice or during the commission of the DWI they committed unprofessional conduct.

The Texas Medical Practice Act (Texas Occupations Code § 164.051) and the Medical Board’s Rules found in the Texas Administrative Code (Title 22, Part 9, Rule 190.8) are the guiding statutory for the Board’s ability to investigate and discipline a physician’s license for the offense of DWI. Per the Medical Practice Act the Board lacks the jurisdiction to impose discipline for a DWI offense that “stands alone” as it is neither a felony nor a crime of moral turpitude (Tex. Occ. Code § 164.051(a)(2). However, if an investigation yields that a physician was on call, subject to duty or scheduled to work soon after the time of arrest the following potential violations will be explored:

  • implications of unprofessional conduct (Prohibited Practices § 164.052(5)
  • the possibility of the physician’s use of alcohol or drugs in an intemperate manner that in the Board’s opinion could endanger a patient’s life ( Prohibited Practice § 164.052(4)

Continue Reading DWI: Medical Licenses & Physician Discipline

Ethyl Glucuronide (EtG) is a metabolite created by the body following alcohol consumption. Testing for this metabolite, typically via a urine sample, has become increasingly prevalent in the United States following its initial approval and use in Europe especially by agencies concerned with monitoring an individual for any relapse or return to active drinking. Many favor EtG sampling because it is a “direct” test for alcohol consumption in contrast to older, more traditional tests like Gamma Glutamyl Transferase or Carbohydrate-Deficient Transferrin which look for indirect signs of alcohol use such as liver damage. Further, while older tests generally only become positive following heavy alcohol use, EtG can be present in the urine after only a single drink. Moreover, EtG remains in the body and is detectable in urine three to five days after consumption

Unfortunately, EtG testing has several serious short-comings that limit its viability as an stand-alone objective marker of recent alcohol consumption and relapse. In the area of medical testing, a test is characterized by two qualities: sensitivity and specificity. Sensitivity measures the ability of the test to correctly identify those individuals who do have the condition of interest, here relapse, while specificity measures the ability of the test to correctly identify those persons who do not have the condition of interest. EtG testing has a high sensitivity, that is it has a high probability of correctly identifying as positive an individual who has recently relapsed. However, it also has a low specificity, that is it has a high probability of showing as positive a person who has not recently consumed alcoholic beverages. For example, research has shown that use of everyday items such as bug spray, mouth wash, various over-the-counter medicines, and hand sanitizer can produce positive results. Additionally, without further research, testing facilities have been unable to arrive at a consensus on the level of EtG that should be considered positive for a relapse. The high level of false positives seriously undercuts its status as a viable test for relapse and can easily lend itself to abuse by monitoring agencies such as the Texas Medical Board or the Texas Board of Nursing (Formerly known as the Texas Board of Nurse Examiners).Continue Reading What is Ethylglucuronide -EtG Testing?

The Texas Administrative Procedure Act (APA) offers a ready incentive for a licensee such as a doctor or nurse to seek prompt renewal of their license if they face or expect to face a disciplinary action before their respective state licensing board. Chapter 2001.054 of the Texas Government Code (The Administrative Procedure Act) provides a special rule when the professional’s license renewal is contested by the applicable administrative agency and such agency is required to provide timely notice and an opportunity to be heard, two conditions that apply to virtually every disciplinary action. When such a licensee applies for renewal, their existing license automatically remains in effect until their application has been finally determined by the state agency. Further, if the state agency decides to deny or limit the terms of the new license, the professional’s existing license does not expire until the last day for appealing the agency order or other date set by the reviewing court, whichever is later.

Thus a doctor who expects the Texas Medical Board to deny the renewal of their professional license or to take other disciplinary action against them should timely apply as they will still retain and be able to practice under their existing license. The same situation applies to a nurse facing disciplinary action by the Texas Board of Nurse Examiners, an optometrist in front of the Texas Optometry Board, a dentist before the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners, and other licensed medical and non-medical professionals.
Continue Reading Timely License Renewal Under the Texas Administrative Procedure Act