Determine Med Spa Classification to Avoid BME Penalties
Review the Tennessee Medical Association's Legal News Roundup: Member Login Required to Access Law Guides
8/8/2024
Med Spas
A practice may have to register as a med spa, pay an annual registration fee, and meet other requirements based on the number of patients receiving cosmetic medical services and how it advertises its services to the public. The Board of Medical Examiners is assessing penalties for failure to register and late renewal/failure to renew a med spa registration. All requirements that must be met and how to determine if an entity is a med spa and required to register are discussed in TMA’s Law Guide topic, Med Spas – Medical Director Requirement and Registry.
Noncompete Agreements – Federal Rule Update
In April 2024, the FTC issued final noncompete rules. Section 910.2 declares most noncompete agreements to be “unfair methods of competition” and therefore a violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act for employers to enter into noncompete agreements with workers after the effective date. TMA’s Law Guide topic, Noncompete Agreements, has been updated to reflect the new rules. Member login required to access.
Legal Resources Update
After the end of the 2024 General Assembly, many of TMA’s legal resources were updated. Click here to access a list of the updated resources. Any questions should be directed to legal@tnmed.org.
CME reminder
Physicians renewing their Tennessee medical license must complete 40 hours of CME in the 24 months before the month of license renewal. At least two of the total hours must cover instruction in controlled substance prescribing and the treatment guidelines developed by the Department of Health on opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and carisoprodol, and may include such other topics as medicine addiction, risk management tools, and other topics. TMA offers a proprietary, two-hour accredited proper prescribing course that meets all BME requirements for physicians and it is available at tnmed.org/prescribing. Contact the TMA legal department at legal@tnmed.org with any questions regarding CME compliance.
BME Sexual Misconduct Policy
The Board of Medical Examiners adopted an updated sexual misconduct policy that was effective January 25, 2022 to provide guidance to medical doctors as to what behaviors could subject a licensee to disciplinary action based on sexual misconduct. Click here to read an article that discusses the updated policy.
Insurance Advocacy
TMA works on behalf of members to address insurance issues and assist physicians in navigating the complex world of claims payment. TMA can help if you are experiencing a problem with coding, claim payment, denial, recoupment, or other hassle with an insurer. Contact Tabitha.lara@tnmed.org. We also have insurance resources on our website at tnmed.org/insurance.
Minors and Vaccines
Passed by the 2023 Tennessee General Assembly, the Mature Minor Doctrine Clarification Act states that a healthcare provider may NOT provide a vaccination to a minor without the informed consent of a parent or legal guardian. There are many potential pitfalls for physicians and our Law Guide topic, Minors and Vaccine Consent, will help you avoid them. Member login required.
Step Therapy
The Tennessee General Assembly addressed step therapy in code for the first time in 2022. The law sets out a process by which health care providers can obtain exceptions to health insurance step therapy requirements for drugs. TMA has a new Law Guide topic, Step Therapy, explaining this new law.
For more information, email legal@tnmed.org.