Florida Administrative Code › 64 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH › 64B18 - Board of Podiatric Medicine › Chapter 64B18-14 - DISCIPLINARY MATTERS › Section 64B18-14.004 - Advertising

Current through Reg. 50, No. 138; July 16, 2024
(1) It is the policy of the Board of
				Podiatric Medicine that advertising by licensed practitioners of the profession
				of podiatric medicine in this State should be regulated so as to effectuate the
				duty of the State of Florida to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its
				residents, while not abridging any rights guaranteed to such practitioners or
				to the public by the Constitution of the United States and the State of
				Florida, as construed by the United States Supreme Court and the Florida
				Supreme Court. To that end, the Board encourages the dissemination to the
				public of legitimate information, in accordance with the Board's rules,
				regarding podiatric medicine and where and from whom services may be obtained,
				so long as such information is not false, deceptive, or misleading.
(2) Definition. For purposes of these rules
				"advertising" or "advertisement" means any statements, oral or written,
				disseminated to or before the public or any portion thereof, with the intent or
				purpose, either directly or indirectly of selling professional services, or
				offering to perform professional services, or inducing members of the public to
				enter into any obligation relating to such professional services. The terms
				"advertising" or "advertisement" shall include the name under which
				professional services are performed.
(3) Any advertisement or advertising shall be
				deemed by the Board to be false, deceptive, or misleading, and shall be
				prohibited, if it:
(a) Contains a
				misrepresentation of facts. The Board finds that it is a misrepresentation of
				fact for a podiatric physician to advertise that he performs "microsurgery"
				procedures when these procedures do not involve the dissection of minute
				structures under the microscope by means of a micro-manipulator; or
(b) Is misleading or deceptive because in its
				content or in the context in which it is presented it makes only a partial
				disclosure of relevant facts. More specifically, it is misleading and deceptive
				for a podiatric physician to advertise that certain services (i.e., x-rays,
				examinations, etc.) will be performed for free when in fact the podiatric
				physician is charging a third party payor for performing those services.
				Furthermore, it is misleading and deceptive for a podiatric physician to
				advertise that certain services (i.e., x-rays, examinations, etc.) will be
				performed for a specific charge when in fact that podiatric physician is
				transmitting a higher charge for the advertised services to a third party payor
				for payment, or
(c) Creates false
				or unjustified expectations of beneficial treatment or successful cures,
				or
(d) Contains representations
				relating to the quality of the podiatric medical services offered, or
(e) Conveys the impression that the podiatric
				physician disseminating the advertising or referred to therein possesses
				qualifications, skills, or other attributes, which are superior to other
				podiatric physicians, or
(f) Fails
				to conspicuously identify the podiatric physician or podiatric physicians by
				name in the advertisement or fails to conspicuously identify the podiatric
				physician or podiatric physicians referred to in the advertising as a podiatric
				physician. More specifically, the Board finds that it is misleading and
				deceptive for a licensee to place before the public in any media advertisement
				or on an office sign the wording "podiatric physician, " "podiatrist, "
				"chiropodist, " "foot specialist, " or "treatment of diseases of the foot and
				leg" without also conspicuously identifying in the advertisement or sign the
				names of each podiatric physician or podiatric physicians practicing at the
				location being advertised or identified. However, the Board concludes that
				patient referral service advertisements by the American Podiatric Medical
				Association and by any of its recognized component or affiliate organizations
				or by an organization certified or licensed as a health care provider by the
				United States or the State of Florida need not identify any podiatric physician
				who is a member of or otherwise associated with the organization or
				provider.
(g) Contains any
				representations or claims as to which the podiatric physician, referred to in
				the advertising, fails to perform, or
(h) Appears in a directory, including but not
				limited to the yellow pages of a phone book, under a heading indicating the
				podiatric physician practices a sub-specialty of podiatry unless the practice
				of the podiatric physician is limited exclusively to that sub-specialty. For
				example, a podiatric physician may not advertise in a directory under the
				heading "Physician and Surgeons - D.P.M. - Surgery, " unless his practice is
				limited exclusively to podiatric surgery. For purposes of this rule,
				"sub-specialty" is defined as any of the components which comprise podiatric
				medicine.
(i) Advertises that a
				podiatric physician is a member of an organization or possesses credentials
				other than licensure by this Board or the Department, including but not limited
				to certification, from an organization unless the organization is approved by
				this Board for the purposes of advertising only and the name of the
				organization is identified in full in the advertisement.
1. In order for an organization to obtain
				approval from this Board for advertising purposes it must submit a petition
				executed by a duly-authorized officer of the organization requesting approval.
				The petition must attest that:
a. The
				organization is composed of podiatric physicians interested in a special area
				of practice who have demonstrated that interest through successful completion
				of examinations or case reports approved by the organization; and,
b. The organization subscribes to a code of
				ethics approved by the Board; and,
c. The organization has rules and procedures
				for maintaining a high level of professional conduct and discipline among its
				membership; and,
d. The
				organization has an active membership of at least seventy-five (75) or that
				there is good cause for waiving the minimum membership requirement; and,
e. The organization sponsors
				courses in Board approved continuing podiatric education or sponsors annual
				meetings.
2. The petition
				must be accompanied by a copy of the organization's by-laws and articles of
				incorporation or constitution, requirements for membership, and a complete
				roster of its membership. The Board may require that additional clarifying
				information be submitted prior to action on the petition.
3. If the organization offers certifications
				to podiatric physicians it must be an organization national in scope and give a
				certification examination at least once a year before the podiatric physician
				can advertise possession of the certification.
4. The Board shall require approved
				organizations to report specific information to justify retention of its
				approved status in the event of the organization's status changes.
5. The American Podiatric Medical
				Association, the National Council of Competency Assurance, or any of their
				recognized component or affiliate organizations are automatically approved by
				the Board under this rule.
(j) Otherwise contains any representation,
				statement or claim which is misleading or deceptive.