West Virginia Code of State Rules › Agency 11 - Medicine › Title 11 - LEGISLATIVE RULE WEST VIRGINIA BOARD OF MEDICINE › Series 11-01A - Licensing of Physicians and Podiatric Physicians and Disciplinary Procedures for Applicants, Licensees, Credential Holders › Section 11-1A-12 - Causes for Denial, Probation, Limitation, Discipline, Suspension or Revocation of Licenses and Other Professional Credentials

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
12.1. The Board may deny an application for a
				license, place a licensee or credential holder on probation, suspend a license
				or credential, limit or restrict a license or credential or revoke any license
				or credential upon satisfactory proof that the licensee or credential holder
				has:
12.1.a. Knowingly made, or presented or
				caused to be made or presented, any false, fraudulent or forged statement,
				writing, certificate, diploma or other material in connection with an
				application for a license or other credential;
12.1.b. Been or is involved in fraud,
				forgery, deception, collusion or conspiracy in connection with an examination
				for a license;
12.1.c. Become
				addicted to a controlled substance;
12.1.d. Become a chronic or persistent
				alcoholic;
12.1.e. Engaged in
				dishonorable, unethical or unprofessional conduct of a character likely to
				deceive, defraud or harm the public or any member thereof;
12.1.f. Willfully violated a confidential
				communication;
12.1.g. Had his or
				her license to practice medicine or podiatric medicine in any other state,
				territory, jurisdiction or foreign nation revoked, suspended, restricted or
				limited, or otherwise acted against, or has been subjected to any other
				disciplinary action by the licensing authority thereof, or has been denied
				licensure in any other state, territory, jurisdiction, or foreign
				nation.
12.1.h. Been or is unable
				to practice medicine or podiatric medicine with reasonable skill and safety to
				patients by reason of illness, drunkenness, excessive use of alcohol, drugs,
				chemicals or any other type of material, or by reason of any physical or mental
				abnormality;
12.1.i. Demonstrated a
				lack of professional competence to practice medicine or podiatric medicine with
				a reasonable degree of skill and safety for patients. In this connection, the
				Board may consider repeated acts of a physician or podiatric physician
				indicating his or her failure to properly treat a patient and may require the
				physician or podiatric physician to submit to inquiries or examinations,
				written or oral, by members of the Board, or by other physicians or podiatric
				physicians to practice medicine or podiatric medicine in this State, as the
				Board considers necessary to determine the professional qualifications of the
				licensee or credential holder;
12.1.j. Engaged in unprofessional conduct,
				including, but not limited to, any departure from, or failure to conform to,
				the standards of acceptable and prevailing medical or podiatric practice, or
				the ethics of the medical or podiatric profession, irrespective of whether or
				not a patient is injured thereby, or has committed any act contrary to honesty,
				justice or good morals, whether the same is committed in the course of his or
				her practice or otherwise and whether committed within or without this
				State;
12.1.k. Been convicted of or
				found guilty of a crime in any jurisdiction which directly relates to the
				practice of medicine or podiatric medicine or to the ability to practice
				medicine or podiatric medicine. Any plea of nolo contendere shall be considered
				conviction for purposes of this rule;
12.1.l. Advertised, practiced or attempted to
				practice under a name other than his or her own;
12.1.m. Failed to report to the Board any
				person whom the licensee or credential holder knows is in violation of this
				rule, other rules of the Board, or of provisions of the West Virginia Medical
				Practice Act or the West Virginia Physician Assistants Practice Act;
12.1.n. Aided, assisted, procured or advised
				any person to practice medicine or podiatry without a license or other practice
				credential or in a manner that is otherwise contrary to this rule, the West
				Virginia Medical Practice Act or the West Virginia Physician Assistants
				Practice Act;
12.1.o. Failed to
				perform any statutory or legal obligation placed upon a licensed or
				credentialed physician
,
podiatric physician or
				physician assistant;
12.1.p. Made
				or filed a report which the licensee or credential holder knows to be false;
				intentionally or negligently failed to file a report or record required by
				state or federal law, willfully impeded or obstructed such filing or induced
				another person to do so. The reports or records shall include only those which
				are signed in the capacity as a licensed or credentialed physician, podiatric
				physician or physician assistant.
12.1.q. Paid or received any commission,
				bonus, kickback or rebate, or engaged in any split-fee arrangement in any form
				whatsoever with a physician, podiatric physician, -other practitioner,
				_organization, agency or person, either directly or indirectly, for patients
				referred to providers of health care goods and services, including, but not
				limited to, hospitals, nursing homes, clinical laboratories, ambulatory
				surgical centers or pharmacies. The provisions of this subdivision shall not be
				construed to prevent a physician or podiatric physician from receiving a fee
				for professional consultation services;
12.1.r. Exercised influence within a
				provider-patient relationship for purposes of engaging a patient in sexual
				activity, engaged in sexual activity with a patient, sexually harassed or
				exploited a patient, or otherwise violated the professional conduct standards
				set forth in the Board's legislative rule prohibiting practitioner sexual
				misconduct, W. Va. Code R. §
										11-16-1
et. seq.
;
12.1.s. Made deceptive, untrue or fraudulent
				representations in the practice of medicine or podiatric medicine and surgery
				or employed a trick or scheme in the practice of medicine or podiatric medicine
				and surgery when the trick or scheme fails to conform to the generally
				prevailing standards of treatment in the medical or podiatric
				community;
12.1.t. Solicited
				patients, either personally or through an agent, through the use of fraud,
				intimidation, undue influence, or by overreaching or vexatious conduct. A
				solicitation is any communication which directly or implicitly requests an
				immediate response from the recipient;
12.1.u. Failed to keep written records
				justifying the course of treatment of the patient, including, but not limited
				to, patient histories, examination results and test results and treatment
				rendered, if any;
12.1.v. Exercised
				influence on the patient or client in such a manner as to exploit the patient
				or client for the financial gain of the licensee or credential holder, or of a
				third party, which shall include, but not be limited to, the promoting or
				selling of services, goods, appliances or drugs and the promoting or
				advertising on any prescription form of a community pharmacy. For the purposes
				of this subdivision, it is legally presumed that prescribing, dispensing,
				administering, mixing or otherwise preparing legend drugs, including all
				controlled substances, inappropriately or in excessive or inappropriate
				quantities, is not in the best interests of the patient and is not in the
				course of the physician's or podiatric physician's professional practice,
				without regard to his or her intent;
12.1.w. Prescribed, dispensed or administered
				any medicinal drug appearing on any schedule set forth in W. Va. Code
				§
										60A-1-1 et. seq. by the physician or podiatric physician to himself or
				herself, except one prescribed, dispensed or administered to the physician or
				podiatric physician by another practitioner authorized to prescribe, dispense
				or administer medicinal drugs;
12.1.x. Engaged in malpractice or failed to
				practice medicine or podiatric medicine with that level of care, skill and
				treatment which is recognized by a reasonable, prudent, physician or podiatric
				physician engaged in the same or a similar specialty as being acceptable under
				similar conditions and circumstances;
12.1.y. Performed any procedure or prescribed
				any therapy which, by the prevailing standards of medical or podiatric practice
				in the community, would constitute experimentation on a human subject, without
				first obtaining full, informed and written consent from the patient;
12.1.z. Practiced or offered to practice
				medicine and surgery or podiatric medicine and surgery beyond the scope
				permitted by law or accepted and performed professional responsibilities which
				the licensee or credential holder knows or has reason to know he or she is not
				competent to perform;
12.1.aa.
				Delegated professional responsibilities to a person whom the licensee or
				credential holder knew or had reason to know is not qualified by training,
				experience or professional credential to perform the
				responsibilities;
12.1.bb. Violated
				or attempted to violate any law or lawfully promulgated rule or regulation of
				this State, any other state, the Board, the United States or any other lawful
				authority (without regard to whether the violation is criminally punishable),
				which law or rule or regulation relates to or in part regulates the practice of
				medicine or podiatric medicine and surgery, when the licensee, credential
				holder or applicant knows or should know that such action is violative of the
				law, rule or regulation; or has violated a lawful order of the Board; or has
				failed to comply with a lawfully issued subpoena of the Board; or has violated
				an order of any court entered pursuant to any proceedings commenced by the
				Board;
12.1.cc. Pre-signed blank
				prescription forms;
12.1.dd.
				Prescribed any medicinal drug appearing on Schedule II in W. Va. Code §
										60A-1-1
et. seq
. for office use;
12.1.ee. Prescribed, ordered, dispensed,
				administered, supplied, sold or given any drug which is an amphetamine or
				sympathomimetic amine drug and a compound designated as a Schedule II
				controlled substance under W. Va. Code §
										60A-1-1
et. seq
.
				to or for any person except for:
12.1.ee.A.
				The treatment of narcolepsy; binge eating disorder, attention deficit disorder,
				a behavioral syndrome characterized by inappropriate symptoms of moderate to
				severe distractibility, short attention span, hyperactivity, emotional lability
				and impulsivity; or drug-induced brain dysfunction;
12.1.ee.B. The differential diagnostic
				psychiatric evaluation of depression or the treatment of depression or the
				treatment of depression shown to be refractory to other therapeutic modalities;
				or
12.1.ee.C. The clinical
				investigation of the effects of such drugs or compounds when an investigative
				protocol therefore is submitted to, reviewed and approved by the Board before
				such investigation is begun;
12.1.ff. Knowingly maintained a professional
				connection or association with any person who is in violation of the West
				Virginia Medical Practice Act or the rules of the Board; or has knowingly
				aided, assisted, procured or advised any person to practice medicine or
				podiatry contrary to the West Virginia Medical Practice Act or to the Rules of
				the Board; or knowingly performed any act which in any way aids, assists,
				procures, advises or encourages any unlicensed and uncredentialed person or
				entity to practice medicine or podiatry; or has divided fees or agreed to
				divide fees received for professional services with any person, firm,
				association, corporation or other entity for bringing or referring a patient;
				or has engaged in the practice of medicine or podiatry as an officer or
				employee of any corporation other than one organized and existing pursuant to
				the West Virginia Medical Practice Act, except as a licensed or credentialed
				physician, podiatric physician or physician assistant, intern or resident of a
				hospital or teaching institution licensed by this State;
12.1.gg. Offered, undertaken or agreed to
				cure or treat disease by a secret method, procedure, treatment or medicine; or
				has treated, operated or prescribed for any human condition, by a method,
				means, or procedure which the licensee or credential holder has refused to
				divulge upon demand of the Board.
12.1.hh. Engaged in false or deceptive
				advertising.
12.1.ii. Engaged in
				advertising that is not in the public interest. Advertising that is not in the
				public interest includes the following, with the exceptions specifically
				listed:
12.1.ii.A. Advertising that has the
				effect of intimidating or exerting undue pressure;
12.1.ii.B. Advertising which is false,
				deceptive, misleading, sensational or flamboyant;
12.1.ii.C. Advertising which guarantees
				satisfaction or a cure;
12.1.ii.D.
				Advertising which offers gratuitous services or discounts, the purpose of which
				is to deceive the public. This subdivision does not apply to advertising which
				contains an offer to negotiate fees, nor to advertising in conjunction with an
				established policy or program of free care for patients; and
12.1.ii.E. Advertising which makes claims of
				professional superiority which a licensee or credential holder is unable to
				substantiate.
12.1.jj.
				Failure to maintain a medical record for each patient which is adequate to
				enable the physician or podiatric physician to provide proper diagnosis and
				treatment, and/or to keep such patient medical records for a minimum of three
				years from the date of the last patient encounter and in a manner which permits
				the former patient or a successor practitioner access to them within the terms
				of this rule and as set forth in W. Va. Code §
										16-29-1
et
				seq
.
12.1.kk Practicing
				clinical medicine and surgery pursuant to an administrative medicine
				license.