Ocampo v. Dep't of Health,
No. 1D01-1351 (Fla. App. Feb. 12, 2002)
A
physician was excluded from participating in federal health care programs. As
a result, he was disciplined by the department of health for having his license
or authority to practice medicine revoked, suspended or otherwise acted against.
The physician argued that the exclusion from the federal health care programs
was not a restriction on his license or authority to practice medicine. The
District Court of Appeal of Florida agreed with the physician. The court ruled
that professional disciplinary statutes should be read narrowly and that ambiguities
should be read in favor of the licensee. The court concluded that a Medicare
provider number is not a license to practice medicine and, while his exclusion
may make it more difficult for his patients to pay for his services, the department
of health did not properly charge him.