Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Physician contract horror stories

Dennis Hursh
Finance
September 30, 2022
15 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

As a physicians’ attorney who focuses his practice on physician contract review, I have seen some truly horrendous results after physicians have signed agreements they did not understand. Here are just a few of the “war stories” I have experienced.

24/7 call “for a few years”

One physician employment agreement I reviewed had several points that I felt should be clarified. The employer’s attorney accommodated most of my requests for clarification in the second draft. However, the provision that the physician would be assigned call “at the discretion of the practice” remained unchanged in the second draft.

I had asked for a specific limitation on call, but in speaking to the attorney, I stated that my client was willing to compromise and agree to an equitable distribution of call coverage. The attorney refused to make this change. He explained to me that his client, as a solo practitioner, had been performing call 24/7 for the past several years. The intention was that my client, therefore, would also perform 24/7 call “for a few years.” The attorney was concerned that this allocation of call was (as he put it) arguably not equitable.

Needless to say, negotiations continued. Eventually, the owner agreed to share call with the new physician. We were able to convince him that he would never get a physician to work for him with those call requirements. I wonder how long my client would have lasted at that position if she were required to do 24/7 call for months on end?

Any attorney will tell you that an ambiguity is rarely a good thing.

The restrictive covenant goes for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles.

I once represented a physician negotiating an employment agreement with a hospital. This physician was a senior specialist who was very active in the state medical society. As such, he would probably obtain referrals much more quickly than another physician starting in that position.

The hospital we were negotiating with was 63 miles away from his current employer. He had a 65-mile restrictive covenant in his existing agreement. I disclosed this fact early on to the potential employer’s general counsel. We spent a good deal of time on the phone discussing that restrictive covenant. We both agreed that it would not be wise for the prior employer to go to court to enforce the covenant under these conditions. Both the hospital’s counsel and I agreed that a court would almost certainly not uphold that restrictive covenant. Moreover, if the physician’s present employer took it to court and lost, all of its restrictive covenants with all of its physicians would be in question.

However, a few days after my discussion with the hospital’s counsel, I received a call from that attorney. It was a courtesy call to inform me that the hospital would not be hiring my client. When I asked why, the hospital’s counsel was very blunt. The hospital was not interested in going to court, even if it had a superb chance of winning. They were going to offer the position to another physician who “did not have a lawsuit attached.”

My client had executed the agreement with his prior employer under the assumption that the restrictive covenant was unenforceable. Although he was probably correct, he failed to consider that the market often enforces restrictive covenants that a court never would.

Who pays for tail coverage?

I represented another physician who was still smarting from the effect of a clause that had appeared innocuous to her in the employment agreement with the practice she had just left. She explained to me that her prior employment agreement provided that the practice would pay for malpractice insurance “during the term of this agreement.” On her last day of work, the practice manager approached her and informed her that it was her responsibility to purchase tail coverage. Luckily, she and her husband had been saving up money as a down payment for a new house. Unluckily, most of that money was spent purchasing tail coverage.

Sometimes an experienced attorney can spot issues that a legally inexperienced physician would not.

The moral of all these stories? What you don’t know can hurt you. I am obviously biased as somebody whose career is dedicated to reviewing physician employment agreements. Still, I think a physician should have an attorney well-versed in physician employment agreements review any employment agreement before signing on the dotted line.

Dennis Hursh is a physician contract lawyer. He blogs at Physicians Contracts Blog.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Social entrepreneurship: business that’s good for people

September 30, 2022 Kevin 0
…
Next

How drug prices are manipulated

September 30, 2022 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: Practice Management

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Social entrepreneurship: business that’s good for people
Next Post >
How drug prices are manipulated

More by Dennis Hursh

  • New employment contracts: What physicians need to know about compensation and benefits

    Dennis Hursh
  • Things to know before signing an academic physician employment agreement

    Dennis Hursh
  • Special contractual issues for female physicians

    Dennis Hursh

Related Posts

  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • How a physician keynote can highlight your conference

    Kevin Pho, MD
  • Chasing numbers contributes to physician burnout

    DrizzleMD
  • The black physician’s burden

    Naomi Tweyo Nkinsi
  • Why this physician supports Medicare for all

    Thad Salmon, MD
  • Embrace the teamwork involved in becoming a physician

    Nathaniel Fleming

More in Finance

  • From pennies to attending salaries: Why physicians should teach their kids financial literacy

    Michele Cho-Dorado, MD
  • Retirement planning: Understanding sequence of returns risk

    Jordan Bilodeau, CFP
  • The short-term rental tax loophole: a game-changer for physicians

    Jeff Anzalone, DDS
  • Why every doctor should have a side gig

    Anonymous
  • Maximize your practice’s revenue: Follow these 5 billing metrics

    Aaron Morgenstein, MD & Heather Signorelli, MD
  • Character, not cash: the ingredients of a happy and meaningful life

    Miguel Villagra, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • The real cause of America’s opioid crisis: Doctors are not to blame

      Richard A. Lawhern, PhD | Meds
    • Healing the damaged nurse-physician dynamic

      Angel J. Mena, MD and Ali Morin, MSN, RN | Policy
    • The struggle to fill emergency medicine residency spots: Exploring the factors behind the unfilled match

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Physician
    • From physician to patient: one doctor’s journey to finding purpose after a devastating injury

      Stephanie Pearson, MD | Physician
    • Breaking the cycle of misery in medicine: a practical guide

      Paul R. Ehrmann, DO | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • The hidden dangers of the Nebraska Heartbeat Act

      Meghan Sheehan, MD | Policy
    • The fight for reproductive health: Why medication abortion matters

      Catherine Hennessey, MD | Physician
    • The vital importance of climate change education in medical schools

      Helen Kim, MD | Policy
    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Why are doctors sued and politicians aren’t?

      Kellie Lease Stecher, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The psychoanalytic hammer: lessons in listening and patient-centered care

      Greg Smith, MD | Conditions
    • From rural communities to underserved populations: How telemedicine is bridging health care gaps

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • 5 essential tips to help men prevent prostate cancer

      Kevin Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Unlock the power of physician compensation data in contract negotiations [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • From pennies to attending salaries: Why physicians should teach their kids financial literacy

      Michele Cho-Dorado, MD | Finance
    • From solidarity to co-liberation: Understanding the journey towards ending oppression

      Maiysha Clairborne, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Senators Press HHS Chief on Alzheimer's Drugs, Opioids at Budget Hearing
  • Despite Abortion Restrictions, Ob/Gyn Remains Competitive Residency
  • Cholera Outbreak Widens; What Beethoven's DNA Revealed; Grindr's Free HIV Tests
  • FDA Panel Supports Tofersen for Rare Genetic ALS
  • Pregnant, Black? Here's Your Drug Test

Meeting Coverage

  • Outlook for Itchy Prurigo Nodularis Continues to Improve With IL-31 Antagonist
  • AAAAI President Shares Highlights From the 2023 Meeting
  • Second-Line Sacituzumab Govitecan Promising in Platinum-Ineligible UC
  • Trial of Novel TYK2 Inhibitor Hits Its Endpoint in Plaque Psoriasis
  • Durable Vitiligo Responses With Topical Ruxolitinib
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • The real cause of America’s opioid crisis: Doctors are not to blame

      Richard A. Lawhern, PhD | Meds
    • Healing the damaged nurse-physician dynamic

      Angel J. Mena, MD and Ali Morin, MSN, RN | Policy
    • The struggle to fill emergency medicine residency spots: Exploring the factors behind the unfilled match

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Physician
    • From physician to patient: one doctor’s journey to finding purpose after a devastating injury

      Stephanie Pearson, MD | Physician
    • Breaking the cycle of misery in medicine: a practical guide

      Paul R. Ehrmann, DO | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • The hidden dangers of the Nebraska Heartbeat Act

      Meghan Sheehan, MD | Policy
    • The fight for reproductive health: Why medication abortion matters

      Catherine Hennessey, MD | Physician
    • The vital importance of climate change education in medical schools

      Helen Kim, MD | Policy
    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Why are doctors sued and politicians aren’t?

      Kellie Lease Stecher, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The psychoanalytic hammer: lessons in listening and patient-centered care

      Greg Smith, MD | Conditions
    • From rural communities to underserved populations: How telemedicine is bridging health care gaps

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • 5 essential tips to help men prevent prostate cancer

      Kevin Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Unlock the power of physician compensation data in contract negotiations [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • From pennies to attending salaries: Why physicians should teach their kids financial literacy

      Michele Cho-Dorado, MD | Finance
    • From solidarity to co-liberation: Understanding the journey towards ending oppression

      Maiysha Clairborne, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today iMedicalApps
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...