Illinois Attorney for Assistance Getting Your Certification Reinstated

Lawyer Helping Doctors Restore Lapsed or Revoked Board Certifications

After a medical career devoted to growing your knowledge and skills and achieving and maintaining specialty board certification, the loss of that certification can be extremely disheartening and detrimental to your practice. However, it does not have to mean the end of your career. Many doctors have the opportunity to apply for the reinstatement of their certification, allowing them to continue to grow and advance in their profession.

However, the standards for reinstating certification are high, and they are often difficult for doctors to fulfill without assistance, especially when certification was revoked in connection with disciplinary action. An experienced attorney can make the process more manageable and increase your chances of success. If you have recently lost your specialty board certification, The Law Offices of Joseph J. Bogdan, Inc. can advise and represent you in your attempts to get it back.

How Can a Doctor Lose Board Certification?

After a physician is certified by one of the members of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), they will be expected to participate in an ongoing Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program in order to keep their certification current. Through the MOC, they will need to continually demonstrate that their knowledge, abilities, judgment, and professionalism are up to the standards of their specialty board.

With this in mind, there are a number of ways that a doctor could lose their certification after obtaining it. For example, they could decide that they are no longer interested in certification and decline to participate in their specialty board’s MOC. Alternatively, they could fail to fulfill the requirements of the MOC, perhaps because they are unable to achieve a passing score on the knowledge and skills assessment administered every 10 years.

However, disciplinary action from an administrative agency tends to be the most significant threat to a doctor’s board certification. Any restrictions on a doctor’s state medical license could be grounds for similar restrictions on their board certification, and if the doctor’s license to practice is suspended or revoked, it is likely that the certification will be suspended or revoked as well. A certification could also be revoked due to evidence of professional misconduct uncovered through an investigation by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) or the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), or a state or federal criminal investigation.

The Reinstatement Process

The requirements for having your certification reinstated depend on whether it has simply expired or has been suspended or revoked. Each medical specialty board also typically has its own criteria for reinstatement. However, the requirements usually include some or all of the following:

• Submitting a request for reinstatement
• Demonstrating that you have a valid, unrestricted license to practice in your state
• Passing a recent MOC knowledge and skills examination
• Fulfilling MOC requirements related to lifelong learning and improvement of practice
• Paying a reinstatement fee

A lapsed certification may be renewed once you have completed all of the requirements, while a suspended certification may only be reinstated once the suspension period has ended. In the case of a revoked license, reinstatement is typically up to the discretion of the board, and in making their decision they will generally review any relevant documentation and supporting materials that you submit with your request for reinstatement.

An attorney can assist with the reinstatement process under any circumstances, but it is especially important that you work with a lawyer if your license has been revoked. Your attorney can first help you pursue reinstatement of your state license and any other suspended or revoked privileges, and then work with you to build the strongest possible case to demonstrate that you have resolved any issues for which you have been disciplined in the past, and that you are committed to upholding standards of professionalism in the future.

Contact a Medical Board Certification Reinstatement Attorney

Reinstating your certification can be difficult, but we can help you avoid critical missteps and work to ensure that the reinstatement process goes as smoothly as possible. To learn more about how we can help, contact us for a free consultation by calling 630-310-1267. We serve doctors throughout DuPage County and Illinois who are seeking recertification to the American Board of Family Medicine, the American Board of Internal Medicine, and any of the other ABMS member boards.