Planning PA-owned practice in CA?

[AnthonyVLAc]

Does anyone have any resources/recommendations for developing a business feasibility study and plan for a PA-owned practice in California? Laws and regs, data, information, how-to-guides, sample business plans, any of the above would be most useful and appreciated!

[ventana]

Roll up your sleeves and start digging.....

Few PA's are doing this but the numbers are growing rapidly

I am in mass and in the final stages of hiring a doc and incorporating.... Mass has this law about the "corporate practice pf medicine" that threw a monkey wrench in my plan for a sub s corp.... Speaking to an attorney his morning about options.

Get a good lawyer and cry poor and get good advice....



One huge lesson I am learning is KEEP Overhead low......

[jmj11]

Here is a starting point that I used.

Let me kindly add a caveat Virtually everyone who has done this agrees with me. Those who are only dreaming about it, or starting, say they will be different. Take that for what it's worth.

But my point is, during the first year you will waste 50% of your income and 80% of your emotional energy dealing with insurance companies. You will be entering the Mad Hatters tea party world where no one speaks logic, only scripted decisions from a computer screen. PA-Owned practices are not on that screen so you will be the proverbial square peg in the round hole. It can drive you insane. I could do health care 50% cheaper and with much more joy without dealing with these people.

[akdem]

As a PA owned practice, do you charge similar rates as comparable MDs would?

[ventana]

Here is a starting point that I used.

Let me kindly add a caveat Virtually everyone who has done this agrees with me. Those who are only dreaming about it, or starting, say they will be different. Take that for what it's worth.

But my point is, during the first year you will waste 50% of your income and 80% of your emotional energy dealing with insurance companies. You will be entering the Mad Hatters tea party world where no one speaks logic, only scripted decisions from a computer screen. PA-Owned practices are not on that screen so you will be the proverbial square peg in the round hole. It can drive you insane. I could do health care 50% cheaper and with much more joy without dealing with these people.

good advice..... trying hard to just keep pushing on....

[Eventide]

I don't think you can in California.
This is from the pac.ca.gov website. I noticed that this is dated 2008, so it may not still apply, I am not sure. It's worth emailing them about it. Good luck.

http://www.pac.ca.gov/forms_pubs/sup_of_pa.pdf
"PAs may not own a medical practice. (Please see Section 13400 and following of the Corporations Code.)"

[Joelseff]

I don't think you can in California.
This is from the pac.ca.gov website. I noticed that this is dated 2008, so it may not still apply, I am not sure. It's worth emailing them about it. Good luck.

http://www.pac.ca.gov/forms_pubs/sup_of_pa.pdf
"PAs may not own a medical practice. (Please see Section 13400 and following of the Corporations Code.)"

If i understand this correctly, in California, a PA may not own a practice outright and hire their SP according to state regs BUT I think we can become partners in a medical corporation but not a partnership owned practice. We also cannot own more than 49% of a practice and the other 51% MUST be a physician because we cannot outnumber physician partners. I am looking into this now as I am an employee of a Physician who wants me to be a partner down the road.

This only speaks to ownership of practice. We are still bound by the limits of the DSA/Scope of practice of our SP, to state the obvious.

Here is a reference:

http://issuu.com/paassist/docs/aapa_summary_of_physician_assistant_ownership