As an optometrist, you diagnose, treat, and manage diseases of the eyes and visual system. Patients come to you because they trust you with their health. However, you may sometimes face allegations regarding your medical capabilities and character, which can affect your ability to practice and support yourself and your family financially. When your money and years of training are at risk, you deserve aggressive legal representation in defense of your professional license.
Santa Cruz License Attorney can provide you with the resources, guidance, and information you need to navigate the legal process. We can also represent you before the board and aggressively fight for your livelihood, career, and interests.
The Crucial Roles of Optometrists
Many people take their eyesight for granted until they suffer an issue and then seek optometry services for intervention. Optometrists prescribe eyeglasses and contact lenses and diagnose various eye problems to provide personalized treatment.
Optometrists require comprehensive knowledge, experience, and the capacity to use specialized equipment. Additionally, as optometry shifts toward laser eye surgery, the profession is more demanding than ever.
To become an optometrist in California, you should begin by acquiring the appropriate education and then passing federal and state examinations. After meeting your license requirements, you can apply for your professional license with the relevant licensing board.
To apply, you should first create a BreEZe account with the Department of Consumer Affairs. You should submit your transcripts and test results and complete background checks. Once your documents are received, the board will process your application and send you a statement of licensure in the BreEZE account. To keep your professional license valid, you should renew the license after two years and complete continuing education.
However, despite the important services an optometrist provides after extensive testing, meticulous training, and a costly licensing process, an optometrist may suddenly find their professional license in jeopardy.
You should take a complaint against your optometry license seriously, no matter whether you consider the complaint unjustified or lacking a legal basis. Nevertheless, even if a mistake occurred, it does not have to end your career in optometry.
Your attorney will defend your license by seeking a dismissal of the allegation to ensure the most favorable case outcome. However, if a dismissal is unattainable, they will seek lesser punishment.
The Mandate of the California Board of Optometry
The board is tasked with safeguarding consumers and optometry patients from unethical or unsafe care. To uphold the high standard of care in the practice of optometry, the board imposes disciplinary sanctions, including revoking and suspending licenses, as it deems necessary to address and deter violations.
The board serves the public, not optometrists. That does not imply that it is against you, but your lawyer should know when and how to engage the board, including its investigators.
The board receives numerous complaints from various sources. A significant number of these complaints are found to be without merit after brief investigations, while others require no investigation at all.
If you receive the board’s notice of investigation, take the matter seriously. You must not agree to talk to a board-appointed investigator without your attorney present. It can protect you from self-incrimination and help avoid limiting your defense strategies as you navigate the case.
Examples of formal complaints that may lead to disciplinary punishment include the following:
- Unprofessional conduct
- Deceptive or false advertising
- Operating from an unauthorized location
- Incompetent care or negligence
- Sexual misconduct with a patient
- Excessive treatment or prescribing
- Misuse of pharmaceutical agents
- Violation of your probationary terms
- Practicing optometry without a license
- Offering services you are not licensed to offer
- Alcohol or drug use while discharging your duties
- Failure to maintain adequate patient records
- Acquiring your optometrist license through fraud
- A criminal conviction substantially related to your optometry practice
Different Stages of the Board’s Disciplinary Process
Due to the board’s strict rules, an accusation against your optometry license may quickly trigger disciplinary punishment. The disciplinary procedure may unfold as follows:
The Complaint
The board’s investigation into your action starts with the filing of a complaint. Complaints may be filed online by any person, including anonymous individuals, patients, or colleagues, alleging you violated professional standards and laws. If, following an enforcement assessment, it is determined that a violation occurred within the board’s jurisdiction, the board will refer the complaint to its investigative division for further investigation.
The Accusation
An accusation is the board’s formal document that outlines the alleged violations against your optometry license and the specific laws you allegedly violated. The document also includes potential disciplinary punishment. After the filing of the accusation, your lawyer can contest it. You have only 15 days to file a Notice of Defense.
Upon the filing of your Notice of Defense, the board will offer its discovery regarding the complaint and will ask for discovery from you. The discovery will involve the board disclosing all evidence against you, and you sending the board your evidence.
Your attorney will begin crafting a robust defense to challenge the allegations. Your defense may involve presenting mitigating evidence to persuade the board to give you the least punishment.
Stipulated Agreement and Administrative Hearing
Although the board can conduct a hearing where you and your legal counsel can submit relevant proof and defense arguments, often disciplinary cases are resolved through negotiations or stipulated agreements, which require no hearing, and are less hectic and may lead to favorable case outcomes. An attorney knowledgeable in disciplinary matters can assess your options and engage the board accordingly. The settlement procedure can be the right option if there are favorable mitigating factors and you agree to certain administrative sanctions.
If your board is unwilling to resolve the case through a stipulated agreement or you want a hearing, the board will schedule a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Note that the hearing differs from a criminal proceeding. Therefore, the most due process legal protections accorded to a criminal defendant will not apply to you. Nevertheless, civil regulations of evidence apply. During the hearing, your lawyer and the opposing side’s legal counsel will submit arguments and evidence. The administrative law judge will deliver a ruling within thirty days, and the licensing optometry board will either accept, modify, or reject it. The accusations against your license may result in a dismissal, or the board can impose probation with restrictive terms. For serious violations, the board may suspend or revoke your license. The punishment imposed will be public information.
Appealing the Ruling
You could contest the ALJ verdict by filing a Writ of Mandate in the California Superior Court. The Writ requests the court to evaluate the ALJ’s ruling against you.
Aggravating and Mitigating Factors
If your case proceeds to an administrative hearing, your defense lawyer can argue to have your case dismissed by submitting evidence that supports a dismissal. The evidence can include summoning an expert witness, highlighting gaps or inconsistencies in the board’s arguments or evidence, and cross-examining its witnesses.
Nevertheless, if there is no possible defense strategy to avoid disciplinary action, your lawyer will submit mitigating evidence to convince the board to lessen penalties. The opposing side will also submit aggravating factors to enhance the consequences of your misconduct. The administrative law judge will then review the aggravating and mitigating factors.
Aggravating evidence consists of the following:
- A record of prior disciplinary action against your license
- Things that place your patient’s health, trust, and safety in jeopardy
- Violating your employer’s or patient’s trust through embezzlement or fraud
- Committing an offense against a minor or while a child is present
- Violating your probation by failing to submit to routine testing
- Violating the board’s probation terms and conditions
- Holding a similar violation to the current one
If any of these factors exist in your case, the administrative law judge can impose severe penalties. The good news is that your defense lawyer can counter these factors by submitting mitigating evidence as follows:
- Your admission to the professional misconduct
- Your cooperation with the board’s investigators
- Lack of any prior criminal or disciplinary punishment
- Your cooperation with the optometry board during its investigation
- Presenting evidence showing that the issue is unlikely to recur
- The passage of a significant amount of time since your violation or conviction
The punishment the ALJ will impose depends on how your lawyer and the opposing side present the mitigating and aggravating evidence, respectively.
Common Optometry Board Disciplinary Actions
Here are the possible disciplinary punishments you may expect if you are found to have committed a violation:
- Reprimand—A reprimand is the least form of punishment the board can impose against your license and applies to minor violations. A reprimand acts as a warning to deter similar behavior in the future and will not prohibit you from practicing optometry.
- Probation —If the board imposes probation against your license, you can continue practicing as an optometrist. Nevertheless, you will face greater scrutiny and must adhere to certain probationary conditions.
- Fines — If your violation caused your employer or patient loss, the board may mandate that you pay fines of at least $500, which could increase to substantial sums.
- Suspension—A license suspension means you can no longer offer optometry services for a specified amount of time. The duration of the suspension can vary based on the nature of the violation. Once the suspension period ends, you can petition the board for reinstatement of your license.
- Revocation—A license revocation is the most serious type of disciplinary punishment the board may impose against you. Often, a revocation might end your optometry career. Revocations occur after a lengthy sheet of professional misconduct or severe wrongdoing.
Helpful Recommendations When Your Professional License is At Risk
Here is how you should respond once you learn of a complaint against your license:
Understand the Facts of your Case
Familiarize yourself with the following:
- The specific conduct the board is investigating and the type of professional misconduct you are alleged to have committed.
- The specific regulation or law the board may cite against you. Doing so can help you determine whether any strong arguments show that the laws are not applicable to your situation.
- Are they witnesses against you, and what will they testify to?
Consult Your Knowledgeable Attorney
A seasoned lawyer provides an unbiased assessment of your case. During the consultation, the legal representative can help establish realistic expectations when interacting with the California State Board of Optometry.
The lawyer can also determine whether to challenge any disciplinary action imposed against you.
You have a right to a lawyer during the disciplinary process, and they can be present as the board’s investigator interviews you. The lawyer will also help you draft your notice of defense.
Assess Your Malpractice Insurance
Establish whether your medical malpractice coverage is sufficient to cover the legal costs as you get ready to defend your optometry license. No matter whether the situation seems unfair, being able to afford the best legal expertise can help you defend your reputation and license.
Do Not Assume You Have Much Time Before Taking Action
Upon being contacted by the board’s investigators looking into the complaint against your license, you must consider your next course of action. Your response should be handled professionally by a license defense lawyer, who will provide valuable assistance throughout the disciplinary process.
Avoid Reaching Out to the Complainant
Do not try to resolve the accusation with your accuser. Conversations of that nature can complicate your case, making it more challenging to resolve. Therefore, to avoid worst-case outcomes, do not contact the complainant; instead, allow your attorney to handle your communications and case.
Find a Competent Healthcare Professional License Defense Attorney Near Me
Learning of a complaint against you can be overwhelming. The possibility that a complaint could ruin your career that you have worked for can be frustrating, and you might be confused about where to turn. Santa Cruz License Attorney can consult with expert witnesses and review your case to develop the most effective legal defense and fight to protect your livelihood and career. We can also handle communications with the board and its investigators to avoid chances of self-incrimination. Please contact us at 831-770-6474 to schedule your initial consultation.
