Justia Health Law Opinion Summaries

At issue was whether the trial court employed the correct legal standard in determining the reasonable value of appellant's emergency treatment of four patients as an interventional cardiologist. The Court of Appeal agreed with the parties that the court in Children's Hospital Central California v. Blue Cross of California, (2014) 226 Cal.App.4th 1260, correctly applied the governing standard. The Court of Appeal declined to adopt appellant's narrow reading of the case and, instead, held that Children's Hospital supports the decision that the trial court made here to consider a variety of evidence to determine the "reasonable market value" of the services that appellant provided under quantum meruit principles. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the trial court. View "Sanjiv Goel, M.D., Inc. v. Regal Medical Group" on Justia Law

Psychotherapist-patient privilege does not protect subpoenaed records from disclosure to the Department of Consumer Affairs, because Business and Professions Code section 2225, a statute enacted after codification of the privilege, permits disclosure of records that the privilege would otherwise shelter when the Department and the Board are investigating potential improper prescribing of controlled substances by a psychiatrist. Furthermore, a psychiatric patient's constitutional right to privacy requires the Department to demonstrate a subpoena for the patient's records is supported by a compelling interest and that the information demanded is "relevant and material" to the particular investigation being conducted. In this case, the State had a compelling interest in investigating excessive or otherwise improper prescribing of controlled substances, and petitioner's declaration established most of the records demanded by the subpoena were relevant and material to that investigation. However, further narrowing of the Department's subpoenas was required to comport with the weighty privacy interests at stake. Accordingly, the Court of Appeals granted the petition in part and vacated in part. View "Cross v. Superior Court" on Justia Law