Court Upholds Suspension of Doctors' Status as Medi-Cal Provider by Department of Health Care Services Based Fraud Investigation

Mednik v. State Department of Health Care Services, 175 Cal.App.4th 631 (2009).

On June 30, 2009, the California Court of Appeal upheld the suspension of a physician provider from the Medi-Cal program based upon the fact that the doctor was under investigation for fraud.

The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) temporarily suspended and deactivated Dr. Mednik’s Medi-Cal provider status pending its investigation. While Dr. Mednik has a right to an administrative hearing at the conclusion of the investigation, the investigation had been pending for five years by the time of the Court’s decision. Dr. Mednik appealed arguing the suspension of his license pending an indefinite investigation is a violation of his right to due process. The Court of Appeal decided against Dr. Mednik based on its determination that the due process afforded Dr. Mednik was adequate in light of the interest at stake when compared to the government’s interest in preventing fraud.