- The patient has the wrong type of insurance. While this reason may seem to be of questionable ethical quality, it is true that doctors sometimes fire their patients because their insurance providers notoriously pay very low reimbursements to doctors for their services. Again, doctors do need to make a living and keep their practices financially viable, so it is possible that you may be asked to leave a practice due to the type of insurance you hold.
- The doctor is moving his practice or closing the practice's doors. In this situation, the doctor has little choice regarding firing patients. If the practice is closing for any reason, you will obviously need to find new care. If the doctor is moving to a new city, you may not wish to follow him anyway. It happens. You will need to search for a new practice.
Just as there are reasons why it may be appropriate for a doctor to fire a patient, there are also reasons that are ethically or even legally unacceptable for a doctor to refuse care.
- A doctor cannot fire a patient due to discrimination. As is the case in most situations, it is illegal for a doctor to discriminate due to race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender or color. A doctor also cannot dismiss a patient because he or she is HIV positive. If you feel you have been discriminated against by your doctor, you should contact an attorney or your state’s health department to determine what next steps you should take to protect your rights.
- A doctor cannot fire a patient in the midst of ongoing care. Examples of ongoing care may be prenatal care for a pregnant woman or cancer treatments. It is unethical to discontinue care a few weeks prior to a baby’s delivery or prior to chemotherapy treatments being completed. This is called continuity of care and it protects patients from having to find another doctor while in the midst of treatment for a specific health issue.