EXEMPTION ELIGIBILITY FOR MMLP ASSESSMENT

The Montana Medical Legal Panel (MMLP/Panel) is funded through an annual assessment levied on all health care providers covered by the Montana Medical Legal Panel Act. The assessment is set each year and apportioned among physicians, dentists, podiatrists, hospitals, and other licensed health care facilities. Under certain conditions, the Panel may exempt a health care provider from this assessment. If you believe you meet one of the conditions listed below for an exemption, you will need to submit a written request along with any supporting documentation to the Panel or complete the survey. Exemption requests for the current MMLP assessment should be sent to the Panel by March 1 of every calendar year.

Individual Practitioners (Physicians, Dentists, and Podiatrists): Montana law allows for an individual practitioner to be exempt under certain conditions, including the location of principal residence and practice, employment by a federal agency, or being retired.

• Location Exemption - The location exemption is available to practitioners whose principal residence and place of practice is not in Montana. Individuals requesting this exemption should provide a signed statement requesting the exemption and declaring the location of their principal residence or place of practice. A physician who is practicing telemedicine with patients in Montana is not eligible for this exemption.
  
  
• Retirement Exemption - The retirement exemption is available to practitioners who are fully retired and not prescribing. Individuals requesting this exemption should provide a signed statement requesting the exemption and declaring they are not practicing, but hold a Montana license. 

*Note that health care providers who prescribe medications are considered to be practicing medicine and are not eligible for this exemption.

• Federal Government Employment/Contract Exemption - Practitioners who are employed full-time by a federal government agency or entity may request this exemption. Individuals will need to submit a signed statement requesting the exemption and declare they do not practice outside of the federal employment or contract agreement. The individual (or the center) should provide a copy of the center's current NDA, deeming letters, or NGA with re-deeming language, along with documentation confirming employment or contractor status with the center. Additionally, the individual should provide one of the requirements below:
  
  
  • For employed practitioners, documentation of full-time employment would consist of a notarized statement signed by the employer or a W-2 for the individual practitioner showing employment by the center for the current year being assessed.
    
    
  • For contracted practitioners, documentation would consist of an employment contract covering the current year being assessed and evidence that the contracted practitioner was working at least an average of 32.5 hours per week.
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For purposes of the Panel Act, federally funded facilities subject to the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) and not licensed under Title 50, chapter 5, as a health care facility, are exempt from MMLP jurisdiction. Eligible health centers for purposes of FTCA protection include the following:

• Community Health Centers (CHC), funded under section 330(e);
• Migrant Health Centers (MHC), funded under section 330(g);
• Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) Health Centers, funded under section 330(h); and
• Public Housing Primary Care (PHPC) Health Centers, funded under section 330(i). To establish an exempt status, facilities are required to provide a copy of their current NDA, deeming letters, or NGA with re-deeming language for the current year being assessed.