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.

•  Residence and Practice Location Exemption -  A licensed physician, dentist or podiatrist whose principal residence and place of practice is in a different state could be eligible for an exemption.  In requesting an exemption, you understand that any malpractice claim naming you would not be first reviewed by the Montana Medical Legal Panel before it is filed in District Court and the MMLP would not be responsible for obtaining related medical/dental records. Exempted health professionals would not pay the annual fee assessed to fund MMLP operations.  Physicians who practice telemedicine are not eligible for this exemption and should proceed to  pay the annual assessment fee.  

*Health care professions may request this exemption by providing a signed statement that declares the location of their principal residence and place of practice. Physicians must also declare they do not practice telemedicine, as defined in Montana law.  

• 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.

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.