As diligently as you have studied medicine and as hard as you have worked to acquire your clinical skills, you have earned the rewards of a Maine medical practice. The state's scenic forests, lakes, and Atlantic coastline, attractive towns, abundant recreational opportunities, diverse economy, and good-sized population all make Maine a good place to commence a thriving medical practice. The state's great need for additional medical practitioners adds to your opportunity for a rewarding practice. Maine's Board of Licensure in Medicine invites your license application. However, you must resolve your NBME, USMLE, or other medical licensing exam issues to gain your Maine medical license and commence your full-time, permanent practice. Call 888.535.3686 or use our contact form now to retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Student Defense Team to help you successfully resolve those issues. Our attorneys are available in Portland, South Portland, Lewiston, Bangor, Auburn, Sanford, Buxton, South Paris, Windham, North Berwick, Waterboro, Scarborough, Oakland, and across the rest of Maine for your highly qualified representation. Do not entrust your medical license and career to unqualified local criminal defense counsel. Instead, retain our skilled and experienced Student Defense Team attorneys.
Maine Medical Practice Rewards
Take stock of your situation when facing medical licensing exam issues that potentially delay or even frustrate your Maine medical licensure. You made a huge investment in your medical education. That investment should earn you substantial medical practice rewards, not only personal and professional but also financial. Maine isn't just a beautiful state in which to practice a profession. Its sophisticated healthcare systems and fine medical facilities can support a growing and even thriving medical practice. The state's largest healthcare facilities and systems include Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems, MaineGeneral Health, Central Maine Healthcare Corporation, LincolnHealth Medical Partners, MaineHealth Services, St. Mary's Health System, and MaineGeneral Medical Center. You can also continue your professional development in the state. The University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Portland and the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine in Biddeford together enable you to teach, research, network, and continue your medical education. Retain our skilled and experienced attorneys to help you gain access to and enjoy these well-earned and substantial rewards.
Maine Medical Licensing Authority
But let's face it: to practice medicine in Maine, you need a license from the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine. Maine's Medical Practice Act, codified at 32 Maine Revised Statutes Sections 3263 et seq., establishes the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine with the authority to regulate medical practice through licensure. The Act's Section 3270 expressly requires you to obtain a license from the Board to hold yourself out for medical practice, including to use the title Doctor, Dr., MD, DO, or an equivalent designation indicating the capability of lawfully providing medical services. Section 3274 requires you to display your medical license at any location where you regularly conduct medical practice. Unlicensed practice is unlawful and can result in the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine discipline under Section 3282-A, including denial of a license and enforcement action through civil proceedings. Don't risk your future medical licensure by cutting corners now with part-time or temporary unlicensed medical practice. Instead, let us help you resolve your medical licensing exam issues to qualify for a license from the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine.
Maine License Application Requirements
Section 3271 of the Maine Medical Practice Act requires that you pay the license application fee and apply for licensure by the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine. Section 3271 does not further detail the form of your application; instead, you can rely on the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine Administrative Rule Regarding Physicians Chapter 1 for the detailed application requirements. Those requirements include completing the Board's application form, completely answering all questions, signing the form certifying that your answers are correct, providing notarization where required, attaching designated supplemental materials in the correct form, and paying all fees and charges. Take these application requirements seriously, especially in light of your medical licensing exam issues. Misstatements, errors, and omissions on your license application can lead to credential fraud charges and disqualification under Section 3282-A. Let us help you update and correct your license application to ensure that it accurately reflects your pending medical licensing exam issues. Don't let credential fraud charges complicate or delay your application's final processing after we have helped you resolve your medical licensing exam issues.
Maine Medical Licensure General Requirements
Section 3271 of the Maine Medical Practice Act states your general requirements for licensure. Those requirements include graduation from an LCME-approved medical school program, three years of postgraduate medical residency training or two years of training with a commitment to complete a third year after licensure, and passage of a medical licensing exam that the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine has approved. Sections 3271 and 3282-A of the Maine Medical Practice Act, together with the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine Administrative Rule Regarding Physicians Chapter 1, further require that you not have engaged in any misconduct that would subject you to discipline if you were already licensed. Those grounds for discipline include incompetence in medical practice, mental or physical unfitness, substance abuse or addiction, and certain criminal convictions, among several other grounds. Our attorneys can help you resolve these and other issues with the general requirements for licensure, in addition to your medical licensing exam issues.
Maine Medical Licensing Exam Requirements
Section 3271 of the Maine Medical Practice Act requires that you pass a medical licensing exam, leaving it to the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine to adopt an administrative rule for which exams would qualify. The Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine Administrative Rule Regarding Physicians Chapter 1, Section 3, Part 2 approves the NBME, USMLE, and FLEX exams and combinations of those exams. The same administrative rule requires that you pass all steps, parts, or components of your chosen exam series within seven years of your first attempt. The Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine does not limit your Step 1 or Step 2 exam attempts but limits your Step 3 exam attempts to no more than three. Be aware that the Board's Step 3 limit is lower than the USMLE's own four attempts limit.
Maine Medical Licensing Exam Issues
Our attorneys have the substantial skill and experience to address your medical licensing exam issues in the most efficient and effective manner, depending on the type of issue you face. Yes, your circumstances are surely unusual or unique in some respects. Every licensing or exam matter differs in small respects. However, medical licensing exam issues also fall into common patterns, procedures, and advocacy, which differ. We know those patterns and how to make the arguments and navigate the procedures for your best outcome. Your medical licensing exam issue likely involves (1) meeting exam qualifications, (2) passing all exam steps within attempt limits, (3) allegations that you cheated on the exam, (4) qualifying for a retake attempt after your anomalous exam performance; (5) winning the release of an invalidated exam score; or (6) proving extenuating circumstances for extra exam attempts. The following sections address each of these categories of issues.
Maine Medical Licensing Exam Qualification Issues
Your medical licensing exam organization, whether the USMLE, NBME, or FLEX, will have rigorous exam qualification requirements. You don't just have to meet the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine requirements. You also have to meet your exam organization's requirements. The USMLE's Bulletin of Information, for instance, lists several exam qualification requirements, any one or more of which could trigger the following issues, leading exam officials to disqualify you from the exam and notify the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine of your disqualification:
- statements in your application that are inaccurate or inconsistent;
- documentation you supplied that is incomplete or unauthenticated;
- differences between your application statements and documentation;
- disclosure of medical school academic progress or misconduct charges;
- discovery of medical school accreditation issues;
- indications that you have pending medical residency program disciplinary charges;
- recent criminal arrest or past criminal convictions; or
- documentation of your citizenship or lawful residency status is inadequate.
How We Address Exam Qualification Issues:
Documentation issues can be the hardest for you to resolve and surest for us to resolve. Our attorneys have the reputation, relationships, and skills to get the prompt attention and ready cooperation of medical school deans and registrars, medical residency supervisors, and directors, as well as other recordkeepers like court clerks and immigration officials. That cooperation may be all it takes to resolve your documentation issues. If, instead, you have pending misconduct or academic progress issues, then we know how to invoke program procedures to address and resolve those issues with exonerating and mitigating evidence and negotiation for alternative administrative relief. We can do the same with your criminal court matter or immigration issues, all while keeping the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine informed of our diligent progress in keeping your license file open.
Maine Medical Licensing Exam Attempt Limits
We've shown above that the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine Administrative Rule Chapter 1, Section 3, Part 2 limits your Step 3 exam attempts to no more than three, while the USMLE's own limit is four attempts for each step exam. You could thus run out of USMLE attempts on the Step 1 or Step 2 exam or run out of Maine Board of Licensure attempts on your Step 3 exam. Failing a step exam is certainly not the end of the world. Many medical students and graduates do so as they adjust their studies to the difficulty of each step of the exam against other pressing obligations. You just don't want to run out of exam attempts. Doing so could result in disqualification from further exam attempts and the Maine Board of Licensure rejection of your license application.
How We Address Exam Attempt Limits:
Passing each step of the exam is up to you. But we may be able to help you gain additional exam attempts after you have exhausted your limit. We may be able to invoke the USMLE's extenuating circumstances policy. That policy permits USMLE officials to grant you another attempt on your credibility, showing that an emergency prevented you from pursuing a scheduled exam, counting against your limit, or causing you to abandon an attempt made fruitless by the emergency. Your injury or illness on the day of the exam or a similar serious emergency involving a close family member are examples. We must make that showing promptly, though. Delays may result in denials of your request. Maine Board of Licensure officials may exercise similar implied authority to relieve you from an extenuating circumstance, granting you an extra Step 3 exam attempt. Let us help you make a convincing showing.
Maine Licensing Exam Irregular Behavior Issues
You could also face cheating allegations, even if you did not engage in any suspicious behavior. Exam proctors, test center staff, and other exam administrators can make mistakes in identifying suspicious examinees or understanding the true nature and intentions of their words and actions. Fellow examinees, who also have a duty to report suspicious behavior, can do likewise. Nefarious examinees can also blame others for their own wrongs or retaliate against another examinee through manufactured cheating charges. The USMLE enforces an irregular behavior policy to address cheating allegations and punish cheaters. The policy defines cheating as an attempt to “compromise the validity, integrity, or security” of the exam. Exam officials may notify the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine of your disqualification for allegedly cheating, causing the Board to deny your license application.
The USMLE Bulletin of Information includes these examples of irregular behavior: (1) notifying licensing officials that you passed the exam when you didn't pass; (2) notifying officials you qualified for the exam when you didn't qualify; (3) failing to report suspected cheating by another examinee, implicating you in the cheating scandal; (4) obstructing cheating investigators; (5) having an impostor take your exam; (6) violating proctor instructions; (7) helping another examinee cheat during an exam; (8) getting another examinee's help for you to cheat during an exam; (9) hiding notes or devices for use in the exam room; (10) disclosing confidential exam questions to another after you took the exam; (11) asking another to disclose confidential exam questions to you; (12) registering for an exam when ineligible; or (13 removing materials from the exam room.
How We Address Irregular Behavior Charges:
Our attorneys can invoke the USMLE Office of the Secretariat's adjudication process to contest your cheating charges. The process ensures that you have a fair hearing on the charges, where we can present your exonerating evidence while challenging the credibility and weight of incriminating evidence. We may also be able to prove your good character for honesty, your strong academic record, and your ability to pass the exam without undue advantage. We may be able to gain a release of your passing score or negotiate a retake opportunity under special monitoring. We can also keep the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine informed of our progress in defending the cheating allegations.
Maine Anomalous Exam Performance Issues
The medical licensing exam organizations also analyze examinee answers and scores, looking for anomalies that may indicate either an unqualified examinee or suspected cheating. A very low score well below the normal distribution may lead exam officials to conclude that you lacked the required medical education. Unanswered exam sections may lead exam officials to believe that you did not make an honest attempt at the exam and were instead in the exam room to assist another examinee, record confidential questions, or engage in other dishonest conduct. In those instances, USMLE officials may invoke the organization's anomalous performance policy to disqualify you from further exam attempts and notify the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine of your disqualification, leading the Board to reject your license application.
How We Address Anomalous Exam Performance:
Our attorneys may be able to make a good case that (a) you have a strong medical school academic record and keen exam skills sufficient to pass the medical licensing exam and (b) an emergency circumstance distracted you to the extent that you were unable to apply your education and skills, leading to the anomalous performance. Your MCAT score, medical school grades, and medical school exam scores can all support the adequacy of your education. If you can identify a medication reaction, mental lapse, format unfamiliarity, instruction misunderstanding, or other cause for your poor performance, we can help you document and advocate that cause as grounds for relief and reinstatement, all while keeping the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine well informed to keep your license file open.
Maine Invalidated Exam Score Issues
Strange as it may seem, a very high exam score can also lead to medical licensing exam issues. Exam officials analyze exam answers and scores not just for very poor performance but also for unusually adept performance, so adept as to suggest access to exam questions and answers before the exam. If your score was well above the normal distribution, or if your answers mirrored the answers of other examinees at your exam site, then exam officials may infer that you cheated and may withhold and invalidate your passing score. The USMLE enforces an invalidated score policy for exam security and exam integrity purposes. The Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine would likely reject your license application when receiving notice of your invalidated exam score.
How We Address Invalidated Exam Scores:
Our attorneys address an invalidated exam score first by showing how keen your skills are for acing a standardized test. You may, for instance, have also aced the MCAT and your medical school exams. We may also be able to make a strong case for your honesty and good moral character, for instance, with affidavits from medical school professors and mentors. If we cannot gain release of your extraordinarily high score, we may be able to negotiate another attempt at a new medical licensing exam to prove your capacity to easily pass the exam without any cheating, advanced access to exam questions, or other undue advantage.
Maine Board of Medicine Response to Exam Issues
The Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine has no particular obligation to wait on your efforts to resolve your medical licensing exam issues, especially if it does not believe in your likelihood of resolving those issues or the adequacy of your efforts. That's where our attorneys can provide you with the best value, using our reputation, relationships, and skills to gain the trust, respect, and confidence of Maine Board of Licensure officials that you do have a strong likelihood of prevailing because of our diligent efforts on your behalf at resolving your medical licensing exam issues. The Board of Licensure will have guidelines, deadlines, and protocols for wrapping up and closing license application files. Our assurances may well keep your file open and alive outside of those protocols long enough for us to resolve your medical licensing exam issues.
Maine Administrative Review Procedures
Sections 10001 to 10005 of the Maine Administrative Procedure Act provide for adjudicatory hearings and other proceedings in instances of a disputed licensing matter. Those procedures ensure your constitutional due process rights. If the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine has already denied your license application, we can invoke the Administrative Procedure Act protections to present your best license defense at the adjudicatory hearing. Your best defense would indeed be that we have already favorably resolved your medical licensing exam issues by the time of your hearing. If you have already lost your hearing, we may be able to make available appeals and even obtain judicial review.
Premier Maine Medical Licensing Exam Defense
The Lento Law Firm's premier Student Defense Team is available across Maine to help you address and favorably resolve your medical licensing exam issues and qualify for a Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine license. We help hundreds of medical students and graduates, as well as students and graduates, in other professional programs across Maine and nationwide. Call 888.535.3686 or use our contact form now to retain our highly qualified attorney representation.
