Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy (1985-2015) Volume 11 Issue 1 Article 9 1994 Specialty Board Certification and ederF al Civil Rights Statutes John J. Smith Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.edu/jchlp Recommended Citation John J. Smith, Specialty Board Certification and Federal Civil Rights Statutes, 11 J. Contemp. Health L. & Pol'y 111 (1995). Available at: https://scholarship.law.edu/jchlp/vol11/iss1/9 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by CUA Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy (1985-2015) by an authorized editor of CUA Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. SPECIALTY BOARD CERTIFICATION AND FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHTS STATUTES John J.Smith, M.D., J.D.* Medical practice in the United States is structured around physician- specialists, highly trained professionals who affect the character, quality and cost of health care. Training and credentialing of these specialists is essentially unregulated by government. Instead, a comprehensive private regulatory system has developed, based largely on standards created by the twenty-four specialty boards recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties. These private organizations assess physician skill through an evaluation and examination process, with candidates who meet board standards being granted certification in a particular specialty or subspecialty. The certification process is voluntary and is not legally required in or- der to practice medicine in any jurisdiction. Likewise, neither the boards nor any other medical organization encourages health care institutions to limit specialty practice to certified physicians alone.