To start a medical practice in Florida, you form the business entity (a standard LLC works for most physicians), then layer on the healthcare-specific registrations: DEA, NPI, CLIA if you run lab tests, malpractice coverage and insurance credentialing. Forming the LLC is the quick part. Credentialing is the slow one, often 60-180 days, so start it as early as you can.
LLC, PLLC or PA: which structure fits a Florida medical practice?
Florida lets licensed professionals form either a standard LLC or a Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC). Unlike some states, Florida doesn’t require medical professionals to use a PLLC, and a standard LLC works for most physician practices.
Some physicians choose a Professional Association (PA), Florida’s version of a professional corporation. It has more formal requirements and potential double taxation unless you make an S election, though some hospital credentialing may prefer it. For most new practices, an LLC provides adequate structure with less complexity.
None of these protect you from your own malpractice. They protect you from business debts and other people’s negligence. A sole proprietorship doesn’t even do that, and it complicates banking and credentialing, so it isn’t recommended for a medical practice.
How do you start a medical practice in Florida, step by step?
1. Confirm your professional license
Before you form anything, make sure your Florida license is active and unrestricted. You can verify it at FLHealthSource.gov.
| Provider type | Licensing board |
|---|---|
| Physician (MD) | Board of Medicine |
| Physician (DO) | Board of Osteopathic Medicine |
| Nurse Practitioner | Board of Nursing |
| Physician Assistant | Board of Medicine |
| Chiropractor | Board of Chiropractic Medicine |
| Podiatrist | Board of Podiatric Medicine |
| Dentist | Board of Dentistry |
2. Form your Florida LLC
File Articles of Organization at Sunbiz.org for $125. You’ll give the practice name, designate a registered agent and list members or managers.
The name can be yours (Smith Medical, LLC) or a practice-style name (Sunshine Family Practice, LLC), as long as it isn’t taken or misleading. The licensed professional(s) must be members or managers. Non-licensed people can have limited, administrative-only roles.
3. Get your EIN
Apply free at IRS.gov and you’ll get it immediately. You need it for staff, banking and taxes.
4. Register with the DEA
If you’ll prescribe controlled substances, register with the Drug Enforcement Administration online at deadiversion.usdoj.gov. The fee is $888 for a 3-year registration. Registration is tied to the practice address, so multiple locations need separate registrations.
5. Complete Florida’s controlled substances registration
On top of the DEA, register with the Florida Department of Health, online through the Florida Board of Medicine. This connects you to the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP).
6. Get your NPI
Every HIPAA-covered provider needs a National Provider Identifier. Registration through CMS.gov is free. You’ll get a Type 1 NPI as an individual provider, plus a Type 2 NPI for the practice if that applies.
7. Get CLIA certification if you run lab tests
Lab testing requires Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certification through CMS. Waived tests such as rapid strep, urine dipstick, blood glucose and rapid flu need only a Certificate of Waiver. More complex tests require higher levels of certification.
8. Get your local business licenses
Apply for a business tax receipt through your county tax collector (fees vary by county, and it renews annually), and check whether your city requires its own license.
What insurance does a medical practice need?
Malpractice coverage is the big one, and the first decision is the policy type:
| Coverage type | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Occurrence | Claims from incidents during the policy period |
| Claims-made | Claims made during the policy period |
| Tail coverage | Extends claims-made coverage after the policy ends |
If you buy claims-made coverage, price the tail before you sign, since you’ll need it when the policy ends.
Common coverage limits are $250,000/$750,000 at the low end and $1 million/$3 million as standard, with higher limits for surgery and OB/GYN. Annual premiums vary a lot: roughly $8,000-$20,000 for primary care, $15,000-$50,000+ for specialties and $50,000-$200,000+ for surgery and OB.
Beyond malpractice:
- General liability for non-medical claims like slip-and-fall accidents and property damage. $1 million per occurrence is the usual recommendation.
- A business owner’s policy (BOP), which bundles general liability, property insurance and business interruption for about $1,000-$3,000 a year for a small practice.
- Workers’ compensation, required once you have 4+ employees outside construction, with premiums based on payroll and job classifications.
- Cyber liability, covering data breaches, HIPAA violations, ransomware and patient data exposure. Healthcare data is a frequent target, so this coverage is increasingly important.
How does insurance credentialing work?
Credentialing enrolls you with insurance companies so you can bill them. Each payer has its own application, needing your medical license, DEA certificate, NPI number, malpractice insurance, board certifications, CV and work history, and references.
Start with Medicare, because other payers reference it. Then Medicaid, then commercial payers such as UnitedHealthcare, Aetna and Cigna. Medicare and Medicaid typically take 30-90 days. Commercial payers take 60-180 days.
Set up your CAQH ProView profile at proview.caqh.org early, since many payers use that one profile. Credentialing services cost about $200-$500 per payer if you’d rather not handle the applications yourself.
What does HIPAA compliance involve?
Every healthcare provider has to protect patient health information (PHI) with administrative, physical and technical safeguards. In a small practice, that means:
- Designate a privacy officer, often the physician.
- Do a documented risk assessment and fix what you find.
- Write privacy, security and breach notification policies.
- Use encrypted email and data, a secure EHR and access controls.
- Train staff at hire and every year, and document it.
- Sign a business associate agreement with every vendor that touches PHI, including EHR vendors, billing companies and cloud services.
Violations run $100-$50,000+ per violation, criminal penalties are possible, and state attorneys general can bring cases too.
Office space, EHR and billing
Check that zoning permits medical use and the space meets ADA requirements. In the lease, push for improvement allowances, because medical build-outs typically run $50-$150+ per square foot.
For the EHR, specialty fit and day-to-day usability matter more than feature lists. Systems commonly used by small practices include Athenahealth, Practice Fusion, DrChrono, eClinicalWorks and NextGen. Cloud-based systems cost about $200-$500 a month per provider, plus $2,000-$10,000+ for implementation and training.
Outsourced billing typically costs 4-8% of collections and spares you hiring billing staff, which makes it common for small practices. In-house billing gives you more control and usually suits larger practices.
How much does it cost to start a medical practice in Florida?
| One-time cost | Range |
|---|---|
| Florida LLC | $125 |
| DEA registration | $888 |
| NPI/CLIA | Free-$200 |
| EHR setup | $2,000-$10,000 |
| Office build-out | $20,000-$100,000+ |
| Equipment | $10,000-$50,000+ |
| Credentialing | $1,000-$5,000 |
| Legal/accounting setup | $2,000-$5,000 |
| Total | $35,000-$175,000+ |
| Ongoing cost | Annual amount |
|---|---|
| Malpractice insurance | $8,000-$200,000 |
| General liability | $1,000-$3,000 |
| EHR/software | $3,000-$6,000 |
| Billing services | 4-8% of revenue |
| Staff | Significant, varies |
| Rent | Varies by location |
| Florida annual report | $138.75 |
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a physical office?
For most practices, yes. Telemedicine-only practices have different requirements, so check with your medical board.
Can non-physicians own a medical practice in Florida?
Florida’s corporate practice of medicine doctrine limits ownership, and licensed physicians must keep clinical control. Talk to a healthcare attorney before setting up any structure with non-physician owners.
Start your medical practice LLC
File the LLC early, because your EIN, bank account and credentialing applications build on it. IncCraft handles your Florida LLC formation for $0 + the $125 state filing fee, and we include registered agent service and compliance reminders.
Form your Florida LLC with IncCraft today.