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Opening a clinic in Miami

How to open a medical practice in Miami

The Florida Board of Medicine licenses the physician, the Agency for Health Care Administration licenses health care clinics unless the practice is wholly owned by licensed practitioners, and an office doing Level II or III surgery registers with the Department of Health before its first case. From the first appointment, wai runs booking, signed notes, consent and patient messages on one record, in Spanish, English or any language your patients write in.

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Updated . Every rule is checked against the official source and cited below.

A man in a dark suit stands at a wall of glass high above Miami and Biscayne Bay at sunset

Regulator

Florida Board of Medicine, with AHCA for licensed clinics

Surgery

Office surgery registration with the Department of Health

Cover

Financial responsibility under Florida Statutes 458.320

Records

Hosted in the United States

Six steps to an open clinic in Miami

  1. Who licenses a medical practice in Miami, and in what order?Step 01
  2. What must the premises be ready for before a Miami practice opens?Step 02
  3. What malpractice cover does a Florida physician need?Step 03
  4. What does a Miami practice check before a clinician's first shift?Step 04
  5. What does a Miami practice set up before the first patient?Step 05
  6. What matters in a Miami practice's first 90 days?Step 06

How to open a clinic in Miami, step by step

From the licence to the first 90 days, in the order a founder meets each step.

01Licensing and the regulator

Who licenses a medical practice in Miami, and in what order?

The Florida Board of Medicine licenses physicians.1 AHCA licenses health care clinics under the Health Care Clinic Act, and a practice wholly owned by licensed health care practitioners is exempt, with a certificate of exemption available from AHCA.23

  • Hold a Florida licence for every physician, from the Board of Medicine.1
  • Settle ownership before you file. The exemption covers a practice wholly owned by licensed practitioners, or by practitioners with a spouse, parent, child or sibling where a licensed owner supervises the business.3
  • Apply to AHCA for a health care clinic licence, or a certificate of exemption, under Chapter 400 Part X and the 59A-33 rules.2
  • Register for office surgery before liposuction removing more than 1,000 cc, certain Level I procedures, or any Level II or Level III procedure.4
  • Register with the DEA, get an NPI, then enroll. DEA requires a separate registration in each state, and Medicare enrollment runs through PECOS after the NPI.567

02Premises and fit-out

What must the premises be ready for before a Miami practice opens?

An office that registers for surgery is inspected by the Department of Health before registration is approved.4 After that it is inspected every year unless a nationally recognised or Board-approved agency accredits it.4

  • Schedule the preregistration inspection into the fit-out timeline, before the first registered procedure.4
  • Decide on accreditation early. An accredited office skips the annual Department inspection.4
  • Store records in the right place. A provider using certified record technology keeps offsite patient information, cloud copies included, physically in the continental United States, its territories or Canada.8

03Indemnity and insurance

What malpractice cover does a Florida physician need?

Florida makes financial responsibility a condition of an active licence. A physician carries professional liability cover of at least $100,000 per claim and $300,000 a year, or an equal escrow account or letter of credit.9

  • Raise the limits for surgery centers and hospital privileges. A physician operating in a licensed ambulatory surgical center, or holding staff privileges, needs $250,000 per claim and $750,000 a year.9
  • Show it at every renewal. Financial responsibility, or the grounds for an exemption, is established when the licence is issued or renewed.9
  • Post the notice if you go without insurance. A physician who uses the statutory alternative must display a sign in the reception area, or give each patient a written statement, saying the doctor has decided not to carry malpractice insurance.9
  • Watch for cancellation. Insurers must notify the Department promptly when a policy the law requires is cancelled or not renewed.9

04Hiring and credentialing

What does a Miami practice check before a clinician's first shift?

Each physician's Florida licence and financial responsibility.19 Each prescriber, or a designee, must consult the state's prescription drug monitoring system before prescribing a controlled substance for a patient aged 16 or older.10

  • Know the E-FORCSE exceptions. The duty does not apply to a nonopioid Schedule V substance or to a patient admitted to hospice.10
  • Register every prescriber with the DEA in Florida, since a DEA registration rests on a state licence.5
  • Match cover to privileges. A new physician with hospital staff privileges needs $250,000 per claim and $750,000 a year before starting.9

05Patient-facing setup

What does a Miami practice set up before the first patient?

A business associate agreement with every vendor that handles patient information, as HIPAA requires.11 Recording consent from everyone in the room, because Florida allows interception only when all parties have given prior consent.12

  • Answer in Spanish. 67.0% of Miami-Dade residents aged five and over speak Spanish at home.13
  • Write the breach plan. Florida's notice to affected individuals is due no later than 30 days after a breach is determined.14
  • Put consent in the booking so the all-party yes is on file before the visit starts.12

06The first 90 days

What matters in a Miami practice's first 90 days?

The annual inspection or the accreditor, and the prescribing check. A registered office that is not accredited is inspected every year.4

  • Check E-FORCSE before every controlled substance prescription the law covers.10
  • Keep the cover current, since a lapse is reported to the Department by the insurer.9
  • Diary Medicare revalidation, every five years or when CMS asks.7
  • Trace one patient end to end from booking to follow-up, the way a surveyor does.15
A woman stands at a tall window in a stone-walled lounge, the flat green South Florida city under evening clouds

How wai runs a Miami clinic from day one

From the first appointment, a Miami practice runs its diary, notes, payments and patient conversations on one record, with the evidence an inspector or accreditor asks for kept as the work happens.

  1. 01

    Appointments

    Patients request appointments in Spanish, English or any language from your own website, with a reminder before every visit and cancelled slots offered to the waitlist.

    Online booking from your own website, every clinician's diary read from their calendar, reminders, rebooking after a missed visit and waitlist offers when a slot opens.

    For patients
    Online booking at any hour, with a reminder before the visit.
    For the business
    Fewer missed appointments, and cancelled slots offered to the waitlist.
    On the record
    Every booking, reminder and change, with a time and a name.
  2. 02

    Billing

    Card payments in US dollars go to your practice's own Stripe account, with the cancellation policy shown before the patient commits and an export for your accountant.

    Card payments into your own Stripe account, the cancellation policy shown at booking, invoices, statements and reconciliation, with an export for your accountant.

    For patients
    A clear price and policy before they commit, and an invoice in their app.
    For the business
    Payments reconciled against visits, with an export for your accountant.
    On the record
    What was charged, when, against which visit, and the policy the patient saw.
  3. 03

    Scribe

    The note, letters and referrals are drafted from the consultation for the physician to read, edit and sign, with the transcript beside the note.

    The note, letters and referrals written from the consultation, cited to published clinical guidelines, with the transcript beside the note, for the clinician to read, edit and sign.

    For patients
    The clinician's attention stays on them during the consultation.
    For the business
    Less time spent writing notes after clinic.
    On the record
    A contemporaneous note, signed, with the time, the signature and the source it cites.
  4. 04

    Follow-up

    WhatsApp, email and calls sit in one thread per patient, with replies drafted in Spanish or the patient's own language for your team to approve.

    WhatsApp, email and calls in one thread per patient, replies drafted in the patient's own language for your team to approve, a response clock on every new enquiry, and recalls a clinician approves.

    For patients
    A reply in the language they wrote in, approved by your team.
    For the business
    More enquiries answered within the hour, when they are most likely to book.
    On the record
    The whole conversation on one record, with response times.
  5. 05

    Evidence and audit trail

    Consent is recorded at booking, and every read of a record is logged against a named account, so a breach review starts from the audit trail.

    Recording consent taken at booking, referrals written from the visit, patient flags for controlled drugs and safeguarding notes, and every read of a record logged against a named account.

    For patients
    Flags and checks in the record at the point of care.
    For the business
    Incident reviews that start from the audit trail, with times and names.
    On the record
    Who saw what, who changed what, and when, to the minute.
  6. 06

    Staff access

    Every person works under a named account with role-based access, so every action sits under a name.

    Named accounts for every person, and role-based access enforced in the database, so every action sits under a name.

    For patients
    Their record seen only by staff whose role allows it.
    For the business
    Access and actions tied to named people, in the same system as the record.
    On the record
    Who holds which role, and every action taken under it.
  7. 07

    Reporting

    Weekly reports on response times, the front desk and takings, and the patient's own record exportable on request.

    Takings, front desk and website reports, response targets, and the patient's own record exportable on request.

    For patients
    A copy of their record when they ask for it.
    For the business
    Weekly reports for leaders on response times, the front desk and takings.
    On the record
    Reports for any period, produced on the day they are asked for.

Records hosted in the United States, set up with your organisation. Prices for clinics, groups and hospitals are on the wai pricing page.

What a well-run clinic gains

Patients answered within the hour, clinicians home on time and diaries that stay full, in published research.

  1. 7x

    An enquiry answered within the hour is nearly seven times as likely to become a real conversation.16

  2. 30%

    Clinicians using an ambient scribe did 30% less work after hours.17

  3. 23%

    Patients sent a notification before their visit were 23% more likely to attend.18

Questions

Does a Florida medical practice need an AHCA clinic licence?

AHCA licenses health care clinics, and a practice wholly owned by licensed health care practitioners is exempt.23 AHCA issues a certificate of exemption for that case.

How much malpractice insurance does a Florida physician need?

At least $100,000 per claim and $300,000 a year, or $250,000 and $750,000 with hospital privileges or surgery in a licensed ambulatory surgical center.9 An escrow account or letter of credit can stand in for insurance.

Can a Florida physician practise without malpractice insurance?

Florida allows it under strict conditions, and the physician must post a sign in the reception area or give each patient a written statement saying so.9

Which procedures need Florida office surgery registration?

Liposuction removing more than 1,000 cc, certain Level I procedures, and any Level II or Level III procedure in a physician office.4 Offices licensed under Chapter 390 or 395 are outside the rule.

Where can a Miami practice store patient records?

A provider using certified record technology keeps offsite records physically in the continental United States, its territories or Canada.8

Miami regulators and guides

All regulators
  1. RegulatorThe AAAHC hub
  2. RegulatorOffice-based surgery accreditation by state
  3. RegulatorThe Joint Commission hub
  4. RegulatorJoint Commission office-based surgery accreditation

Miami in depth

All insights
  1. InsightClinic AI in Miami
  2. InsightSoftware for aesthetic clinics
  3. InsightAI scribes and HIPAA

Opening a specialty clinic in Miami

Every specialty
  1. Specialtywai for aesthetic clinics
  2. Specialtywai for dermatology clinics
  3. Specialtywai for longevity and preventive medicine clinics
  4. Specialtywai for private GP practices

Opening a clinic elsewhere

Every city
  1. CityOpening a clinic in Dubai
  2. CityOpening a clinic in Abu Dhabi
  3. CityOpening a clinic in Riyadh
  4. CityOpening a clinic in Doha
  5. CityOpening a clinic in London
  6. CityOpening a clinic in New York
  7. CityOpening a clinic in Los Angeles
  8. CityOpening a clinic in Singapore
  9. CityOpening a clinic in Hong Kong
  10. CityOpening a clinic in Sydney
  11. CityOpening a clinic in Paris
  12. CityOpening a clinic in Edinburgh
  13. CityOpening a clinic in Sharjah
  14. CityOpening a clinic in Chicago
  15. CityOpening a clinic in Houston

Request a demo for your Miami clinic.

We show wai running a Miami clinic on your own diary, notes and inbox, in a 15 minute video call with our team. Records hosted in the United States, set up with your organisation.

Request a demoEmail us

team@wellnessa-i.com

Sources

  1. 1Florida Department of Health, Board of Medicine, 2026Florida Board of Medicine, licensing, renewals and complaintsRead source
  2. 2Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, 2026Health Care ClinicsRead source
  3. 3Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 400.9905, Health Care Clinic Act definitions and exemptionsRead source
  4. 4Florida Board of Medicine, 2026Office Surgery RegistrationRead source
  5. 5Drug Enforcement Administration, Diversion Control Division, 2026Registration Q&ARead source
  6. 6CMS, 2026National Provider Identifier, How to ApplyRead source
  7. 7CMS, 2026MLN9658742, Medicare Provider EnrollmentRead source
  8. 8Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 408.051, Florida Electronic Health Records Exchange ActRead source
  9. 9Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 458.320, Financial responsibilityRead source
  10. 10Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 893.055, Prescription drug monitoring programRead source
  11. 11eCFR, 202645 CFR 164.502, Uses and disclosures of protected health information, general rulesRead source
  12. 12Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 934.03, interception and disclosure of wire, oral or electronic communicationsRead source
  13. 13US Census Bureau, 2025American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, table C16001, language spoken at home, Miami-Dade County and Miami cityRead source
  14. 14Florida Legislature, 2026Florida Statutes section 501.171, security of confidential personal informationRead source
  15. 15Joint Commission, 2026Office Based Surgery Accreditation Organization Survey Activity Guide, July 2026Read source
  16. 16Harvard Business Review, 2011The Short Life of Online Sales LeadsRead source
  17. 17JAMA Network Open, 2025Clinician Experiences With Ambient Scribe Technology to Assist With Documentation Burden and EfficiencyRead source
  18. 18BMJ Open, 2016Using digital notifications to improve attendance in clinic, systematic review and meta-analysisRead source