Starting a Staffing Agency

The choice to form a limited liability entity depends on many factors, and indeed some small business owners are perfectly fine operating as sole props rather than a more "formal" entity. Forming a limited liability entity is a fairly simple thing to do and costs very little, and the benefits associated with it make it a no brainer for many businesses. It is especially wise to do in this HIGH liability and HIGH risk industry. Why expose your personal assets when a couple hundred dollars can provide your shelter from that?



Correct, the moment you engage in a business activity with a profit motive you become a business entity by default. However, a sole proprietor has ZERO personal protection from liability, and that is the most important point here. In regard to insurance, independent contractor insurances and the type of insurances a true agency that employs other people requires are completely different. Don't be fooled into thinking that just because you have IC coverage, you have a company policy. You don't. You must be rated to get coverage when you employ other nurses. You also will be subject to occasional audits as the insurer bases the amount you owe on either your payroll or your total revenue... and of course the amount of coverage you purchase. The difference in cost is SUBSTANTIAL.



Just because it's "worked" for you so far doesn't mean it will continue. If/when the hospital discovers this shortcoming, the business person could lose their contract with the hospital, and they may end up with issues collecting money on work that has already been performed as the hospital tries to sort through how to deal with the situation. This could cause a serious interruption in the business, the person's income and their ability to pay their other staff. Again, to save a few hundred bucks, why would a person expose themselves to such silly risks? Also, Harry, since you are now incorporated you are legally required to put a corporate abrevation (or spell out corporation or limited liability company, etc.) at the end of your business name on official documents including contracts.




Hospitals are REQUIRED to perform this due diligence on EVERY single vendor. If they aren't doing so, they expose themselves to serious risks. Namely, they could lose their government reimbursement monies. Without this, almost every single hospital would have to close shop. If they aren't performing their due diligence, they are putting YOU as a vendor at risk. Hospitals and many other business receiving ANY federal money must verify all vendors against the Attorney General OIG list. The people and companies on the list are primarily people who have committed some sort of fraud against the government or owe them a bunch of money for something. The OIG look up is just ONE of many verifications both at the federal and state levels they are legally required to do on each and every single vendor they use. They also have to do this on every single employee in the hospital's organization. The amount of verification they must perform on vendors is far less than what they must perform for employees, but they share most of the verifications in common, meaning they are already QUITE well equipped for performing proper DD on vendors.



This is incorrect information Harry (not entirely but mostly). All business entities (even sole proprietors if they use a fictitious name, meaning anything other than the actual name of the business owner) are REQUIRED to register as a business entity. If you are an out of state company, you must also register as a foreign entity in any state your transact in. If you can't afford the small filing fee and the 2 minutes it takes to fill out your annual report, there are far worse problems that need to be addressed. You may consider them expensive and incredibly expensive, but it's the law. Also, in your case Harry, by not filing your foriegn corp status with the state (as you say you don't), you are are potentially at risk of losing the veil of limited liability protection of your corp. In the event you are sued in that state, they could potentially go after all your personal assets, not to mention that at that point you've just been discovered to have commited a crime in that state and have THAT to deal with.




I'm not sure where you read this in my post. I never said that, and I honestly don't think I implied it either. With that said, having owned several of my own businesses that posted millions in revenue every year (though not in the nurse agency industry), I can speak from solid experience when I say it's not terribly complicated to deal with the additional requirements of corporate compliance, and I would never want to operate without its protection. It's true, it's a little more work, but worth it.


In closing, folks, It's ALWAYS best to conduct business based on BEST PRACTICES and within the law. Just because someone says they "get away" with something or "fly under the radar" doesn't make it safe, legal, ethical or wise.