Hospitals have historically used noncompete agreements to keep doctors from leaving their jobs. Unlike other industries, hospitals aren’t trying to protect trade secrets. They argue the clauses help keep a level playing field for talent and keep doctors from leaving and taking patients with them.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted in April to ban most noncompete agreements, which prevent tens of millions of employees from leaving their jobs to work for competitors or start a competing business.
Chip Kahn, president and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, said U.S. District Judge Ada Brown, an appointee of former President Trump, made the “right call.”
“We have been clear from the start that this rule would threaten patient access to care by making it more difficult for hospitals to recruit and retain physicians and invest in training and technology,” Kahn said in a statement.
Physicians’ groups were not pleased. Steven P. Furr, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), warned allowing noncompetes to continue would harm doctor-patient relationships.
Posted by John3262005
3 Comments
Hospitals might be celebrating now, but doctors probably aren’t thrilled about it.
why do hospital admins hate us?
Anything hospitals celebrate probably isn’t beneficial to society. Certificate of need laws are another example.