§ 23-17-53 - Physician contracts.
SECTION 23-17-53
§ 23-17-53 Physician contracts. – (a) A hospital, by contract or otherwise, may not refuse or fail to grant orrenew medical staff membership or staff privileges, or condition or otherwiselimit or restrict medical staff membership or staff privileges, based in wholeor in part on the fact that the physician or a partner, associate, or employeeof the physician is providing medical or health care services at a differenthospital, hospital system, or on behalf of a health plan. Notwithstanding theprevious sentence, a hospital may condition or otherwise limit or restrictstaff privileges for reasons related to the availability of limited resourcesas determined in advance by the hospital's governing body. Nor shall a hospitalby contract, or otherwise, limit a physician's participation or staffprivileges or the participation or staff privileges of a partner, associate, oremployee of the physician at a different hospital, hospital system or healthplan.
(b) This section does not prevent a hospital from enteringinto contracts with physicians to ensure physician availability and coverage atthe hospital or to comply with regulatory requirements or quality of carestandards established by the governing body of the hospital, if contracts,requirements or standards do not require that a physician join, participate inor contract with a physician-hospital organization or similar organization as acondition of the grant or continuation of medical staff membership or staffprivileges at the hospital.
(c) This section does not prevent the governing body of ahospital from limiting the number of physicians granted medical staffmembership or privileges at the hospital based on a medical staff developmentplan that is unrelated to a physician or a partner, associate, or employee of aphysician having medical staff membership or privileges at another hospital orhospital system.
(d) A contract provision that violates this section shall bevoid and of no force and effect.
(e) Hospitals shall allow patients of their medical staff tobe evaluated and educated by the various appropriate departments of thehospital upon referral by their treating physician, regardless of the physicianaffiliation, as long as the physician has unrestricted privileges in theirfield of practice.