Restoring Rights of Physicians to Own Hospitals Act
Sponsored By: Representative Spartz
Introduced
Summary
Repeals the rural exception to the physician self-referral (Stark) law. This bill would remove the special statutory criteria that let some physician-owned hospitals in rural areas qualify for an ownership exception.
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- Physician owners and physician-owned hospitals: would lose the statutory rural provider and hospital exception that depended on specific ownership, size, and investment limits.
- Rural hospitals that met prior tests on operating rooms, beds, conversion history, and ownership disclosures: would no longer be eligible for that exception under section 1877 of the Social Security Act.
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and regulators: the bill removes the disclosure and ownership provisions tied to the rural exception, eliminating the statutory basis for applying that specific exemption.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Would end rural exception for doctor-owned hospitals
This bill would end the special exception that lets some doctors own or invest in rural hospitals under Medicare rules. It would remove the parts of federal law that create that exception. If passed, rural doctors would have fewer legal paths to own or invest in local hospitals. Patients in those areas could face fewer local options, but it could also reduce referral conflicts.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Spartz
IN • R
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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