Dear Editor:
There is a lot of talk about a shortage of healthcare workers including physicians.
I would like to clarify that much of the shortage is intentionally induced by the hospital systems. Hospitals include a non-compete clause in their contracts.
I am a physician who has practiced at Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Mo., for 14 years and was the medical director of their 14-bed inpatient physical rehabilitation unit. My non-compete included standard language of not taking patients if I leave, but it goes further preventing me from practicing medicine in any capacity whatsoever in a 30-mile radius for two years.
When our hospital was taken over by the University of Missouri the non-compete was increased to 50-mile radius and was non-negotiable. I refused to sign and left. After almost a year the hospital has not even tried to fill the outpatient void left by my departure.
I asked permission to practice in areas that the hospital does not serve such as skilled nursing facilities, and I was told no. The non-compete clause ties a physician’s hands to a hospital. The hospital can make any changes they desire, and the physician has no recourse.
If the physician refuses and leaves then they must uproot their entire family and move to a new location. This creates an access barrier to healthcare in rural America and an overwhelming emotional and financial burden to the physician and their family.
David Lancaster
Columbia
