State legislatures have accelerated efforts to limit restrictive covenants for healthcare professionals, creating a changing and fragmented legal landscape. To understand where we’re headed, we reviewed state legislation around the country enacted over the past two years. Over this period of time, fourteen states have enacted laws limiting the use of restrictive covenants in the healthcare sector. The result is a patchwork quilt: these laws vary with respect to the practitioners they cover and the scope of prohibitions. Still, several overarching trends have emerged, which appear to reflect that while state legislatures disagree on precisely how far to restrict healthcare noncompetes, they increasingly agree that protecting patient access and continuity of care should take precedence over post-employment restraints.
Healthcare Noncompetes Are in the Crosshairs, But Approaches Vary
Some states have decided that healthcare noncompetes should simply disappear. Arkansas, Indiana, Utah, and Colorado have adopted categorical or near-categorical bans on noncompetes for healthcare practitioners. Arkansas and Indiana prohibit noncompetes for all physicians. Utah recently banned post-employment noncompete agreements for a broad range of healthcare practitioners. In 2025, Colorado banned all noncompete agreements for healthcare providers that restrict their ability to practice.
Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Texas have taken a narrower approach, requiring certain conditions to be met,...
False. The quotes attributed to the politicians have been fabricated by a foreign-run disinformation operation. AAP FactCheck - Pauline Hanson and Anthony Albanese did not trade barbs during a liv...