Joining many other states that in recent years have enacted laws regarding physician non-competition agreements, Indiana recently enacted a statute that will place restrictions on such agreements which are originally entered into on or after July 1, 2020.

Under Pub. L. No. 93-2020 (to be codified in part as Ind. Code § 25-22.5-5.5) (2020), which will take effect on July 1, 2020, for a non-compete to be enforceable against a physician licensed in Indiana, the agreement must contain the following provisions:

  1. A provision that requires the employer of the physician to provide the physician with a copy of any notice that (A) concerns the physician’s departure from the employer, and (B) was sent to any patient seen or treated by the physician during the two year period preceding the end of the physician’s employment or contract.
  2. A provision that requires the physician’s employer to, in good faith, provide the physician’s last known or current contact and location information to a patient who (A) requests such information and (B) was sent to any patient seen or treated by the physician during the two year period preceding the end of the physician’s employment or contract.
  3. A provision that provides the physician with (A) access to or (B) copies of any medical record associated with a patient described above upon receipt of the patient’s consent.
  4. A provision that provides the physician with the option to purchase a complete and final release from the terms of the non-compete at a reasonable price.
  5. A provision that prohibits the providing of patient medical records to a requesting physician in a format that materially differs from the format used to create or store the medical record during the routine or ordinary course of business, unless mutually agreed otherwise.

As is clear from these requirements, preserving a patient’s right to choose a physician, including by continuing to be seen or treated by a physician departing from a particular practice, was an important factor considered by Indiana legislators.  Also, given that Indiana law rarely allows for judicial modification of restrictive covenants, this new statute will be onerous for practices/employers who do not pay close attention to drafting their non-compete agreements.

Back to Trade Secrets & Employee Mobility Blog

Search This Blog

Blog Editors

Authors

Related Services

Topics

Archives

Jump to Page

Subscribe

Sign up to receive an email notification when new Trade Secrets & Employee Mobility posts are published:

Privacy Preference Center

When you visit any website, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. This information might be about you, your preferences or your device and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to. The information does not usually directly identify you, but it can give you a more personalized web experience. Because we respect your right to privacy, you can choose not to allow some types of cookies. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings. However, blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.

Performance Cookies

These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance.