50-5-117. (Temporary) Economic credentialing of physicians prohibited -- definitions. (1) A hospital may not engage in economic credentialing by:
     (a) except as may be required for medicare certification or for accreditation by the joint commission on accreditation of healthcare organizations, requiring a physician requesting medical staff membership or medical staff privileges to agree to make referrals to that hospital or to any facility related to the hospital;
     (b) refusing to grant staff membership or medical staff privileges or conditioning or otherwise limiting a physician's medical staff participation because the physician or a partner, associate, or employee of the physician:
     (i) provides medical or health care services at, has an ownership interest in, or occupies a leadership position on the medical staff of a different hospital, hospital system, or health care facility; or
     (ii) participates or does not participate in any particular health plan; or
     (c) refusing to grant participatory status in a hospital or hospital system health plan to a physician or a partner, associate, or employee of the physician because the physician or partner, associate, or employee of the physician provides medical or health care services at, has an ownership interest in, or occupies a leadership position on the medical staff of a different hospital, hospital system, or health care facility.
     (2) Notwithstanding the prohibitions in subsection (1), a hospital may refuse to appoint a physician to the governing body of the hospital or to the position of president of the medical staff or presiding officer of a medical staff committee if the physician or a partner or employee of the physician provides medical or health care services at, has an ownership interest in, or occupies a leadership position on the medical staff of a different hospital, hospital system, or health care facility.
     (3) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
     (a) "Economic credentialing" means the denial of a physician's application for staff membership or clinical privileges to practice medicine in a hospital on criteria other than the individual's training, current competence, experience, ability, personal character, and judgment. This term does not mean use by the hospital of:
     (i) exclusive contracts with physicians;
     (ii) medical staff on-call requirements;
     (iii) adherence to a formulary approved by the medical staff; or
     (iv) other medical staff policy adopted to manage health care costs or improve quality.
     (b) "Health care facility" has the meaning provided in 50-5-101 and includes diagnostic facilities.
     (c) "Health plan" means a plan offered by any person, employer, trust, government agency, association, corporation, or other entity to provide, sponsor, arrange for, indemnify another for, or pay for health care services to eligible members, insureds, enrollees, employees, participants, beneficiaries, or dependents, including but not limited to a health plan provided by an insurance company, health service organization, health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization, self-insured health plan, captive insurer, multiple employee welfare arrangement, workers' compensation plan, medicare, or medicaid.
     (d) "Physician" has the meaning provided in 37-3-102.
     (4) For the purposes of this section, the provisions of 50-5-207 do not apply. (Terminates June 30, 2009--sec. 6, Ch. 351, L. 2007.)

     History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 351, L. 2007.