AOA to FTC: Noncompetes harm patients, physicians and communities

In response to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Request for Information (RFI) on employee noncompete agreements, the AOA submitted detailed comments documenting how noncompetes in physician contracts undermine access to care and disrupt the patient-physician relationship.

Drawing on member experiences from across the country, the AOA highlighted that:

Noncompete clauses can force physicians to leave communities or entire regions, worsening shortages in already underserved areas.
Broad geographic and time-based restrictions sever longstanding patient relationships and create dangerous delays in care, especially in specialties like dermatology, urology and primary care.
Nonprofit hospitals and health systems often function like for-profit entities when using noncompetes, limiting competition while retaining tax benefits.

The AOA urged the FTC to continue to address abusive noncompetes and called on the Commission to work with the IRS to ensure nonprofit status is aligned with genuine community benefit, including policies that support, rather than restrict, patient access to physician care.