The American Medical Association's House of Delegates voted to oppose noncompete contracts for clinical practice physicians who are employed by for-profit and nonprofit hospitals or staffing companies.
The use of noncompete agreements affect up to 45 percent of primary care physicians, according to a June 12 AMA news release.
AMA board of trustees member Ilse Levin, DO, said in the release that allowing physicians to work for multiple hospitals can "enhance the availability of specialist coverage in a community, improving patient access to care and reducing healthcare disparities."
The Federal Trade Commission issued a proposed rule in January that would ban noncompete agreements, but the AMA said it does not think the proposal would cover nonprofit hospitals, which comprise 57 percent of all hospitals.