President Joe Biden is expected to sign an executive order that would hamper noncompete clauses, which employers use to limit employee moves to competitors, according to The Hill.
Four takeaways for healthcare leaders:
1. The order would ask the Federal Trade Commission to ban or limit noncompete clauses, the White House said July 7.
2. Noncompete agreements in healthcare have recently been in the federal government's crosshairs. In January, a federal grand jury charged UnitedHealth Group-owned Surgical Care Affiliates and its related entities with entering and engaging in conspiracies with other healthcare companies to suppress competition between them for the services of senior-level employees.
3. The president's order would also ask the FTC to ban unnecessary work licensing rules in an effort to curb the number of U.S. jobs that need a license, according to the report.
4. President Biden is also seeking greater oversight of how employers share employee data with one another. While current regulations allow employers to share wage data with one another, the order would instruct the FTC and the U.S. Justice Department to prevent employers from lowering wages or changing benefits based on shared information.