The case stemmed from a suit by local cardiologists against Baptist Health after Baptist Health instituted an economic credentialing policy. The policy, which was adopted in 2003, barred physicians with interests in competing facilities from practicing at Baptist. The cardiologists had ownership interests in the competing Arkansas Heart Hospital. The American Medical Association and the Arkansas Medical Society joined the case as intervenor plaintiffs.
The groups argued the credentialing policy interfered with the physician-patient relationship, and the Supreme Court upheld the lower court’s ruling in favor of the cardiologists.
“Today’s ruling by the Arkansas Supreme Court validates last year’s key legal victory that found Baptist Health, Arkansas’ largest hospital system, acted improperly by inappropriately restricting hospital admitting privileges and interfering with the patient-physician relationship,” Cecil B. Wilson, MD, president of the AMA, said in the release. “By upholding the lower court’s decision, the state supreme court preserves the patient-physician relationship and promotes competition in Arkansas by permanently prohibiting an economic credentialing policy adopted by Baptist Health in 2003.”
Read the AMA release on economic credentialing.
Read more coverage on economic credentialing:
– Arkansas Court Decision Prohibits Hospital Economic Credentialing Policy
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