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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 449
February Session, 2022
LCO No. 3389
Referred to Committee on PUBLIC HEALTH
Introduced by:
(PH)
AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION OF
PHYSICIANS IN THE STATE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) (a) For the fiscal year ending 1
June 30, 2023, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Office of Higher 2
Education, in collaboration with the Department of Public Health, shall 3
administer, within available appropriations, a physician loan 4
reimbursement grant program to persons who meet the eligibility 5
requirements described in subsection (b) of this section. 6
(b) The program shall provide student loan reimbursement grants to 7
any physician licensed pursuant to chapter 370 of the general statutes 8
who (1) graduated from a medical school in the state or completed his 9
or her medical residency program at a hospital licensed under chapter 10
368v of the general statutes, and (2) is employed as a physician in the 11
state. 12
(c) Any physician who satisfies the eligibility requirements 13
prescribed in subsection (b) of this section shall receive a grant for 14
reimbursement of all federal and state educational loans in an amount 15 Raised Bill No. 449
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equal to twenty per cent of the balance of such loans per year for each 16
year the physician is employed as a physician in the state. A physician 17
qualifying under subsection (b) of this section shall only be reimbursed 18
for loan payments made while such physician continues to satisfy such 19
eligibility requirements. 20
(d) Physicians may apply to the Office of Higher Education for grants 21
under this section at such time and in such manner as the executive 22
director of the Office of Higher Education prescribes. 23
(e) Any unexpended funds appropriated for purposes of this section 24
shall not lapse at the end of the fiscal year but shall be available for 25
expenditure during the next fiscal year. 26
Sec. 2. Section 20-14p of the general statutes is repealed and the 27
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2022): 28
(a) For purposes of this section: (1) "Covenant not to compete" means 29
any provision of an employment or other contract or agreement that 30
creates or establishes a professional relationship with a physician, 31
including, but not limited to, a partnership or employment relationship, 32
and restricts the right of a physician to practice medicine in any 33
geographic area of the state for any period of time after the termination 34
or cessation of such [partnership, employment or other] professional 35
relationship; (2) "physician" means an individual licensed to practice 36
medicine under this chapter; and (3) "primary site where such physician 37
practices" means (A) the office, facility or location where a majority of 38
the revenue derived from such physician's services is generated, or (B) 39
any other office, facility or location where such physician practices and 40
mutually agreed to by the parties and identified in the covenant not to 41
compete. 42
(b) (1) A covenant not to compete is valid and enforceable only if it is: 43
(A) Necessary to protect a legitimate business interest; (B) reasonably 44
limited in time, geographic scope and practice restrictions as necessary 45
to protect such business interest; and (C) otherwise consistent with the 46
law and public policy. The party seeking to enforce a covenant not to 47 Raised Bill No. 449
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compete shall have the burden of proof in any proceeding. 48
(2) A covenant not to compete in an employment contract, other 49
contract or agreement that is entered into, amended, extended or 50
renewed on or after July 1, 2016, shall not: (A) Restrict the physician's 51
competitive activities (i) for a period of more than one year, and (ii) in a 52
geographic region of more than fifteen miles from the primary site 53
where such physician practices; or (B) be enforceable against a physician 54
if (i) such employment contract, other contract or agreement was not 55
made in anticipation of, or as part of, a partnership or ownership 56
agreement and such contract or agreement expires and is not renewed, 57
unless, prior to such expiration, the [employer] party seeking to enforce 58
the covenant not to compete makes a bona fide offer to renew the 59
contract or agreement on the same or similar terms and conditions, or 60
(ii) the employment [or contractual relationship] contract, other contract 61
or agreement is terminated by the [employer] party seeking to enforce 62
the covenant not to compete, unless such employment [or contractual 63
relationship] contract, other contract or agreement is terminated for 64
cause. 65
(3) Each covenant not to compete in an employment contract, other 66
contract or agreement entered into, amended or renewed on and after 67
July 1, 2016, shall be separately and individually signed by the 68
physician. 69
(4) A covenant not to compete that is entered into, amended, 70
extended or renewed on or after July 1, 2022, shall not be enforceable 71
against a physician if the other party to such employment contract, other 72
contract or agreement that contains the covenant not to compete is a 73
medical practice comprised of sixteen or more physicians. 74
(c) The remaining provisions of any contract or agreement that 75
includes a covenant not to compete that is rendered void and 76
unenforceable, in whole or in part, under the provisions of this section 77
shall remain in full force and effect, including provisions that require 78
the payment of damages resulting from any injury suffered by reason of 79 Raised Bill No. 449
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termination of such contract or agreement. 80
Sec. 3. (Effective July 1, 2022) From July 1, 2022, until June 30, 2025, the 81
Department of Public Health shall waive the payment of the fees for a 82
license renewal described in subsection (b) of section 19a-88 of the 83
general statutes for each physician licensed under chapter 370 of the 84
general statutes. 85
Sec. 4. (Effective from passage) (a) There is established a task force to 86
study the ways in which medical malpractice policies and certain 87
insurance industry practices result in an increased workload for 88
physicians and limit a physician's ability to provide basic care to the 89
physician's patients. Such study shall include, but need not be limited 90
to, an examination of opportunities for reforming such policies and 91
practices, including, but not limited to, establishing homestead 92
protections. 93
(b) The task force shall consist of the following members: 94
(1) Two appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives; 95
(2) Two appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate; 96
(3) One appointed by the majority leader of the House of 97
Representatives; 98
(4) One appointed by the majority leader of the Senate; 99
(5) One appointed by the minority leader of the House of 100
Representatives; 101
(6) One appointed by the minority leader of the Senate; 102
(7) The Insurance Commissioner, or the commissioner's designee; 103
and 104
(8) The Commissioner of Public Health, or the commissioner's 105
designee. 106 Raised Bill No. 449
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(c) Any member of the task force appointed under subdivision (1), 107
(2), (3), (4), (5) or (6) of subsection (b) of this section may be a member 108
of the General Assembly. 109
(d) All initial appointments to the task force shall be made not later 110
than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy shall 111
be filled by the appointing authority. 112
(e) The speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro 113
tempore of the Senate shall select the chairpersons of the task force from 114
among the members of the task force. Such chairpersons shall schedule 115
the first meeting of the task force, which shall be held not later than sixty 116
days after the effective date of this section. 117
(f) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the 118
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to insurance 119
shall serve as administrative staff of the task force. 120
(g) Not later than January 1, 2023, the task force shall submit a report 121
on its findings and recommendations to the joint standing committees 122
of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 123
insurance and public health, in accordance with the provisions of 124
section 11-4a of the general statutes. The task force shall terminate on 125
the date that it submits such report or January 1, 2023, whichever is later. 126
Sec. 5. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) (a) Not later than January 1, 2023, 127
the Commissioner of Public Health shall establish a Physician 128
Recruitment grant program. The program shall provide an incentive 129
grant in the amount of twenty thousand dollars for physicians who 130
relocate to this state and practice full-time as a physician in this state for 131
not less than two years after relocating. The commissioner shall define 132
the nature, description and systems designed for grant proposals. 133
(b) The commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance with the 134
provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, to carry out the 135
provisions of this section. 136 Raised Bill No. 449
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Sec. 6. (Effective from passage) The Department of Public Health shall 137
study, in consultation with medical schools and teaching hospitals 138
affiliated with a medical school in the state, methods for supporting and 139
increasing medical residency programs in the fields of internal 140
medicine, family practice, pediatrics, psychiatry, obstetrics and 141
gynecology and rural health care. Not later than January 1, 2023, the 142
Commissioner of Public Health shall report, in accordance with the 143
provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes to the joint standing 144
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 145
relating to public health regarding the results of such study. 146
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2022 20-14p
Sec. 3 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 4 from passage New section
Sec. 5 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 6 from passage New section
Statement of Purpose:
To recruit and retain physicians in the state.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]