OAFP Letter Supporting HB 4130 – Private Equity in Medicine
Chair Nosse, Vice Chair Goodwin, Vice Chair Nelson and Members of the
House Behavioral Health and Health Care Committee:
I am writing on behalf of more than 1,700 Oregon family physicians and
medical students in support of HB 4130. Our mission is to support family
physicians in their pursuit of optimal health for the people of Oregon. Our
members work in all kinds of health care settings from urgent care to
hospice care, to medical home clinics. In our work we have seen the
negative effects that rampant privatization can cause to patients, by
increasing costs and decreasing quality of care.
The policy proposed in HB 4130 is simple, the prohibition of the
corporate practice of medicine has been in statute, in Oregon, for over a
decade. HB 4130 would merely close a loophole for LLCs and LLPs,
ensuring that physicians are always in control of patient care, and require
disclosure of ownership structure and corporate partners.
Physicians are best suited to control practices as they will center patient
care over profit. Family doctors are often with their patients over the
course of their life, from day one, we know their family, we have seen them
through thick and thin, and our patients trust us. That is not something a
corporation can typically say. The delivery of care must not be influenced
by outside entities that leverage their market power in the interest of
making more profits.
In an era where health care prices continue to climb, prohibiting
corporatization will help keep patient care accessible and affordable. Data
has shown that privately acquired practices charge more than their
non-acquired peers1. Additionally, visits tend to be shorter meaning that
prices increase while quality of care decreases. Help us protect patients
by passing HB 4130!
1 Yashaswini Singh et al., “Association of Private Equity Acquisition of
Physician Practices with changes in Health Care Spending and
Utilization,” JAMA Health Forum 3, no. 9 (2022), doi:
10.1001/jamahealthforum.2022.2886.