S. 5419 — Stop Corporate Takeovers of Physicians Act of 2026

This section prohibits partnerships or corporate entities not majority-owned and controlled by licensees from owning medical practices, employing licensees, or practicing medicine, with exceptions for nonprofit providers and hospitals. It voids non-compete clauses except for licensees holding 25 percent or more ownership and voids nondisclosure or non-disparagement agreements. It bars health care providers from interfering with licensees' clinical judgments on patient time, admissions, diagnoses, or referrals. It restricts management services organizations from controlling practice sales, shares, dividends, acquisitions, or operations.

This section expands the Secretary's permissive exclusion authority under the Social Security Act to bar any entity from Federal health care programs for violating the requirements in section 2 of the Stop Corporate Takeovers of Physicians Act of 2026.

This section preserves state laws that impose equal or more stringent ownership and control requirements on medical practices, afford equal or greater protections to licensees, or impose equal or more stringent restrictions on management services organizations.