Any NPs partners/part-owners w/ physician?

PG2018 · Aug 19, 2015

It seems in Texas there are some strange laws about who may own a clinic. An NP may own a clinic on one's own or with other NPs or PAs. However, I'm finding the laws are prohibitive against NPs being part owners with physicians. Interestingly, it is allowed for PAs provided the PA ownership is
My clinic is very friendly to the idea of me buying in, and I would like to, but I'm not sure it's legally possible. They have mentioned giving me stock in the company, which is essentially a form of "ownership".
Does anyone have thoughts or insight into this? Thank you in advance!

Solicit an attorney. You've got a quagmire of potential problems to find a solution for. I think we're beyond helping you here.

Good luck and please let's hear how it turns out. Sounds like a great plan. I know a FNP who owns a practice and pays a doc a little each month to be her on paper collaborator.

automotiveRN67 · Aug 19, 2015

Can you post a copy of the law and the linK? That seems like a really weird law, wondering what the intent would be.

Here is a discussion that may be helpful to you.

https://allnurses.com/nurse-practitioners-np/hiring-np-in-390234.html

RiskManager · Aug 19, 2015

There are a number of states with similar laws. These laws are generally described as 'corporate practice of medicine': http://www.mdmc-law.com/tasks/sites/mdmc/assets/Image/schaffprives_blgmay10.pdf and http://www.tha.org/HealthCareProviders/Advocacy/Addendum%20C.pdf. In a nutshell, in those states, physicians cannot be employees of non-physicians. There are exceptions for physicians who are employees of hospitals/healthcare systems. A physician can lose their license for being an employee or in an equal partnership with a non-physician. In addition, many malpractice insurers will not write coverage for a physician who is an employee of a non-physician. Again, the corporate practice of medicine doctrine varies by each state.

aprnKate · Aug 19, 2015

I currently work in Texas and the clinic I work for is 100% owned by a Physician Assistant from what I understand.

RosieMommy · Aug 29, 2015

Title 7 of the Texas Business Organizations Code (TBOC) was changed in 2011 through H.B. 2098, wherein the Texas legislature permitted physicians and physician assistants (PA) to jointly own professional associations in Texas. TBOC Â§ 301.012 states that licensed physicians and licensed PA may jointly form and own a Texas professional association to perform professional services that fall within the scope of practice of those practitioners. Despite granting this new authority for physicians and PAs to join forces in a professional association, the legislature drafted quite serious restrictions on how this jointly owned entity can be operated. Listed below are the statutory restrictions on ownership and operation of a jointly-owned physician/PA professional association:

A physician assistant may not be an officer of the professional association;
A physician assistant my not contract with or employ a physician to be a supervising physician of the physician assistant or of any physician in the professional association;
The authority of each practitioner is limited by the scope of practice practice of the respective practitioner;
An organizer of the professional association must be a physician;
The organizer must ensure that a physician or several physicians control the operation of the professional association;
A physician assistant or group of physician assistants may only own a minority interest in the professional association;
The ownership interest of an individual physician assistant may not exceed the ownership interest of any individual physician owner;
A physician assistant or combination of physician assistants may not interfere with the practice of medicine by a physician owner; and
A physician assistant or combination of physician assistants my not interfere with the supervision of physician assistants by a physician owner.

All of this is to say that there are serious doubts as well as restriction on a Physicians and Nurse Practitioners owning jointly a Physician-NP professional association to perform professional healthcare services. It is obvious that an exception was made for PAs because both their licenses come from the Board of Medicine whereas Physician and NP association would cross two licensing boards; medicine and nursing, which will also be an impediment.