Judge says Mississippi Certificate of Need laws “result in more costly, less accessible, and worse quality health care”

SUBMITTED BY BIGGER PIE FORUM

Learn more about CON laws and why they stymie competition, health care access.

If you believe that free and competitive markets deliver better quality at lower costs, you will enjoy reading the decision handed down by Judge Carlton Reeves yesterday in the case of Charles Slaughter vs. Dr. Thomas Dobbs as the Mississippi State Health Officer.

The case concerns Certificate of Needs (CON) laws that are pervasive in Mississippi’s healthcare arena.

From Judge Reeve’s order, “Taken as true, as the Court must, the allegations reveal that CON laws result in more costly, less accessible, and worse quality health care. What’s more, plaintiff claims that the basis for CON laws and the moratoria is pure economic protectionism—an illegitimate government interest.”

Judge Reeves also points out Mississippi’s case is an outlier from other CON cases due to Mississippi having a 40-year-old moratoria, banning start-ups, and that “this unprecedented context is highly relevant”, especially in light of a global pandemic when at-home health care is in demand.

Please see the entire order MS CON Case Order Denying Motions to Dismiss and listen in to our podcast series on this case with Aaron Rice of MJI and Butch Slaughter below:

Episode 1: A Huge Roadblock in Trying To Start a Small Business in the Healthcare Industry – January 26, 2021

BPF sits down with Mississippi Justice Institute (MJI) Director Aaron Rice and client Butch Slaughter, a practicing physical therapist in the Metro Jackson area.  Butch hopes to start a home health agency (HHA), offering services to patients in their own home.  However, Mississippi’s current regulations prevent him from doing just that. Listen to Butch’s story and how MJI hopes to help him cut through the red tape.

Episode2: A Huge Roadblock in Trying To Start a Small Business in the Healthcare Industry – February 9, 2021

BPF continues its conversation with Mississippi Justice Institute (MJI) Director Aaron Rice and client Butch Slaughter, a physical therapist who is challenging Mississippi’s regulations that are preventing him from opening his own home health agency.  Listen to the backstory on Certificates of Need, the need for regulatory reform and how they stymie not only competition, but access to health care, lower costs and a higher level of service for the people of Mississippi.

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Submitted by Bigger Pie Forum – Promoting market-driven economic growth for a bigger and brighter Mississippi. Learn more about BPF here.