PHA Applauds Congressional Efforts to Lift Anti-Competitive Restrictions on Provider-Owned Hospitals to Unleash Affordability and Access to Patients Nationwide

December 10, 2025 – Washington – Americans are demanding lower-cost, higher-quality healthcare. PHA applauds the House Republican leadership for advancing one tool that will help deliver both: provider-owned hospitals (POH).

“Allowing POHs to compete immediately in our nation’s communities would give patients more choices, drive down costs and raise the bar on quality,” Carlos J. Cardenas, MD, PHA’s president, said. “Increased competition is also a powerful tool to counter today’s growing consolidation crisis and restore balance to America’s healthcare system.”

Momentum for reform is growing in every segment of the healthcare system. Eighty-eight healthcare organizations, including one of the nation’s largest health insurers, recently urged Congress to lift federal restrictions that block physicians from opening hospitals in underserved communities.

The anti-competitive restrictions were put in place at the urging of special-interest hospital lobbyists, who persuaded Congress to insert a last-minute provision into the Affordable Care Act that stopped the new development of new physician-led hospitals beginning in 2010 – limiting competition and patient choice.

A substantial body of research has since reaffirmed what patients already know: physician-led hospitals consistently deliver exceptional quality, lower costs and high levels of patient satisfaction. Many studies found that POHs outperformed hospital peers without physician ownership in these categories. 

“Opponents of POHs have had 15 years since the Affordable Care Act’s handcuffs were placed on POHs to increase more options, higher-quality care and lower costs,” Cardenas said. “Instead, we have witnessed the opposite unfold. We stand unified against hospital monopolies and are steadfast in our resolve that when physicians can compete, patients win.”

He added: “No other participant in the healthcare system possesses the intense level of training and expertise that physicians do. It only makes sense for physicians to bring that expertise to the management of hospitals. The patient-physician relationship is the cornerstone of healthcare, and physician-led hospitals are built on that vital foundation.”

About Physician-Led Healthcare for America (PHA)

PHA is an advocacy organization dedicated to promoting policies that support physician-led hospitals and other physician-led healthcare entities. PHA believes that empowering physicians is the key to improving healthcare quality, increasing patient access and lowering costs for all Americans.

Click here to learn more about PHA.