1.  A hospital shall notify the Department of any merger, acquisition or joint venture with any entity, including, without limitation, a physician group practice, to which the hospital is a party or any contract for the management of the hospital not later than 60 days after the finalization of the transaction or execution of the contract for management, as applicable.

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

2.  A physician group practice or a person who owns all or substantially all of a physician group practice shall notify the Department of a transaction described in subsection 3 to which the physician group practice or person, as applicable, is a party or any contract for the management of the physician group practice not later than 60 days after the finalization of the transaction or execution of the contract for management, as applicable, if:

(a) The physician group practices that are parties to the transaction or contract for management or that are owned by those parties represent at least 20 percent of the physicians who practice any specialty in a primary service area; and

(b) The physician group practice represents the largest number of physicians of any physician group practice that is a party to or owned by a party to the transaction or contract for management.

3.  Notice must be provided pursuant to subsection 2 for any:

(a) Merger of, consolidation of or other affiliation between physician group practices, persons who own physician group practices or any combination thereof;

(b) The acquisition of all or substantially all of the properties and assets of a physician group practice;

(c) The acquisition of all or substantially all of the capital stock, membership interests or other equity interests of a physician group practice;

(d) The employment of all or substantially all of the physicians in a physician group practice; or

(e) The acquisition of an insolvent physician group practice.

4.  Notice pursuant to subsection 1 or 2 must be provided in the form prescribed by the Department and must include, without limitation:

(a) The name of each party to the transaction or contract for management, as applicable;

(b) A description of the nature of the proposed relationship of the parties to the transaction or contract for management, as applicable;

(c) The names and any specialties of each physician who is a party or employed by or affiliated with a physician group practice that is a party to or is owned by a party to the transaction or contract for management, as applicable;

(d) The name and address of each business entity that will provide health services after the transaction or contract for management, as applicable;

(e) A description of the health services to be provided at each location of a business entity described in paragraph (d); and

(f) The primary service area to be served by each location of a business entity described in paragraph (d).

5.  The Department shall:

(a) Post the information contained in the notices provided pursuant to subsections 1 and 2 on an Internet website maintained by the Department; and

(b) Annually prepare a report regarding market transactions and concentration in health care based on the information in the notices and post the report on an Internet website maintained by the Department.

6.  If a hospital fails to provide timely notice to the Department pursuant to subsection 1 and the failure was not caused by excusable neglect, technical problems or other extenuating circumstances, the Department may impose against the hospital an administrative penalty of not more than $5,000 for each day of such failure.

7.  If a physician group practice or a person who owns all or substantially all of a physician group practice fails to provide timely notice to the Department pursuant to subsection 2 and the failure was not caused by excusable neglect, technical problems or other extenuating circumstances, the Department shall notify the Board of Medical Examiners or the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine, or both, as applicable, of such failure.

8.  Any money collected as administrative penalties pursuant to this section must be accounted for separately and used by the Department to carry out the provisions of NRS 439A.111 to 439A.126, inclusive, or for any other purpose authorized by the Legislature.

9.  As used in this section:

(a) ’Physician group practice’ means any business entity organized for the purpose of the practice of medicine or osteopathic medicine by more than one physician.

(b) ’Primary service area’ means an area comprising the smallest number of zip codes from which the hospital or physician group practice draws at least 75 percent of patients.