Physician collective bargaining: all eyes are on Texas

In June of 1999, Texas became the first state to pass a law allowing physicians to collectively bargain with managed care plans for fee-related activities. Whether this law will give physicians renewed control over patient care remains to be seen. Notwithstanding the intention of its drafters, it is likely that the law and its proposed regulations may only provide physicians with costly and time-consuming procedures that present multiple risks instead of renewed power.