Scott Morrisson, JD Partner, Krieg DeVault

In May 2025, Indiana enacted Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 475, significantly expanding restrictions on physician noncompete agreements. Effective July 1, 2025, the law prohibits hospitals, their parent companies, affiliated managers, and hospital systems from entering into noncompete agreements with physicians licensed in Indiana. Scott Morrisson, JD, a partner at Krieg DeVault, presented a webinar on May 14 on noncompete clauses, discussing what is new and what is legal. Access the recording here. 

SEA 475 applies only to hospital-employed physicians who enter contracts on or after July 1, 2025, not to renewals of existing contracts. Physicians with current contracts including noncompete clauses would need to seek renegotiation to remove those provisions.  

The law does not prohibit:

• Nondisclosure agreements protecting confidential business information or trade secrets;
• Nonsolicitation agreements restricting the solicitation of current coworkers for one year after employment ends (though such provisions may not restrict patient interactions, referrals, clinical collaboration, or professional relationships);
• Noncompete agreements entered into as part of a sale of a business entity where the physician owns more than 50% of the entity at the time of sale.

SEA 475 builds upon the 2023 law banning noncompete agreements for primary care physicians; that prohibition remains in effect. The legislation reflects a broader trend toward enhancing physician mobility and patient access to care.