title: Legal approaches to the restraint of trade of nurse practitioners: disparate reimbursement patterns.
abstract: Nurse practitioners (NPs) can face, and have faced, several challenges in the health care environment. As with the denial of hospital admitting or staff privileges, the granting of inequitable reimbursement levels by state administrative bodies, physicians, insurers, and other members of the health care community may limit NP practice. Several strategies are discussed that will demonstrate how nurse practitioners can use legal and administrative mechanisms (e.g., antitrust laws) to eliminate restraints of trade and assure the availability of more equitable direct reimbursement patterns.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Timmons
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ridenour
mesh_terms: D016363:Antitrust Laws; D004465:Economic Competition / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D008504:Medical Staff Privileges / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D009722:Nurse Practitioners / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D012051:Reimbursement Mechanisms / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014481:United States