Stop the CON

COVID-19 exposed a tragic reality: America’s healthcare system is undermined by too much bureaucracy and top-down government control that prevents medical professionals from helping people.

In Missouri, we’ve watched our rural hospitals close and our wait times for medical care get longer. We’ve seen our choices over providers and treatments diminish while prices continue to skyrocket. One state-based policy is partially to blame: Certificate of Need.

What is Certificate of Need and how do we fix it? Certificate of Need (CON) artificially restricts the supply of health care, creating monopolies that – with little competition – are free to inflate prices for patients. CON requires hospitals and other medical providers to seek permission from a committee (made up of state lawmakers and even would-be competitors) to build new facilities, add hospital beds, and even purchase some equipment. It’s a bureaucratic barrier that makes it nearly impossible to increase access to health care in our state. Legislators are considering a full repeal of Missouri’s CON law.

The legislature is currently discussing House Bill 168 (Seitz), Senate Bill 303 (Eigel) and SB 204 (Moon). These bills would eliminate Certificate of Need laws and allow medical providers to improve access to high-quality, affordable health care across our state.

Sign the letter today to tell your lawmaker to SUPPORT HB 168, SB 303, and SB 204.