Non-compete laws · IN

Indiana physician non-compete law

As of October 21, 2026, Indiana law allows physician non-competes only within limits and a required buyout.

Allowed with physician-specific limitsChecked 2026-10-21

Indiana prohibits noncompetes for primary care physicians (agreements from July 1, 2023) and between any physician and a hospital, hospital parent, affiliated manager or hospital system (agreements originally entered from July 1, 2025). Other physician noncompetes must include buyout, patient-notice and records terms. (Ind. Code ch. 25-22.5-5.5 (2026 Indiana Code, official))

Changed recently. The current rule took effect 2025-07-01. Pages and guides written before then may describe the old rule.

Limits in the law

Buyout required
Yes
  • Buyout cap: Physician must be offered an option to purchase a complete release 'at a reasonable price' (IC 25-22.5-5.5-2(a)(4)); for agreements originally entered on/after 2023-07-01 the employer must negotiate the price in good faith, with mediation available if no agreement (IC 25-22.5-5.5-2.6). No numeric cap.
  • To be enforceable, a physician noncompete (agreements on/after 2020-07-01) must require the employer to give the physician copies of departure notices sent to patients seen in the prior 2 years (patient identities redacted)
  • Employer must in good faith give the physician's current contact/location information to patients seen in the prior 2 years who request it
  • Physician must receive access to or copies of those patients' medical records upon patient consent, in a format not materially different from the format used in the ordinary course
  • From 2023-07-01, a physician noncompete is not enforceable if the employer terminates without cause, the physician terminates for cause, or the contract expires with both sides' obligations fulfilled
  • Primary care physicians (family medicine, general pediatrics, internal medicine) and an employer may not enter into a noncompete (agreements originally entered on/after 2023-07-01)
  • A physician and a hospital, hospital parent company, affiliated manager of a hospital, or hospital system may not enter into a noncompete on/after 2025-07-01; any such agreement is void and unenforceable
  • For the hospital rule, 'noncompete agreement' includes consent requirements, indirect restrictions, and repayment/bonus/training clawbacks triggered solely or primarily by practicing with a new employer when the physician has been employed by the hospital entity for at least 3 years

Who it covers

Physicians (MD/DO) only. Primary care ban covers any employer; 2025 ban covers hospitals, hospital parent companies, affiliated managers and hospital systems (including entities affiliated through ownership, governance or membership). No statutory coverage of APRNs, PAs or other clinicians found.

Exceptions

  • Hospital-rule definition excludes nondisclosure agreements protecting confidential business information or trade secrets
  • Hospital-rule definition excludes non-solicitation of current employees for up to 1 year, provided it does not restrict patient interactions, patient referrals, clinical collaboration or professional relationships
  • Hospital-rule definition excludes agreements made in a bona fide sale of a business entity in which the physician owns more than 50%
  • Hospital rule does not reach activities that are solely executive or managerial with no direct patient care
  • Hospital rule does not apply to agreements originally entered before 2025-07-01; amendment or renewal of an existing agreement does not change the 'originally entered into' date
  • Noncompetes between non-primary-care physicians and non-hospital employers (e.g., physician-owned practices) remain permitted if they meet the chapter's conditions

Effective date

The current rule took effect 2025-07-01.

Notes

Three layers: 2020 conditions for physician noncompetes; the 2023 primary care ban and unenforceability after termination without cause or expiration (SEA 7); and the 2025 hospital-system ban (SEA 475), which reaches agreements originally entered on or after July 1, 2025 but not renewals of older ones. Some secondary sources describe Indiana as banning noncompetes for all physicians; the statute's bans reach primary care physicians and hospital-affiliated employers.

Bills that have not become law

Non-compete bills from the 2025 and 2026 sessions that had not become law as of 2026-10-21, furthest along first. A bill that died has to be filed again to move in 2027. The 2027 session starts 2027-01-11 and ends 2027-04-29 (statutory sine die).

  • HB 1625 (2025) · All workers

    Would prohibit entering any noncompete agreement after 2025-06-30

    Introduced · Died. First reading, referred to House Employment, Labor and Pensions 2025-01-21; no further action; died at 2025 sine die

Sources

Questions to ask about your contract

  • Is the radius measured from your practice site or from every location the employer owns?
  • Does the restriction apply if the employer terminates you without cause?
  • Is there a buyout, and how is the amount calculated?
  • What does your state's law say about physician non-competes?
Check a contract against Indiana lawAll states

Not legal advice. This page summarizes the law as written. Whether a particular agreement is enforceable depends on its wording, when it was signed and court decisions. Ask an attorney licensed in Indiana.