The legalization of veterinary management agreements operated by veterinary management organizations allows non-veterinarians a way to sidestep laws prohibiting lay ownership of professional practices, writes Christopher J. Allen, DVM, JD.
The MSA/MSO structure has been widely adopted as acceptable and legal. . . but is anybody checking to see whether the required separation of powers is genuinely being maintained?”
Source: DVM 360. September 2018. Link. Allen expresses concerns that state regulators don’t seem exceptionally concerned with how these veterinary MSAs are being implemented. But they should be.
. . . an increasing number of veterinary practice jobs are to be controlled by these documents, it’s extremely appropriate that regulators monitor the degree of professional autonomy (or lack thereof) that employed doctors have.
. . . it doesn’t appear that the government has a great deal of interest in making sure that non-licensed individuals refrain from directly impacting animal care.
INSIGHTS: At a minimum, veterinarians need to understand the reach of the MSO and how it affects employment. At the manufacturer level, the presence of an MSA or MSO could impact class of trade designations.