Physicians and surgeons: employment.

Existing law, the Medical Practice Act, restricts the employment of licensed physicians and surgeons and podiatrists by a corporation or other artificial legal entity, subject to specified exemptions. Existing law established, until January 1, 2011, a pilot project to allow qualified district hospitals that, among other things, provide more than 50% of patient days to the care of Medicare, Medi-Cal, and uninsured patients, to employ a physician and surgeon, if the hospital does not interfere with, control, or otherwise direct the professional judgment of the physician and surgeon. The pilot project authorized the direct employment of a total of 20 physicians and surgeons by those hospitals…