“We are committed to promoting a public policy climate that expands access to affordable, high-quality health care across the Volunteer State.”  

NASHVILLE, TN – A broad group of healthcare providers, academics, public interest organizations and taxpayer groups, led by the Center for Individual Freedom (CFIF), released a coalition letter today urging Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and the 114th General Assembly to fully repeal Tennessee’s remaining Certificate of Need (CON) laws this legislative session. 

“We strongly believe Tennessee’s remaining Certificate of Need (CON) laws continue to significantly slow the necessary expansion of healthcare services across the state – limiting access to affordable, high-quality care, including by preventing the building of new hospitals in communities that need them,” the letter reads. “Repealing Tennessee’s remaining CON laws is essential for increasing access to care. We therefore urge Tennessee’s leaders to fully repeal the state’s remaining CON laws during the current legislative session.”

The letter is released fresh on the heels of new research warning that the U.S. is headed toward a hospital bed shortage.  

“Repealing these harmful laws for critical healthcare services and facilities in Tennessee that still require CON approval – including acute care hospitals – is critical to ensuring access to care keeps pace with the state’s rapidly growing population,” said CFIF President Jeff Mazzella. “Many communities are already dealing with lengthy wait times and unacceptable access to critical services. Now is the time to act to fully repeal these anticompetitive laws once and for all.”  

Support for full CON repeal in the Volunteer State is strong. Tennessee patients and their families sent tens of thousands of letters urging their representatives to take legislative action to fully repeal the state’s CON laws last year, and they are making their voices heard again this year. 

“The CON approval process is fraught with bureaucratic red tape,” said Mazzella. “Unelected government bureaucrats should not be deciding where and when communities can access the care they depend on. It’s why Tennessee voters overwhelmingly support CON repeal the more they learn about the issue.”

The coalition letter commends Governor Lee and the General Assembly’s continued efforts to address this very important issue, including passing productive reforms to Tennessee’s CON laws last year. However, “Tennessee’s remaining CON regulations still serve as unnecessary barriers to care… We appreciate the ongoing efforts to address this vital issue in Tennessee and urge the General Assembly to move immediately to repeal the state’s remaining CON laws,” the letter concludes.

Read the entire coalition letter HERE and pasted below. 

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March 11, 2025

Dear Governor Lee and Members of the 114th General Assembly:

As representatives of patients, healthcare providers, and taxpayers across Tennessee, we are committed to promoting a public policy climate that expands access to affordable, high-quality health care across the Volunteer State.  

We strongly believe Tennessee’s remaining Certificate of Need (CON) laws continue to significantly slow the necessary expansion of healthcare services across the state – limiting access to affordable, high-quality care, including by preventing the building of new hospitals in communities that need them.  

Repealing Tennessee’s remaining CON laws is essential for increasing access to care. We therefore urge Tennessee’s leaders to fully repeal the state’s remaining CON laws during the current legislative session. 

Tennessee is experiencing significant population growth, and it’s vital that the state’s healthcare system keeps pace. Currently, underserved communities already face reduced access to care and a lack of critical services, which cannot be allowed to persist. 

Many of us expressed our views on the need to repeal Tennessee’s CON laws during the 113th General Assembly. Ultimately, lawmakers passed productive reforms that phase out Tennessee’s CON requirements for certain freestanding emergency departments, ambulatory surgery centers, and MRI services, among other essential healthcare disciplines. While we commend the General Assembly and Governor Lee for those reforms, Tennessee’s remaining CON regulations still serve as unnecessary barriers to care. 

Many states across the country, including South Carolina and Florida, have already acknowledged the detrimental effects of CON laws and have repealed them, resulting in noticeable benefits. Just two years after implementing a comprehensive repeal, South Carolina has experienced a massive investment in healthcare infrastructure and a significant increase in access to care. 

We appreciate the ongoing efforts to address this vital issue in Tennessee and urge the General Assembly to move immediately to repeal the state’s remaining CON laws. 

Sincerely,