Whether noncompete clauses are binding in health care — especially when patient care is disrupted — is a point legal scholars debate.

When Don Cue developed a bladder infection last fall, he called his longtime urologist's office for a urine culture and antibiotics. It was a familiar routine for the two-time prostate cancer survivor; infections were not uncommon since he began using a catheter that connects to his bladder through an incision in his abdomen.

When Cue called this time, a receptionist told him that his physician, Dr. Mark Kellerman, no longer worked at the Iowa Clinic in Des Moines, a large multi-specialty group. She refused to divulge where he'd gone.

“As a patient, 'scared' is too strong a word, but my feeling is, 'What do I do now?'” said Cue, 58.

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