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title: ""Under North Carolina’s law, a medical provider must obtain a…"
date: 2019-06-21
source: facebook
type: Archer T. Ships shared a link.
---

# "Under North Carolina’s law, a medical provider must obtain a…

*June 21, 2019 · Facebook*

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[https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/7/31/17629526/mri-cost-certificate-of-need-north-carolina-lawsuit?fbclid=IwAR1roZtQoNKK_5RVuhuy9LJx7iadsFmDjWDxDTkaGS0WLYWZfmtvLjWwxYM](https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/7/31/17629526/mri-cost-certificate-of-need-north-carolina-lawsuit?fbclid=IwAR1roZtQoNKK_5RVuhuy9LJx7iadsFmDjWDxDTkaGS0WLYWZfmtvLjWwxYM){target="_blank"}
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\"Under North Carolina's law, a medical provider must obtain a government permit (a "certificate of need") if they want to offer certain new services or buy new equipment. But first, every year, state officials will make a determination about whether certain services are needed in different places.\
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If the state has decided an area doesn't need a service, then other providers are barred from even applying for a permit. That is what Singh ran into: He wasn't allowed to apply to purchase a permanent MRI for his Winston-Salem center. State officials had already decided it wasn't needed there.\
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Even if he could apply, other providers in the area could contest his application. Singh's attorneys estimate the entire process of applying for and defending a certificate of need can cost up to \$400,000 and last as long as three years. A permanent MRI machine would cost Singh less than \$750,000.\"
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