A three-judge panel has upheld North Carolina’s certificate-of-need (CON) law, ruling it constitutional.
The decision, issued Friday, rejects a challenge from Dr. Jay Singleton, a New Bern eye surgeon who sued in 2020.
Singleton argued the law violates his rights by preventing him from performing most surgeries at his vision center, forcing patients to go to CarolinaEast—the only local facility with a CON.
The panel said the law’s purpose is to protect public health by ensuring affordable access to necessary care, calling that goal “legitimate.”
