1. Where other statutes of this state use the terms “physician”, “surgeon”, “practitioner of medicine”, “practitioner of osteopathy”, “board of medical examiners”, or “board of osteopathic registration and examination” or similar terms, they shall be construed to mean physicians and surgeons licensed under this chapter or the state board of registration for the healing arts in the state of Missouri.

2. With the exception of section 197.700, notwithstanding any other provision of law, no health facility, health benefit plan, managed care plan, or health carrier shall discriminate with respect to employment, staff, privileges, or the provision of professional services against a physician licensed to practice the healing arts in this state on the basis of whether the physician holds a “medical doctor”, “M.D.” or “doctor of osteopathy”, “D.O.” degree.

3. Any reference in an executive order, an administrative regulation, or in the Missouri revised statutes to “medical doctor”, “M.D.”, or “physician” shall be deemed to include a “doctor of osteopathy” or “D.O.” unless any of those terms are specifically excluded by reference to this section. Similarly, any reference to an “osteopath”, “D.O.” or “physician” shall be deemed to include a “medical doctor” or “M.D.”, unless any of those terms are specifically excluded by reference to this section. Similarly, any reference to a specialist shall be deemed to include those specialists accredited by either the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association unless specifically excluded by reference to this section.

4. The provisions of subsection 3 of this section do not apply to the makeup of boards and commissions on which an unequal number of medical doctors or osteopaths serve.