Every Hospital in Arizona has medical staff bylaws, which are created and amended by the medical staff.  The Medical Executive Committee (“MEC”) is the governing body of a Hospital’s medical staff. Arizona Law considers that medical staff bylaws to be a contract, and the disciplinary procedures in the bylaws must be followed if the medical staff (through the MEC) or the Hospital (though the Governing Board) wants to limit a doctors medical staff privileges.  Doctors whose medical staff privileges are disciplined for more than 30 days, or doctors that leave in the middle of an investigation of their privileges to avoid discipline must be reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank.  Therefore, doctors must demand that the medical staff bylaws (along with state and federal law) are adhered to.