The new rules will improve access to health care in many communities where it is lacking, supporters say. Some physicians are concerned the rules will expand the scope of services nurse practitioners provide.
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California’s nursing agency this week approved rules that will allow nurse practitioners to treat patients without physician supervision. It’s a move that aims to expand access to care in the Golden State at a time when workforce shortages plague just about every corner of health care.
Monday’s vote is one of the last major steps necessary to fully implement a 2020 law that will allow nurse practitioners to practice more freely. Nurse practitioners, who have advanced degrees and training, currently must enter into a written agreement with a physician who oversees their work with patients.
Despite some earlier concerns about potential delays, nurse practitioners say they are now confident that applications to start the certification process will go live early in the new year as planned.
“Hopefully we don’t crash the website, but we are very excited,” said Cynthia Jovanov, president of the California Association of Nurse Practitioners. “This means that if I want to do a mobile clinic in Skid Row, I don’t have to be held hostage by paperwork to get a partnering physician who may not have the same desire.”
Nurse practitioners are a cost-effective way of bringing more primary care providers to communities that need them, particularly in rural areas, said Glenn Melnick, a health economist at the University of Southern California.
“And that can benefit the consumer as long as the quality of care is acceptable,” he said. Still, there are a limited number of them.
Nurse practitioners in California have been fighting to break free of physician oversight for years. The biggest pushback came from physicians. During legislative debate, the California Medical Association said nurse practitioners have less training than physicians, so allowing them to practice independently could lessen the quality of care and even pose a risk to patients.
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