Government

Pennsylvania expands authority of allied health professionals

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Aug. 6, 2007

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Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell ended a fight with lawmakers by signing a $27.5 billion state budget on July 17 in exchange for the Pennsylvania General Assembly adopting parts of Rendell's health reform plan, Prescription For Pennsylvania. The reform measures require all hospitals to report hospital-acquired infections and expands the scope of practice for allied health professionals.

Physician assistants, nurse midwives, certified registered nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists and dental hygienists gained new authority but face new regulations in certain situations. One law officially recognizes and certifies clinical nurse specialists but requires them to carry the same amount of liability insurance as physicians. The measures also increase from two to four the number of physician assistants a doctor can supervise, allow certified registered nurse practitioners to order durable medical equipment, and let nurse midwives with masters degrees and collaborative agreements with physicians prescribe certain medication and order medical devices and laboratory tests.

The Pennsylvania Medical Society supports the scope-of-practice bills, although it didn't weigh in on the dental hygienists measure. The society worked on the other legislation with Rendell's office and allied health professional organizations, said PMS spokesman Chuck Moran. Other parts of Prescription For Pennsylvania, including a statewide smoking ban, are expected to be taken up by the General Assembly when it reconvenes Sept. 17.

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/08/06/gvbf0806.htm.

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