Back to All NewsTwo Bills in Utah Would Give Independent Practice to Advanced Practitioners
Posted By American Med Spa Association, Tuesday, March 2, 2021
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Two new bills in Utah, one for physician assistants (PAs) and one for advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), would allow these advanced practitioners to practice without the supervision of a physician. The PA bill is sponsored by Senator Curtis Bramble and Representative James Dunnigan and is known as Senate Bill 27 (SB 27), which you can read here. The APRN bill is sponsored by Bramble and Representative Douglas Welton and is known as House Bill 287 (HB 287), which you can read here. Both bills are awaiting assignment to committee for further deliberation.
HB 287 would allow APRNs to practice independently within their statutory scope of practice. Currently, APRNs in Utah require “written consultation and [a] referral plan” with a physician to prescribe schedule II controlled substances. HB 287 would do away with this requirement and, instead, require that the APRN be certified to prescribe schedule II controlled substances. The certification would involve:
The national trend has been moving toward allowing APRNs to practice as independent health care providers who do not need the direct supervision of physicians. Utah already has one of the most independent APRN licenses, with supervision needed only for schedule II controlled substances. By doing away with that, HB 287 is in line with that trend and, if passed, would allow Utah APRNs to become completely independent health care providers in their own right.
SB 27 would allow PAs to practice independently. Currently, PAs in Utah require written “delegation of services agreements” with supervising physicians to practice; these agreements authorize their scope as their prescriptive authority. SB 27 would allow PAs to be granted independent practice after completing a period of collaboration. PAs with fewer than 10,000 hours of post-graduate clinical practice would need to practice under their practice level policies and procedures and collaborate with a physician for their first 4,000 hours of clinical practice. PAs with more than 4,000 but fewer than 10,000 hours of clinical practice can collaborate with a physician or a PA who has more than 10,000 hours of clinical practice in the same specialty. The collaboration agreement would need to:
PAs who wish to change specialties would need to complete at least 4,000 hours of collaboration with a physician in the new specialty area. Once a PA has completed these collaboration hours, they would be able to practice without a formal agreement and, instead, consult and collaborate with other members of a health care team. SB 27 would be a large step forward in the national trend to reduce practice restrictions on PAs. If passed, HB 287 would be in line with that trend and would allow Utah PAs to become independent health care providers in their own right.
We will be monitoring both HB 287 and SB 27 as they work their way through Utah’s legislative process this year.
HB 287 would allow APRNs to practice independently within their statutory scope of practice. Currently, APRNs in Utah require “written consultation and [a] referral plan” with a physician to prescribe schedule II controlled substances. HB 287 would do away with this requirement and, instead, require that the APRN be certified to prescribe schedule II controlled substances. The certification would involve:
The national trend has been moving toward allowing APRNs to practice as independent health care providers who do not need the direct supervision of physicians. Utah already has one of the most independent APRN licenses, with supervision needed only for schedule II controlled substances. By doing away with that, HB 287 is in line with that trend and, if passed, would allow Utah APRNs to become completely independent health care providers in their own right.
SB 27 would allow PAs to practice independently. Currently, PAs in Utah require written “delegation of services agreements” with supervising physicians to practice; these agreements authorize their scope as their prescriptive authority. SB 27 would allow PAs to be granted independent practice after completing a period of collaboration. PAs with fewer than 10,000 hours of post-graduate clinical practice would need to practice under their practice level policies and procedures and collaborate with a physician for their first 4,000 hours of clinical practice. PAs with more than 4,000 but fewer than 10,000 hours of clinical practice can collaborate with a physician or a PA who has more than 10,000 hours of clinical practice in the same specialty. The collaboration agreement would need to:
PAs who wish to change specialties would need to complete at least 4,000 hours of collaboration with a physician in the new specialty area. Once a PA has completed these collaboration hours, they would be able to practice without a formal agreement and, instead, consult and collaborate with other members of a health care team. SB 27 would be a large step forward in the national trend to reduce practice restrictions on PAs. If passed, HB 287 would be in line with that trend and would allow Utah PAs to become independent health care providers in their own right.
We will be monitoring both HB 287 and SB 27 as they work their way through Utah’s legislative process this year.
