The House Health Committee is considering whether or not to include independent practice for psych advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in House Bill (HB) 216. Independent practice for all other APRNs is out of the bill.
- Physician organizations have agreed to amend HB 216 to raise the APRN-to-physician collaboration ratio from 3-to-1 to 5-to-1. This should address any existing difficulty in finding psychiatrists with which to collaborate.
- In addition, the physician organizations have offered amending HB 216 so that psych APRNs can collaborate with family physicians and pediatricians which would even further expand the pool of potential collaborators.
With either of these compromises, there is absolutely no need for psych APRNs to be given independent practice authority. Either compromise vastly enlarges the pool of potential physician collaborators for psych APRNs.
Please take a moment to send an email to all House Health Committee members through the American Academy of Family Physicians Speak Out system. Your email message will automatically go to all 19 members of the committee.
In addition, the Ohio Academy of Family Physicians has joined forces with the Ohio State Medical Association and other physician organizations in sending a letter to House Health Committee members stating that as long as independent practice for psych APRNs is in HB 216, we will strongly oppose the bill.
Watch future issues of the Weekly Family Medicine Update for updates on HB 216.