Valued Voice

WHA offered several suggested amendments during an Oct. 20 rulemaking hearing of the Physician Assistant Affiliated Credentialing Board (PA Board) to the PA Board’s proposed rule implementing 2021 Wisconsin Act 23, which made several changes to the licensure and practice of physician assistants. 
 
WHA General Counsel Matthew Stanford provided two hours of testimony to the PA Board and focused on several proposed amendments to the proposed physician assistant licensure rule, including:
 

• Removing from the proposed rule various provisions not required by statute relating to the licensure process that have created inefficiencies in the licensure process for other professions, especially new graduates.
• Better mirroring statutory language regarding physician oversight requirements to avoid compliance confusion for hospitals, health care organizations and their physician assistants.
• Providing clear safe harbor language regarding evidence of physician oversight in employment settings to minimize documentation burdens for physician assistants, physicians and their employers.
• Making technical changes to the rule to provide future flexibility to extend license renewal times from two years to four years. 
• Clarifying a telehealth provision for physician assistants practicing under the employed practice authorization.

Several of the WHA recommendations stem from WHA’s work with Department of Safety and Professional Services Secretary-designee Dan Hereth and the Legislative Council Study Committee on Occupational Licenses, which includes WHA Senior Vice President of Workforce and Clinical Practice Ann Zenk as a member, to improve the health care licensure process in Wisconsin.
 
Multiple members of the PA Board expressed appreciation for WHA’s work and recommendations for changes to its proposed rule. 
 
“I would like to express how sincerely appreciative we are of WHA attorney Stanford’s work on this rule,” said Vice Chairperson of the PA Board Eric Elliot. “The thought and time invested in this…it is very clear that the intent is to make this process have lasting results for the state and patients in Wisconsin. We really appreciate all that you have done and the ongoing cooperation.”
 
The PA Board will review and may approve an updated draft of the proposed rule language at its Nov. 22 meeting. If approved by the PA Board, the proposed rule must then be approved by the Governor, and then the Legislature will have an opportunity to review the rule when it returns in January. Based on statutory rulemaking timelines, the rule will not become a final published rule until at least early spring 2023.
 
WHA’s written comments and suggested amendments to the proposed rule can be found here. Contact Matthew Stanford for more information.