Health Affairs June 29, 2020
Scope-of-practice (SOP) laws and regulations governing health care professionals (HCPs) is an active and growing area of debate in health care workforce policy. SOP refers to the services that HCPs are allowed to provide under the terms of their professional licensure. State SOP laws and regulations vary considerably; for example, California recognizes nurse practitioners (NPs) as primary care providers but requires them to practice in consultation with supervising physicians. In contrast, the neighboring states of Oregon and Arizona allow NPs to have full independent practice authority. Growing evidence suggests that removing these restrictions is associated with improvements in some aspects of access to care.
Over the years, states have expanded HCPs’ SOP; approaches have varied depending on the strength of...