Study cites federal policy as key to primary care access and nurse practitioner workforce development

"Federal Polices Influence Access to Primary Care and Nurse Practitioner Workforce," published in the May issue of The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, was authored by J. Margo Brooks Carthon, PhD, RN, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing Assistant Professor of Nursing, and two research fellows at the School: Hilary Barnes, PhD, CRNP; and Danielle Altares Sarik, MSN, CRNP. The authors are affiliated with the School's Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, a research and research training enterprise focusing on the outcomes of health care and health workforce policy.

"While much of the literature on NPs and primary care focus on the impact of state-level scope of practice restrictions, this paper offers a new contribution to the literature in that it examines implications of federal policy," says Dr. Brooks Carthon.

The study illustrates that while the goals of the ACA to increase access to primary care are linked to efficient use of NPs as care providers, it is just as imperative that federal initiatives include reliable funding to support NP training, education and models of care where NPs practice. It also shows that federal efforts may be hampered by state policies that restrict NPs scope of practice.

"Examining federal policies in tandem with state-level regulations is essential to achieving increased NP workforce supply and improved access to care," says Dr. Brooks Carthon.

The research is particularly timely in light of current legislation pending in Pennsylvania to remove mandatory collaborative agreements (SB 717 and HB 765). Collaborative agreements are business contracts that NPs in Pennsylvania are required to maintain with two physicians in order to practice. Twenty states and the District of Columbia have already eliminated such agreements.

"If this legislation passes, it should increase patient access to care in Pennsylvania," says Brooks Carthon.