By Joe Gorelick, MSN, FNP-C
A 25-bill legislative package from Rhode Island legislators aimed at improving health care access and affordability in the Ocean State relies heavily on expansion of the primary care workforce, particularly NPs and PAs.
RI Senate Health & Human Services Committee Secretary Pamela J. Lauria, who works as a primary care NP, announced the legislation alongside Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio and other state legislators.
In addition to recognition of the role of NPs and PAs, this initiative is in particular alignment with the mission of the Dermatology Education Foundation as it includes a focus on Training and Education of NPs and PAs.
The Rhode Island HEALTH Initiative (Holistic Enhancement and Access Legislation for Total Health) focuses on four key pillars: consumer protection, provider availability and care quality, cost containment, and health system financial stability.
Beyond numerous measures intended to protect healthcare consumers and manage healthcare debt, the legislation seeks to improve care by expanding the number of healthcare providers in the state.
“Over the years in my work as a primary care nurse practitioner, it has become increasingly clear the many ways in which our health care system is struggling. A shortage of providers across all facets of the health system is an especially urgent concern, and while that starts with primary care, it extends to nurses, specialists, counselors, and beyond. One of the pillars of the initiative we are announcing today seeks to address the issue of provider availability, because to truly ensure everyone has access to quality care, we must have enough providers to meet our needs,” said Senator Lauria, in a press release.
A proposed bill will provide $2.7 million to primary care practices to serve as enhanced interdisciplinary clinical training sites. It would recruit 30 advanced primary care training sites with one or more preceptors, increasing training slots by 50% for nurse practitioners, physician assistant students, and physician residents. The funds would also be used to develop a site curriculum, quarterly learning collaborative sessions, data collection, and project management. These sites are needed to train the next generation of providers, and since students often decide to work where they train, increasing training can improve access to care, the bill’s sponsors say.
Additionally, legislation would fund scholarship programs for primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants and would adopt the Physician Assistant Licensure Compact. The compact will be activated once the 7th state passes compact language into law.
“The Rhode Island HEALTH Initiative includes key efforts identified by our Task Force to bolster the workforce including: scholarships for primary care trainees – future physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants – and enhancing the curriculum and increasing the capacity for clinical training sites so that more primary care providers can be trained here in Rhode Island,” observed Debra Hurwitz, MBA, BSN, RN, executive director of the Care Transformation Collaborative of RI, in a statement.