June 30, 2015
On June 11, 2015, Gov. Brown signed SB 153 into law, creating Chapter 377 of the Laws of 2015. The legislation requires that plans and policies that provide coverage for services provided by a licensed physician must also provide coverage for those services if provided by a licensed physician assistant or certified nurse practitioner, including prescribing or dispensing drugs, if the services are within the lawful scope of practice of the physician assistant or nurse practitioner.
Plans and policies that provide coverage for services that are within the scope of practice of certified nurse practitioners and licensed physician assistants must provide the same coverage for services performed by certified nurse practitioners and licensed physician assistants in independent practices if plans or policies provide coverage for the same services performed by licensed physicians. Independent practices mean that certified nurse practitioners and licensed physician assistants bill insurers for services performed using:
Diagnosis and procedure codes applicable to services;
Nurse practitioners' or licensed physician assistants’ own names; and
National provider identifier for nurse practitioners and licensed physician assistants and, if required by insurers, facilities in which nurse practitioners and licensed physician assistants provide services.
The law is effective for policies issued on or after Jan. 1, 2016.
Chapter 377 »