The place for the latest state and federal advocacy news from the OAPA and the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA).
The Oklahoma Legislature look to PAs to provide them with information on health care decisions affecting their communities. It is crucial that PAs make their voices heard and together we can achieve the profession’s legislative priorities. OAPA works actively to pass legislation and rules that would help PAs and their patients, as well as defensively against anything that would harm our profession.
During the 2020 legislative session, OAPA’s priority bill, SB1915 passed and was signed by Governor Stitt. This overhaul of the PA Act had several outcomes such as change from supervision to delegation, PCP designation, direct billing, removal of the application to practice, and more. OAPA is working with the State Medical Board as rules need to be adjusted accordingly.
In 2021, OAPA was successful in helping to pass legislation for PAs to participate in telehealth and home health ordering services in Oklahoma. OBNDD recognized PAs for outpatient schedule II prescribing and began issuing licenses with unrestricted schedule IIs.
In 2022, OAPA successfully passed legislation to correct a mis-reference in the Controlled Substances Act related to concerned which the Pharmacy Board had for schedule II prescriptions. SB1322 becomes active Nov. 1 2022. OAPA also successfully passed legislation to include PAs in providers who can sign death certificates and valuable language regarding federal practice jurisdiction.
2023 Proposed Rule changes from 2020 that went to public comment last Fall were changed by a Medical Board subcommittee and are now at the legislature for approval/disapproval. These were not the rules that the PA Advisory Committee agreed to and would set back PA practice and challenge our ability to carry out timely patient care.
