Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Health and Wellness Message includes removing barriers to practice for Nurse Practitioners

Following from Governor Rick Snyder's Health and Wellness Message:

The Office of Regulatory Reinvention (ORR), created earlier this year, is looking at these various licensed occupations and supporting boards, to make sure that we are not excessively regulating our health occupations and that our regulations are tailored to provide health and safety benefits. Another area of focus is addressing our current and projected health care professional shortages. Physician shortages, for example, are projected to range from 4,400 to 6,000 by the year 2020. It has been estimated that as a result of the ACA, the size of our shortages may quadruple. Should this estimate hold true, Michigan’s physician shortage could be anywhere from 16,000 to 24,000 by 2020. This will make it harder to get an appointment with a physician and access to specialized care may become more difficult. We need to find a way to ensure that Michiganders continue to have access to quality care.

Resolving the issue requires that we take a look at how other members of the health care team can partner with the medical community to deliver those services. Understanding the role of physician extenders such as advanced practice nurses and physicians’ assistants in the delivery of primary care services is critical to addressing access issues. The ability to more effectively utilize mid-level practitioners is limited, however, by our current regulatory system. Accordingly, I have asked ORR to work closely with the MDCH to develop and implement a strategic plan to address our current and anticipated shortages in the health care sector and identify the regulatory reform necessary to successfully posture Michigan for future needs.
Read Governor Snyder's Message