We are pleased to announce an important legislative victory with Senate Bills 688 and 689 which allow for a delegate to participate and complete the physician/PA application and work agreement forms.
This legislation became necessary as the Pennsylvania Licensing System (PALS) comes online over the next several months. If you are not familiar with PALS, it is an online system created by the Department of State, that will replace the paper applications for licenses and work agreements. The state has been working on this process for several years and it will come to fruition within the next year. The Medical and Osteopathic boards will continue to accept paper applications in the meantime.
PALS will help to streamline and speed up the application and approval process, something that has been sorely needed for the past several decades. It will be particularly helpful for institutions where credentialing and administration staff are the primary individuals who fill out the applications and have the physician and PA sign. However, the system was not developed with a third party use in mind. It would have forced the physician and PA to complete the entire application process online themselves, something that is not feasible in most facilities. Test demonstrations of the system will be conducted over the next 1-2 months to work out any technical issues. Instructional webinars are planned as well. We will keep you informed as the process moves along. For now, you may continue using the current paper system.
PA Modernization Act Legislation
The House and Senate have recessed for the summer. But, that doesn’t mean we take a break. We are still seeking to add more co-sponsors to our legislation. We encourage all of you to contact your state senators over the summer asking for their support and co-sponsorship of Senator’s Killion and Yudichak’s memorandum on Physician Assistant Modernization of Practice. They will be the prime sponsors for our upcoming bills. The language has not yet been introduced, therefore there are no bill numbers. We hope to garner as many supporters of the legislation as possible this summer and introduce the bills in September.
We will be holding a “capitol hill” day in September as well. We recently sent out a save the date announcement through Voter Voice. Information is also posted on the PSPA web site. I have included the announcement here as well. We hope to have as many of you as possible for a day to educate the legislators on the PA profession and ask for their support in modernizing our practice acts. Don’t forget to contact your Senators, introduce yourself as a PA in their district and ask them to support Senator Killion’s and Senator Yudichak’s memorandum on Physician Assistant Modernization!
Save the Date!
What: Physician Assistant Modernization Act Legislative Day
When: Tuesday, September 24th, 2019
Where: Capitol Hill, Harrisburg, Pa
The PSPA invites you to join your colleagues for a day on Capitol Hill in Harrisburg. The purpose of this event is to educate legislators on the physician assistant profession and to ask for support for our legislation. Our goal is to have a PA visit every house of representative and senator in the Capitol.
The day will begin with an introduction/breakfast meeting where we will discuss the legislation talking points, handouts on the PA profession, and tips on how to talk with your legislator.
Appointments with the legislators will be arranged for you to attend during the day followed by a post visit wrap up.
All you need to bring is your lab coat and smiling personality! We will provide the rest.
Coming Soon: Further details and information regarding local hotel options.