Jump to content

Missiles launched at NCCPA


Recommended Posts

  • Moderator

I am starting a different thread with this but it applies directly to this thread

 

this is what we need and AAPA is doing it!!

 

 

New Mexico PAs celebrate enactment of collaboration bill

April 18, 2017

New Mexico PAs will have greater autonomy due to the enactment of H.B. 215, which was signed into law by Gov. Susana Martinez on April 6.  The legislation was the product of months of negotiations among the New Mexico Academy of PAs, the New Mexico Medical Board, the New Mexico Medical Society, and the Greater Albuquerque Medical Association. The bill, which goes into effect on June 6, makes several changes to PA practice in the state, including:

  • Allowing PAs in primary care with three or more years of clinical practice to enter into a collaborative, rather than supervisory, relationship with a physician;
  • Allowing PAs to practice within their own education and experience;
  • Allowing PAs to dispense medications; and
  • Allowing the New Mexico Medical Board to set the parameters for collaboration (including defining primary and specialty care) and establish the rules surrounding supervisory and collaborative agreements.

When the bill was heard in Senate Committee, H.B. 215’s fate became uncertain due to lobbying by the National Commission on Certification of PAs (NCCPA), which opposed a proposal in the original bill to eliminate the requirement that PAs maintain national certification to renew license.  The final version of the bill retained the recertification requirement and added language allowing recertification from an equivalent or successor agency to NCCPA.  At the same time, the unexpected opposition created a ripple effect in which the collaboration provision was limited to PAs in primary care, language stating that PAs are responsible for the care they provide was removed, and a requirement under current law that the Medical Board approve supervising or collaborating physicians was placed back in the bill after being removed in earlier consensus drafts.

While the last-minute changes in H.B. 215 may limit its reach, the bill is still expected to increase patient access to care in New Mexico, particularly in rural and medically underserved areas of the state.  For more information on H.B. 215 or PA practice in New Mexico, contact Erika Miller, director, constituent organization outreach and advocacy.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

April 17, 2017

 

The Honorable Governor Jim Justice
1900 Kanawha Blvd.
Charleston, WV  25305

 

Subject:  Senate Bill 347 – Modernization of the PA Practice Act (SB347)

 

PAs for Tomorrow (PAFT), a special interest group of the American Academy of PAs (AAPA), urges you to reverse your recent veto of SB347. 

PAFT represents the national interests of our PA members. We respectfully emphasize the following facts for your consideration: 

SB347 included important actions to modernize West Virginia’s PA Practice Act to reflect and support today’s health care needs of West Virginia citizens, including, but not limited to:

  • The PA relationship with a “collaborating” rather than “supervising” physician
  • PAs would be allowed to prescribe a monthly supply of Schedule II and Schedule III drugs under certain circumstances, with specified restrictions (consistent with APRNs as granted under House Bill 4334 in 2016)
  • PAs would be granted global signatory authority in a manner identical to APRNs (granted under House Bill 4334 in 2016), for death certificates, orders for life-sustaining treatment, orders for scope of treatment and do-not resuscitate (DNR) orders

SB347 passed your legislative branches unanimously.  The only objections raised to the final version of SB347 were from the NCCPA, an Atlanta-based organization with a vested interest in protecting its own revenues generated from fees for recertification exams, fees for CME endorsements, and fees for CME recording services.

PAs are masters-level clinicians extensively trained in generalist medicine in formal training programs that are typically 105 credit hours, three times the educational hours of any other masters degree.  ALL PAs must graduate from an Accredited PA Program and take a national certifying exam, administered by the NCCPA, for application for licensure to practice medicine in any state (or D.C.).

However,

  • Only 18 of the United States require re-certification for license renewal;
    33 (with D.C.) do NOT require PAs to re-certify in order to maintain their license; these jurisdictions have no issues with patient safety
  • CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) does not require PAs enrolled as providers to recertify

Like many of these states that do not require recertification as a requirement for maintenance of licensure, West Virginia PAs are already required to complete 100 hours of continuing medical education every two years, which is an assurance that PAs maintain the needed skills to provide safe care of patients.  Most PAs do re-certify, often because it is required by their employer or some 3rd party payers.

The additional administrative burden for the state to monitor maintenance of certification is unnecessary.

Our organization is comprised of many veterans with over a half century of experience caring for our troops and their dependents as PA medical care providers. Vetoing SB347 does a disservice to the citizens of your great state, both to the PAs that would be better able to practice medicine to the extent of their training and education, and to the patients they serve.

We urge you to reverse your veto of SB347.

Sincerely,

Dr. Eric Holden, DHSc, PA
Emergency Medicine PA
Doctor of Health Science & Global Health
President, PAs For Tomorrow

 

Approved by the Board of PAFT

  • Upvote 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, the NCCPA has also obstructed the progressions of our profession--again--with New Mexico.  ...to a lesser degree than WV but doesn't make it any less wrong, bad, deplorable, or corrupt. 

 

I'm INCREASINGLY disgusted... 

 

I wish we could get the ~115,000 of us to be more active in our voice.

 

What I'm doing:
Write candid letter to NCCPA   done

Write candid letter to AAPA   done

contact my state board of medicine   done

 

I wish I knew what else I could do...  really, really disgusted with NCCPA.  Their actions are deplorable--in the true sense of the word.

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

What the NCCPA has done is reprehensible!  The AAPA needs to create its own certifying process ASAP.  The NCCPA just signed its own death certificate with this hostile action.  I fired off my own angry email at the NCCPA demanding they lobby to undo their damage and get Governor Justice to rescind his veto.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So I just read through the text of the West Virginia bill that got vetoed and it is an utter disappointment.  A joke really.  I can't believe this is what the AAPA is fighting for.  All that was done was "collaborating" was substituted for "supervising," but pretty much everything else remains the same.  Instead of a supervising physician you have to have a collaborating physician.  You work under a collaborating physician with a collaborating agreement and can not practice without any of this in place.  The collaborating physician still oversees and assumes all responsibilities for the PA.  Nothing has actually changed.  It is as material a change as changing our names from Physician Assistant to Physician Associate would be.  This is really sad.  All while NPs continue to march on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Paula

Do WV "Advanced Practice Registered Nurses" really have to take "recertification exams"?

 

 

No they don't. that was misinformation and a retraction and corrections were made to the article.  Probably too late, the damage was done. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Paula

Sure you aren't, "Paula"

 

IF THAT IS YOUR REAL FAKE INTERNET NAME

 

Hmmm...I'm not sure how to take this?  I was too stupid to realize people on the forum were not transparent when they made their online names, so I used my real name years ago when I joined.......Shame on me, I can't hide.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

sillycibin, 

Actually, there was numerous things--really great things--on that bill in WV, other than just discontinuing re-certification testing for state licensure.  There was prescribing changes on the bill.  There was a list of forms that would have allowed PAs to sign and not have to burden the system waiting for a physician to sign, among the list of forms was death certificate. 

Also, and with all due respect, the changing the word from supervising to collaborating, is--in my humble opinion--not as insignificant as you make it sound.  The term supervising has mislead and confused many people--even those, who work in the medical field, but certainly patients and non-medical people, like hospital/clinic/office administration people.  I feel the term collaborating much-better communicates the dynamics. 

 

Regardless, the fact that the things on that bill that the NCCPA paid people to sway and influence the Governor to veto, was very significant with positive advancements for PAs and would have most certainly helped patients be better-served as well. 

 

I also think these changes are not easy to come by and shouldn't be minimized.  On the contrary!  I give MAJOR PROPS to all and any PAs, who forged the way to get this bill, which was UNANIMOUSLY approved.  

 

The fact that the corrupt behavior of the NCCPA actually paid for people (lobbyists) to act, sway, influence, etc, to stymie the PA profession in this way, is foul, slimy, and absolutely has hurt the PA profession's advancements. 

 

However, again, the things on that bill were really great things.  It's incredibly sad to me that these great things were squashed by, non other than the NCCPA itself.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hmmm...I'm not sure how to take this?  I was too stupid to realize people on the forum were not transparent when they made their online names, so I used my real name years ago when I joined.......Shame on me, I can't hide.  

Ignore me, I'm just fooling around, taking a shot at someone who was removed from the forum and the whole tinfoil hat crowd in general.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For as long as I can recall, the PA profession has spent time and capital trying to play nice with everyone. The NCCPA is in this for themselves not us, just like the politicians "are here to serve the public". The NCCPA seized control of the PA profession when "we" decide to accept them as the stewards of our "documented competence". They took our acquiescence and ran with it telling the public across the nation , that they were protecting them and keeping us honest and competent while lining their coffers with our money.We are now "Sharecroppers " on the NCCPA Plantation and they determine the crops, who we sell to and how much of the crop we can keep for ourselves!  We have now witnessed that "absolute power, corrupts absolutely. Don't expect NCCPA to let us slaughter their" cash cow" or make it easy to unmask the ugly face of unbridled control and greed drunk on power. To fight this battle and win we must be prepared to suffer casualties and do ugly if not hurtful things. This is contrary to the "kinder gentler" caring collaborative path that the majority of PAs have and are walking professionally. Take a look at those entities that endorse NCCPA and ask yourself if you are willing to seek their support in weakening the grip of NCCPA on our profession's throat. If it's a fight that they want, then "we rebels" should remember 19 April 1775 and the words of Captain Greene ""Stand your ground. Don't fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war let it begin here." . I do believe that NCCPA has fired the first volley of this revolt. Let me know,when and where we will rally for the campaign!!!!

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderator

$77,000 on investment management fees!!!  What do they have for investments??  (listed as over 20m!! - why are they continually raising fees????)

 

Exams costs are under 4m

 

rev is almost 400% of this....

 

I think there is some more accounting that needs to take place

 

Dawn Morton  $334,000 Income

 3 VP's making about $180k pr year  - 

 

that is 4 people making about a million bucks!!  all of them are WELL OVER the average PA salary...

 

 

time to clean house...

  • Upvote 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yet, it was my belief that, at the last recent big meeting with the NCCPA, AAPA, and ARC-PA, the NCCPA "agreed" to be transparent.  That obviously hasn't happened--even at the molecular level...heck, I don't even see a single atom of transparency. 

 

We PAs, however, are expected to have a high level of transparency, including modern-day star rating systems, picker scores, etc, etc, Imagine if we had the power to go into any website and change or shut down the rating system.  Hmm..  right, the NCCPA isn't about to give up this power easily, or even at all.  Actually, I've tried to Google search NCCPA ratings, or reviews, and I can't find any, except an other facebook one, (not the one recently shut down b/c it had like 1.3 out of 5 stars.. 

How does a company remain above all of this?  Money! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Administrator

Hmm..  right, the NCCPA isn't about to give up this power easily, or even at all.

That's why I favor a two-pronged plan:

 

1) Pushing for the direct, democratic election of a majority of the board of directors by currently certified PAs

2) AAPA Preparing for a nuclear option if 1) is not successful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, yeah...update on the on-line reviews and transparency:

 

NCCPA has totally taken down all rating, feedback postings on their facebook site as well as the fact that Google reviews / rating is "magically" completely unavailable now.. hmmm....  It's hard to imagine that they're not spending the money WE give them to have Google shut it down.  ...just an other level they're spending money they get from US to their own cause--AGAINST us. 

 

The NCCPA were SUPPOSED to be more transparent, (not that they were at all in any way before).  This was discussed at the recent big pow-wow (the NCCPA, AAPA, ARC-PA meeting couple months ago).  The NCCPA apparently agreed to be more transparent.  So, they're not only not keeping up with their end of the deal but going in the opposite direction.

 

This is yet an other level of unacceptable behavior of the NCCPA and only more clearly shows that they're in this all for themselves, and by shutting down all feedback, posts from PAs, (even perfectly professional posts/reviews/feedback), is only continuing to fool the public and, basically, being deceitful.  The ONLY posts on their FB site they don't delete are those, who drink the Kool-aid and leave fluffy NCCPA-nicy-nice posts.

 

C'mon AAPA.....  where are you??!!!! 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to the Physician Assistant Forum! This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn More