IDFPR Lay-offs and Licensing

[med218]

I'm a new graduate awaiting licensure in IL and when I called the other day to check the status of my license application I was told that it may be delayed anywhere from 12-18 months as 18 staff members have been let go from the department of professional regulation and they now have 1 employee processing licensing applications.

 

http://www.idfpr.com/

There is an open letter on the home page addressing medical providers regarding the delays.

 

Any current IL PAs on here? I was curious to hear if the Illinois Academy of PAs has done anything with this? I went to their webpage and didn't even see a mention of this. The only organizations I've heard weigh-in on it have been ISMS, IDFPR, and the Illinois Hospital Association.

[MedicinePower]

Yikes, that's pretty horrible. It appears that the state and the Illinois State Medical Society are not getting along. As a native of IL I can confirm that the state government is rather dysfunctional. Our last two governors are both sitting in federal prison. Rod, a democrat, was arrested at the governor's mansion by the FBI and is now down the prison hallway from George Ryan, a republican. I congratulate IL governors for stepping across party lines in order to be brought up on federal charges and go to federal prison.

 

Perhaps this is a good time to open a discussion as to the value of a state license as opposed to the various medical societies self-regulating. If someone is a credentialed PA-C and is in good standing then what is the value and benefit of having the state re-verify these credentials? I realize that each state has their own laws about the scope of practice, but perhaps this needs to be standardized on a national level.

 

Nurses, physicians’ assistants,

pharmacists, and other healthcare professional may

wish to discuss this situation with any physicians

with whom they affiliate, as it may affect their ability to provide services to these physicians.

This quote from the letter seems to demonstrate that the State of IL is unaware of the actual name of a PA. It's confusing that they would then be responsible for the licensure of this profession.

 

I hope you find a solution ASAP. I can't imagine how frustrating it must be to be credentialed and capable of practicing medicine but not being licensed due to government dysfunction. Good luck.

[ventana]

that is nothing but a pissing match and the PA/Doc's are stuck in the middle....

 

it will resolve a lot quicker then 12-18 months but I would get a job elsewhere to avoid it....

 

 

no way will hospitals, clinics, and other places allow their providers to simply not renew a license and not work.... just a political game of pressure - but sure does stink for you

 

 

btw in mass there is only a few people in the PA board - maybe in IL the board will still chug along?

[med218]

It is frustrating, especially because the news stories continue to discuss MD/DOs and medical residents, but fail to mention the impact on PAs. I did contact the state last week and was told that because PA licensing fees apparently go to a different fund they are trying to minimize the impact on PA license processing and that I should be hearing in the next couple of weeks. I find this difficult to believe that PAs would not be impacted across the board simply based on their staff reduction, but we'll see. I have been following the news a little bit regarding some bills that have been introduced for discussion in the general assembly and still need to go through the voting process, but would reinstate all staff and get the department up and running at full speed again.

 

I did send an e-mail to the Illinois Academy of PAs to see if they've been involved in discussions with state legislators or if they've had any media surrounding the fact that this does impact PAs. I did receive a message back and although my questions weren't directly answered I did receive a bit of information regarding the bills going through the general assembly and it seems that the vote will happen fairly soon.

 

I am trying to be patient and let this play out as I really like the position I've signed on for: it's a great hospital, the MDs/PAs/NPs in my department are all really great people (I had a full day interview with time with each provider and had a chance to come back for a day of job shadowing which was fantastic), the position has lots of potential and room for growth in time, it's the right place for me to be, it's just unfortunate timing with this political game.

 

In IL new PA licenses are reviewed by the licensing staff and do not require approval from the state medical board initially (I asked this question last week when I called to check the status of my application).