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Expanding the Role of Nurse Practitioners

In September 2020, California passed AB 890, which opened the pathway for nurse practitioners (NPs) to treat patients without physician supervision. This was one of the California Future Health Workforce Commission’s priority recommendations to address the state’s shortage of health care workers.

As of early 2022, the Board of Registered Nursing is in the process of promulgating regulations that will heavily influence how quickly and effectively AB 890 can be implemented. The state legislature is also considering steps that could affect NP independent practice.

This collection highlights the evidence base and expert insights around NP practice, often drawing on data and best practices from other states, to inform the California policy conversation around AB 890 and its implementation.

CHCF Blog

California’s Health Care Future Depends on Nurse Practitioners

August 15, 2022
Minerva Canto
Workforce
A conversation with Payam Parvinchiha, an internal medicine physician who provides care to seniors with chronic conditions.
CHCF Blog

Nurse Practitioners Can Offer More Abortion Care in Underserved Areas

August 8, 2022
Minerva Canto
Workforce, Maternal Health
A conversation with Sarah McNeil, family medicine doctor and family planning specialist focused on expanding health care access.
CHCF Blog

Nurse Practitioners Can Help Ease Abortion Care ‘Bottleneck’ Caused by High Court Ruling

August 1, 2022
Anne Sunderland
Workforce, Maternal Health
A conversation with Christine Henneberg — physician, abortion care provider, author, and mother.
Publication

How Does SB 1375’s Proposed Transition-to-Practice Period Compare to Other States?

July 2022
Workforce
This fact sheet compares a proposed-transition to-practice (TTP) period for nurse practitioners in California to TTP periods in other states.
CHCF Blog

Provider Shortage Persists While Regulators Consider Implementation of Nurse Practitioner Law

March 24, 2022
Heather Stringer
Workforce, Medi-Cal, Health Equity
The legislation could increase access to care for many Californians — but not until detailed standards have been adopted through regulations or changes in state law.
Publication

Fact Sheet: Nurse Practitioners and California’s Latino/x Community

April 2022
Workforce
Nurse practitioners are a vital part of California’s health care workforce. Today they play a particularly important role providing care to underserved Californians, especially Latino/x communities.
External Resource

California’s Nurse Practitioners Play a Critical Role in a Stretched Health Care System

Stephanie Bedolla, a bilingual Latina/x nurse practitioner, returned to her hometown to provide care to her community. She’s an example of how NPs can expand access to care in California, especially in areas hard hit by physician and specialist shortages.
CHCF Blog

Nurse Practitioners Continue Long Wait for Independence as Nursing Board Deliberates

July 8, 2021
Heather Stringer
Workforce
Gaps in care persist as regulators set the terms of AB 890 implementation that will govern California nurse practitioners' transition to practice.
Publication

Transition to Practice for California’s Nurse Practitioners: Lessons from Other States

November 2021
Susanne J. Phillips
This brief seeks to support the regulatory process in California by shedding light on how transition to practice (TTP) has played out around the country for nurse practitioners (NPs), sharing the existing evidence on how full practice authority and TTP periods for NPs affect patients’ access to care and outcomes.
CHCF Blog

Nursing Leader Illuminates Strategies to Expedite Independence for Nurse Practitioners

November 4, 2021
Heather Stringer
Workforce
In an interview, Susanne Phillips, DNP, says health care institutions, agencies, councils, and clinics working with nurse practitioner leaders can create a standardized pathway to independent practice.
Publication

Aligning Nurse Practitioner Statutes in California

July 2021
Garrett K. Chan, Karen G. Duderstadt, Catherine Dower
Workforce
AB 890, passed in 2020, authorizes California nurse practitioners (NPs) to practice at the top of their competence without physician supervision and with a defined scope of practice. This report outlines the California codes that may need to be updated and harmonized with AB 890 to full realize this additional capacity of NPs.
Publication

California’s Nurse Practitioners: How Scope of Practice Laws Impact Care

May 2019
Joanne Spetz
Workforce
California is one of a handful of states that restricts nurse practitioners' ability to work without physician oversight. This paper examines how these restrictions impact care.
CHCF Blog

Independent Nurse Practitioners Bridge Big Gaps in Rural Care

August 7, 2019
Heather Stringer
Workforce
California is one of 22 states that do not permit nurse practitioners to practice and prescribe without ongoing physician oversight. Journalist Heather Stringer traveled to Colorado to see how nurse practitioners are being deployed in two rural communities.
External Resource

Sacramento Bee: 28 States Have Loosened Restrictions on NPs. Now It’s California’s Turn.

California views itself as a pioneer of progressive health care policies and for good reason, but the state is noticeably behind in one key area: the empowerment of nurse practitioners, or NPs.
External Resource

KQED: Could Expanding Nurse’s Scope of Care Help Fight the Opioid Epidemic in California?

A study published in the medical journal JAMA found that when states allow nurse practitioners to practice independently, people have better access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction.
Publication

Five Ways to Cure California’s Doctor Shortage

January 2019
Workforce
Experts propose solutions to boost primary care, from new payment models to expanded residency programs.
Publication

Lessons from Three States — Expanding the Role of Nurse Practitioners in California

May 2019
Joanne Spetz
Workforce
This fact sheet summarizes how Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico have expanded practice authority for nurse practitioners. CHCF hosted a briefing on May 6, 2019, with experts from these states on what California can learn about nurse practitioners and expanded practice authority.
External Resource

California Future Health Workforce Commission

Top leaders from across the state are working together to close the gap between the health workforce we have and the workforce we need.
May 6, 2019

Briefing — Expanding the Role of Nurse Practitioners

Workforce
May 6, 2019
CHCF hosted a briefing — with experts from Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada — on what California can learn from other states that have expanded practice authority for nurse practitioners.