Week 4 ProjectNSG6002 Health Policy and Health Promotion in Advanced Nursing Practice Draft April 20

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NSG6002 Week 4 Project
Health Policy Paper: Full Practice Authority
Angela Alimole
South University

HEALTH POLICY PAPER: FULL PRACTICE AUTHORITY 2
Introduction
The state of Texas currently does not have full practice authority (FPA) for advanced
practice nurses (APNs). This is true in almost half of the country, including the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA). Nurse Practitioners (NP) are prone to practice in the countryside and
underserved areas than general practitioner. According to a research by the University of
Michigan, the need for doctors in rural areas is being covered by nurse
practitioners. Nevertheless, in states like Texas, constraints on their practice restrict nurses'
power to care for patients. Nurses are denied the use of the full scope of their training,
experience, and credentialing. To provide individuals with the level of healthcare they deserve,
Texas NPs are fighting for full practice authority (FPA).
The absence of the law giving full autonomy to NPs has created a gap, that continues to
increase the number of primary care providers (PCPs) and patients needing PCPs. In addition, it
is creating elevated healthcare costs and stopping APNs from employing their skills and
knowledge. Numerous state legislators have a exclusive chance of sponsoring a bill to pass FPA
in their committees, and perhaps elsewhere. The onus falls on the APNs to take the initiative of
educating the politicians and peers on the significance of permitting FPA, the benefits, in
population health and economic growth, which might follow, and continuity of care on patients
for best results.
Full Practice Authority
According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) (2018,), full
practice authority (FPA) is known as when “state practice and licensure laws permit all NPs to
evaluate patients; diagnose, order and interpret diagnostic test; and initiate and manage

HEALTH POLICY PAPER: FULL PRACTICE AUTHORITY 3
treatments including prescribing medication and controlled substances, under the exclusive
licensure authority of the state board of nursing”. At present there are only 21 states which
permits advanced practice nurses (APNs) to perform to the fullest scope of their training
according to the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) proposals for the future of nursing issued in 2010
and 2016 (The National Academies, 2010). They also made other commendations which
includes, full partnership with doctors and other healthcare professionals in restructuring the
health care system in the United States. In addition, they recommended that nurses should
engage in higher education via enhanced and seamless academic advancement, and improvement
of workforce planning and policy, information collections, and data infrastructure.
In Texas an, APN requires a separate application, a written “prescriptive delegation” from
a supervising physician, DEA registration for controlled substances, and registration with TX
Department of Public Safety. Recently TX eliminated the requirement of on-site physician
supervision .