Does anybody know about PA's Interstate Compact Bill?

does anyone know anything about the Pennsylvania HB 549--Interstate Nursing Licensure Compact? I am getting no where fast on this issue....need to write a paper about it and who (State Rep) I'm supposed to contact. (I know for me, it's Sue Helm)
I just would like some more information on this bill!!
I would like to know "why" PSNA (Pennsylvania State Nurses Association) opposes this bill.
Thanks in advance!!

Nicki T. RN, ACLS...soon BSN

Concerns

1. Variations in Nurse Practice Acts will create confusion amongst nurses, thus jeopardizing the health, safety and welfare of our patients:

• Provisions of the Nurse Licensure Compact would require “party states” to
unconditionally accept the licensure standards of other states which could lead to a “lowest common denominator” for state licensure standards. This inconsistency of standards, especially in areas of continuing education, will lead to nurses working side by side with different requirements for practice.

Who then is liable for failure to practice within state standards or within recognized state scope: the nurse, the employer, the home state, the State Board of Nursing in the remote state?

2. A nurse’s constitutional right to due process could be compromised if Pennsylvania joins the Nurse Licensure Compact:

• Nurses could find themselves subject to multiple investigations and disciplinary
proceedings arising from the same incident and the nurse could be liable for the cost of these multiple investigations and disciplinary proceedings. The compact
authorizes state boards of nursing to recover from a nurse the cost of investigations and dispositions of cases resulting from any adverse action taken against the nurse. This provision is overly broad in its scope and power.

There are already processes in place that address the nursing mobility issue that stimulated the perceived need for a proposal like this one. For instance, nurses moving into the Commonwealth from another state are eligible for a temporary practice permit which allows them to practice in our state for one year before they are required to obtain a PA nursing license.

We understand that because this proposal is a national compact that it must be adopted in its present form without any changes. Therefore, our concerns with it cannot be addresses through any amendments, and, for this reason as well, we are unable to lend our support to it.

.. House Bill 549, introduced by Representative Art Hershey, would authorize the
Commonwealth to join the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC). The Nurse Licensure Compact is
a mutual recognition model of nurse licensure that allows a nurse who is licensed in their
“home state” to legally practice in another compact state referred to in this bill as a “remote
state.”

The NLC was created because it was estimated by the National Council for State Boards of
Nursing (NCSBN) that 12% of nurses practice across state lines. However, they now indicate
that only 4% of nurses practice outside of their “home state”. This difference indicates that
there is not as great of a need for this legislation as originally thought. In light of these
changing circumstances, and for other substantive reasons, the following are PSNA’s
concerns about the implications of this bill that we believe will compromise the health, safety

and welfare of our patients:

Concerns

1. Variations in Nurse Practice Acts will create confusion amongst nurses, thus jeopardizing
the health, safety and welfare of our patients:

• Provisions of the Nurse Licensure Compact would require “party states” to
unconditionally accept the licensure standards of other states which could lead to a
“lowest common denominator” for state licensure standards. This inconsistency of
standards, especially in areas of continuing education, will lead to nurses working
side by side with different requirements for practice. Who then is liable for failure to
practice within state standards or within recognized state scope: the nurse, the
employer, the home state, the State Board of Nursing in the remote state?

• Inconsistencies within the states about licensure, re-registration requirements,
mandatory continuing education, background checks, disciplinary actions, and
evidentiary standards will impede the states’ ability to regulate practice in a
constitutionally mandated manner and will create confusion for both nurses and
employers.

• States that rely on the entry-to-practice standards applicable to nurses in their “home
states” will find some difficulties in coordinating the scope of practice. If the remote
state’s scope of practice statute is broader than that of the nurse’s home state, there
is a risk that the nurse would be permitted to engage in activities that they would not
be permitted to do in their home state.

• Since a “remote state” nurse is not required to register with the Pennsylvania State
Board of Nursing, the state will not be aware of the actual number of nurses working
in the state. Not allowing state regulators to identify everyone that is practicing in
the state will limit the state’s ability to protect its’ citizens from potential harm. In
addition, nurses will become confused about which practice act applies in their
situation which will compromise the Commonwealth’s high standards of nursing
practice.

2. A nurse’s constitutional right to due process could be compromised if Pennsylvania joins
the Nurse Licensure Compact:

• Nurses could find themselves subject to multiple investigations and disciplinary
proceedings arising from the same incident and the nurse could be liable for the cost
of these multiple investigations and disciplinary proceedings. The compact
authorizes state boards of nursing to recover from a nurse the cost of investigations
and dispositions of cases resulting from any adverse action taken against the nurse.
This provision is overly broad in its scope and power.

• There is no provision for informing a nurse when information about them has been
submitted to the Coordinated Licensure Information System (CLIS). Also, there is
no provision for the nurse to query CLIS to learn what information the system holds
about them, thus not allowing him/her to correct any erroneous information. This
situation is a serious due process problem that jeopardizes the nurse’s professional

standing and reputation....