It's Time for Universal Licensing In all 50 States

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I can see no reason that in this day and age your license in one state can't be accepted in all states without the long process, paperwork, and fees that accompany the process of endorsement in most states right now. When you take the NCLEX you should have to do the fingerprinting, background checks, etc, pay a one-time fee, and your license should go on a national electronic record so any board of nursing can easily and quickly verify that you are licensed and eligible to practice in their state.

I am done with the expense and long process of endorsement. Without advocating for ourselves and saying enough is enough this needs to happen, it is in fact 2011, it won't happen. So I am standing up here and now and saying this needs to get done, NOW!!!

Specializes in MCH,NICU,NNsy,Educ,Village Nursing.
Why not pay the states for each endorsement, but still have it on electronic file thus cutting down the time and effort on both our parts? I would also imagine that this would streamline the process for the states as well allowing them to not have the need for as much office expense and staff...and no offense, but I don' really care that doctors, dentists, or realtors don't have it. Our profession can happily be the first.

There is an online license verification site called Nursys. I had to use that to get my license by endorsement in Massachusetts (from Texas originally, and TX and MA are not compact states). Both of my licenses are now listed on that site. Sorry you've been so frustrated. Just curious--how long DID it take for you to get licensed by endorsement? It only took about 2 weeks for mine.

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No, no, no and again no! :D

Under the United States consitution those powers not granted to the federal government belong to the states, and I for one do not want to see any further expansion of the former's powers.

Bad enough the NCLEX took away each state's *right* (if that is the proper word) to create board exams that suited the type of nurse they wished (some

state's RN board exam were far more difficult than others), and while it may have lead to a lower passing rate overall, those that did pass were at the top of their grade.

It is a very slippery slope and the very thin edge of the wedge to have national licensing for nurses. I mean where will it all end? You can bet medicine, law and other "male" dominated and or powerful professions will have none of it, as they all would fight to the last man to keep things at a state level. This would leave nursing at the mercy of congress, the administration and what is termed "Washington DC", and if history is any guide, nothing good will come of it, I promise you that.

What has stopped the ANA from making the BSN mandatory for entry in all fifty states? Aside from several factors, it has been fighting each little war state by state. Once there is a central power to go to, money talks, and BS walks. Think of all the *interesting* if not horrible laws/rules that have come from special interest groups getting their hooks into law makers.

You cannot divorce licensing from discipline. Do you really want some faceless and or hard to reach bureaucrat deciding your professional career?

Hospitals and other employers would love to have one source to go to; just think of their wish list to water down and or strip items from nurse practice acts, and hand them over to UAPs.

Think my girls about what you are asking for, think long and hard. Again this country had far too much power gathered up in Washington DC, and look what it has gotten us? Do you really want to hand them yet more? Once things such as this are done, they are hardly if ever undone, and the consequences shall have to be borne as best one can.

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Specializes in Geriatrics, WCC.

Each state has different requirements for CEU's. I hold a license in a comapctstate but, since i live close to the border and work in another state that is not compact, have a license for that state too. it took me less than a week to get the second license by endorsement.

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I can see no reason that in this day and age your license in one state can't be accepted in all states without the long process, paperwork, and fees that accompany the process of endorsement in most states right now. When you take the NCLEX you should have to do the fingerprinting, background checks, etc, pay a one-time fee, and your license should go on a national electronic record so any board of nursing can easily and quickly verify that you are licensed and eligible to practice in their state.

I am done with the expense and long process of endorsement. Without advocating for ourselves and saying enough is enough this needs to happen, it is in fact 2011, it won't happen. So I am standing up here and now and saying this needs to get done, NOW!!!

Take away the fees and paperwork? Certainly you jest.

Fees and paperwork are much of what keeps the wheels of government turning.

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Specializes in SRNA.

This is a non issue for me, simply because I don't plan on moving state to state on a frequent basis. When I did move from NV to WA, the endorsement process was quick and easy and I had my WA license before I started my job.

Sounds like someone is just frustrated with the process.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I guess you're a new nurse and never heard that we already have compact states with more joining each day. My license is multi-state. LPN's can also have multi-state licenses. See link Map of NLC States

A multi-state nursing license operates under the same concept as a driver's license. People fail to realize that a nurse can only work 30 days in a compact state that is not declared as his/her home state.

For example, I live in Texas, which is a compact state. Let's pretend that I want to live and work in Arizona. Even though Texas and Arizona are members of the Nursing Licensure Compact, I will still need to declare a new home state for my license. If I decide to work in Arizona under my Texas license, I can legally do so for 30 days total. After the 30 days has elapsed, I will definitely need a permanent Arizona nursing license in order to continue working legally in Arizona. Just because my original Texas license is a compact one with multi-state privileges, this does not mean that I can work in other compact states for an unlimited time. If I pack up and move to Arizona or any other compact state, I've eventually got to get a license in my new home state. Legally, it needs to be within 30 days of setting up permanent residence in the new state.

A nursing license is similar to a driver's license. Once I have moved to Arizona, I can drive under my Texas license for 30 days, then I will need to obtain an Arizona driver's license in order to keep driving legally in my new home state. It is the exact same concept with a nursing license that is from a Compact state.

In other words, a compact license is beneficial only in certain instances: short-term travel nursing contracts, situations where nurses must travel across state lines to get to work, and so forth.

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Specializes in cardiac.

the fees are there because you need to contribute to the state money. even the compact states have to apply for a new license if they change the primary residence.

[color=#221e1f][color=#221e1f]when a nurse changes primary state of residency by moving from one compact state to another compact state, the nurse can practice on the former residency license for up to 30 days. the nurse is required to apply for licensure by endorsement, pay any applicable fees and complete a declaration of primary state of residency in the new home state, whereby a new multistate license is issued and the former license is inactivated. proof of residency may be required.
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Frustrated with the process?-YES!

I had to drive an hour out of my way to get fingerprinted $45

Go have a passport photo done $10

Go downtown to my current states licensing office and wait in line for 45 minutes and then pay $25 so that they will verify my license

Go to my nursing school another half hour away (pay $10 day parking fee) and have a Dean sign off that I graduated there

Drive to a law office to have two letters notarized $10

Pay the $165 Endorsement Fee

Pay to Fedex my Endorsement paperwork because I know I need over a month for this to be processed

I understand that licensure works like a driver's license. What I don't understand is that if it is the same test in every state, why can't the states make universal the requirements (background checks, fingerprinting) so it only has to be done once, and put the licensing information on a computerized system so that it can be accessed quickly and by all 50 states. It's not the endorsement fee that gets me. I understand why it's there. It's the costs of all of it combined together and it's the ridiculous asinine process that some us have to endure.

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No, no, no and again no! :D

Under the United States consitution those powers not granted to the federal government belong to the states, and I for one do not want to see any further expansion of the former's powers.

Bad enough the NCLEX took away each state's *right* (if that is the proper word) to create board exams that suited the type of nurse they wished (some

state's RN board exam were far more difficult than others), and while it may have lead to a lower passing rate overall, those that did pass were at the top of their grade.

It is a very slippery slope and the very thin edge of the wedge to have national licensing for nurses. I mean where will it all end? You can bet medicine, law and other "male" dominated and or powerful professions will have none of it, as they all would fight to the last man to keep things at a state level. This would leave nursing at the mercy of congress, the administration and what is termed "Washington DC", and if history is any guide, nothing good will come of it, I promise you that.

What has stopped the ANA from making the BSN mandatory for entry in all fifty states? Aside from several factors, it has been fighting each little war state by state. Once there is a central power to go to, money talks, and BS walks. Think of all the *interesting* if not horrible laws/rules that have come from special interest groups getting their hooks into law makers.

You cannot divorce licensing from discipline. Do you really want some faceless and or hard to reach bureaucrat deciding your professional career?

Hospitals and other employers would love to have one source to go to; just think of their wish list to water down and or strip items from nurse practice acts, and hand them over to UAPs.

Think my girls about what you are asking for, think long and hard. Again this country had far too much power gathered up in Washington DC, and look what it has gotten us? Do you really want to hand them yet more? Once things such as this are done, they are hardly if ever undone, and the consequences shall have to be borne as best one can.

I agree, and I believe national licensure would be a v. bad idea. I would do everything I could to oppose it.

In addition to the points made above:

Some states have stricter standards and do a better job of policing/regulating nursing practice than others. I live in a state that has high standards and is pretty vigilant and rigorous about policing nurses within the state. I would hate to see my state's standards drop to the level of some of the other states.

Also, think about how many people post here about how much difficulty they have contacting their BON, and how arrogant and unhelpful the BON staff are when they finally do get hold of them. You think you've got problems now??? Imagine if there were just one BON for the entire nation ... :uhoh3:

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