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South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard has made it official: the bill sent to him that eases restrictions on nurse practitioners and certified nurse-midwives is now law.

That means 22 states and the District of Columbia have updated their laws to give residents more options for health care by allowing nurses the right to practice to the full extent of their education and training.

This is a model of care “that has been proven to increase access, improve outcomes and control costs,” said the president of the president of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners in a statement saluting the modernized law.

Since the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action began, nine states have increased consumers’ access to care by removing legal barriers that prevented nurse practitioners from providing care to the full extent of their education and training.

The post With New Law, South Dakota Ushers in Era of Better Health Care appeared first on Campaign for Action.

South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard is expected to soon sign a bill that will give residents of the state more options when it comes to their health care.

Since 1979, nurse practitioners and certified nurse-midwives have been allowed to practice only with a collaborative agreement that requires oversight by a physician. The bill, which passed in both legislative houses early this week, means South Dakota nurses can practice without oversight after they have completed 1,040 practice hours with physicians or experienced nurse practitioners or certified nurse-midwives, a change that will expand the pool of primary care providers for those seeking care.

The new law will also mean only the South Dakota Board of Nursing will regulate nurses–previously the South Dakota Board of Medical and Osteopathic Examiners also had authority. (Four states continue to give their states’ boards of medicine the authority to regulate nursing along with their states’ boards of nursing.)

This means the state’s laws for nurse practitioners and certified nurse-midwives will match the Consensus Model for APRN Regulation, national standards called for in the 2010 future of nursing report.

South Dakota’s AARP office played a large role in this win that will bring easier access to care to consumers, as well as reduce unnecessary costs.

The post New Law Soon to Provide South Dakotans Better Health Care Options appeared first on Campaign for Action.

• Distribution of population by race/ethnicity
• Percentage of population living in rural versus urban areas
• Distribution of population by federal poverty level
• Areas in which there is a shortage of primary health professionals

These statistics can guide your Action Coalition’s work in shaping a nursing workforce to better meet local needs and overcoming health disparities in your state. As you integrate other Culture of Health aspects into your work, consider how demographics play a role in health equity and fostering cross-sector collaboration.

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