Howard Glassroth
American Academy of Physician Assistants
703-836-2272 ext. 3505

AAPA SUPPORTS MACY FOUNDATION REPORT

Improving Primary Care Requires Removing Barriers to PA Practice

Washington, D.C. – March 10, 2010 – AAPA applauds the innovative health care recommendations presented in the Josiah Macy, Jr., Foundations’ recent report entitled “Who Will Provide Primary Care and How Will They Be Trained?” The report, released March 4, 2010, highlights an important component of improving primary care: removing the regulatory barriers to PA-provided care.

“Removing regulatory barriers is critical to providing the best possible patient-centered care,” said AAPA President Stephen Hanson. “Not only do regulations restrict team leadership, but they also adversely affect physician-PA team practice. These barriers range from restrictions on PA prescribing to inflexible physician supervisory laws.”

AAPA strongly supports the Foundation’s recommendations and reaffirms the PA profession’s philosophy that physician supervision is fundamental to PA practice; physicians will always be the clinical leaders of health care teams. However, this principle does not preclude PAs from leading teams and managing patient care under the direction of physicians. This team model is a valuable method for delivering high quality, cost-effective, patient-centered care.

The Foundation’s report is based on consensus from a January health policy conference aimed at developing ways to improve primary care and it delineates three main areas of improvement. First, the United States must invest more in primary care. This investment includes incentivizing primary care practice, reducing barriers to care and updating reimbursement systems. Second, there must be dramatic improvements in the way primary care providers are educated and trained. Educational facilities need to increase class sizes for primary care and must develop interdisciplinary educational models. Finally, strong leadership is needed to implement these changes, and this leadership must be developed and supported through education and funding.

“With a projected shortage of 40,000 primary care physicians over the next ten years, it is imperative that all primary care medical professionals work together for effective solutions,” said AAPA’s CEO, Bill Leinweber. “This is especially true since well-trained PAs are entering the workforce at a faster rate than physicians.”

The January health policy conference was attended by a diverse group representing primary care, including allopathic and osteopathic physicians, PAs, nurse practitioners, academics and leaders in health care policy.

To read the report, please go to:

http://josiahmacyfoundation.org/index.php?section=publications

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The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) is the only national professional association that represents PAs across all medical and surgical specialties in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the armed forces and federal services. Founded in 1968, AAPA works to increase the professional and personal growth of the entire PA workforce by providing comprehensive support and advocacy for physician assistants so that they may, in turn, provide patients with increased access to quality, cost-effective health care.