Congratulations Utah NPs! HB 287 Just Passed the Final Vote!

At just a few minutes after 3 pm today (March 5, 2021), the House of Representatives UNANIMOUSLY passed concurrence of House Bill 287, the last vote required for the bill which was sponsored by Representative Doug Welton, newcomer to the legislature. The bill removes the previous requirement for a signed Consultation and Referral (C&R) agreement for schedule II prescriptive authority which has been in place since the beginning of nurse practitioner practice in Utah. In addition, HB 287 also retired the "pain clinic" language that prevented a nurse practitioner from owning their own pain management clinic. Lastly, the restrictions placed on new NP in solo practice required a C&R for their first year OR their first 2,000 hours of practice have been removed and pared down the requirement to a 1,000 hour non-signature "mentorship."

The Utah Nurse Practitioner Association credits Representative Welton and the UNP Legislative Committee, as well as the numberless NPs and supporters that encouraged passage of this legislation. We heartily congratulate the Representative, Dr. Julie Balk and Lee Moss, NP who co-chaired the Legislative Committee, for their diligence, endless hours of preparation and negotiation, and for their professionalism which was noted by the Senate Health & Human Services Comittee. Lobbyist group Foxley & Pignanelli were crucial to helping us navigate and prepare for each vote.

Congratulations to all nurse practitioners in Utah and our future nurse practitioners! This is a historic moment for NPs and Utah is proud of your work. UNP hopes that each of you will continue to elevate your level of practice and that Utah will become distinguished as a friend to NPs, recruiting and retaining practitioners who offer evidence-based practice with compassion to our citizens.

Best,

Melissa J Hinton, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, CARN-AP

President, Utah Nurse Practitioners, Inc.