Physician Assistant modernization bills, SB 397 (now Act 78) and SB 398 (now Act 79) passed out of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and the Senate and were signed into law by Governor Tom Wolf. The bills remove unnecessary restrictions on Physician Assistants (PAs), place decision making with PAs and supervising physician(s), place a permanent PA representative on the Medical and Osteopathic Boards, allow the filing of written agreements without needing prior approval of written agreement (states that already allow this do not show an increase in malpractice/reportable events), remove the 100 percent countersignature requirement and allow supervising physicians to determine need for countersignature, and align the supervision requirements under the Medical Board and Osteopathic Board.
A summary of the changes in the Medical and Osteopathic Practice Acts after passage of SB 397 and 398 is available on the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants (PSPA) website.