Tennessee legislators are pushing for a bill that would lessen restrictions on physician assistants, ABC affiliate WATE reported Feb. 21.
The legislation would allow physician assistants to open their own practices in rural communities and modernize oversight and regulations.
"The law has not really been updated regarding practice since 1999," Rachel Enigk, staff for South College's Physician Assistant Program, told the news outlet. "It's a little bit archaic in terms of the extent of our education and the things that PA's get trained by physicians to do."
Proponents of the bill believe updating regulations will help with the state's healthcare workforce shortage and provide more flexibility to provide patient care.