Senate Bill 345 Summary

• Establishes "team-based practice" as an alternative supervision arrangement for physician assistants in medical practices, hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and other health facilities that have active credentialing and quality programs, excluding pain management specialties.

• Requires team-based physician assistants to have more than 4,000 hours of clinical practice experience as a licensed PA and more than 1,000 hours in their specific medical specialty before practicing without individual physician supervision.

• Permits team-based physician assistants to prescribe, order, administer, and procure drugs and medical devices without physician authorization, and to plan therapeutic regimens including non-pharmacological interventions.

• Exempts team-based physician assistants from certain supervision requirements related to prescriptions, medication orders, and compounding/dispensing, though those in perioperative settings must still be supervised by a physician.

• Becomes effective when the North Carolina Medical Board adopts permanent implementing rules or by June 30, 2023, whichever occurs first.