The American Medical Association’s House of Delegates – in which multiple PPP supporters are honored to serve – has voted to finance research evaluating patient safety outcomes between physician-led care and unsupervised mid-level practitioners. Strong advocacy by PPP founder and leader, Rebekah Bernard, MD, helped lead to this welcome development.
Representing the Florida delegation which introduced the resolution in collaboration with two other states, Dr. Bernard said during debate on the resolution:
“Legislators continue to hear claims from NP and PA advocacy groups that studies say they are just as good or better than physicians. We know these studies are referring to patients that are being seen for low conditions, for simple problems and always involve physician oversight. But legislators are not hearing these caveats. We need rigorous, independent data on the safety, efficacy, and cost of unsupervised NPs and PAs, and we need it urgently.”
The resolution passed, funding academically rigorous research to evaluate patient safety and treatment outcomes under a physician-led care model versus autonomous mid-level practitioners.
Physicians for Patient Protection applauds this decision. Consistent, dedicated advocacy by our supporters has led to national progress on preserving physician-led care. This includes shaping the advocacy and research work of other important medical societies. In response to the funding action by AMA, our President, Sharon D’Souza, MD, MPH, said:
“Unsupervised nurse practitioners and physician assistants compromise patient safety. Mid-level advocacy groups have pushed a dangerous and false narrative claiming NPPs provide care equivalent to physicians based on biased and incomplete research. Legislators across the country have been misled by these claims. Physicians for Patient Protection strongly supports this new funding for independent, academic research that will evaluate patient safety outcomes for care overseen by a physician compared with care that is not. We look forward to this data empowering lawmakers and regulators to make policy that protects patients.”
The urgency of this new initiative is emphasized by specialist physicians across America who report a massive surge in unsupervised non-physician practitioners performing complex treatments without standardized accreditation, oversight, or the extensive training of physicians. By prioritizing objective research, the AMA’s initiative hopes to demonstrate how physician leadership impacts medical costs, clinical utilization, and overall patient safety.
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