October Regulatory Update

– The best resource for monthly updates.

Here is our monthly regulatory update. See below for changes from several states introducing legislation. A big thanks to our compliance team, who monitors state, federal, and international updates.

Alabama: 

License renewals for pharmacy technicians, pharmacy interns, and facilities are open as of 9/15/2023. The renewals are due by 12/31/2023. Renewals can be completed on the Alabama Board of Pharmacy website: https://albop.com/ 

California: 

The California Board of Registered Nursing has announced that it will now accept electronic transcripts for US Out-of-State graduates. Transcripts must be sent either directly from the school or via a third party vendor (Parchment, National Student Clearinghouse, etc). Submit electronic transcripts via board email BRN.eTranscripts@dca.ca.gov. 

The process for international transcripts has not changed. Submission of international transcripts must still be sent to the board by mail. 

CA BRN Fall 2023 Report: Transcripts submission (pg. 9)

The California Board of Registered Nursing has issued a reminder that the Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) out-of-state approval ended 2/28/2023, and practicing under the EMSA authorization is no longer valid. The board urges that nurses who were practicing under an EMSA license should apply for licensure by endorsement to continue to practice in California. Once an application for licensure by endorsement has been submitted, EMSA nurses can immediately apply for a temporary license which would be valid for six months. 

CA BRN Fall 2023 Report: EMSA Authorization Ended (pg. 16)

California SB 143 was passed on 9/13/2023. This legislation extends the expiration date of Postgraduate Training Licenses (PTL) for licenses that expire after 6/1/2023 and before 12/31/2023 to now expire on 3/31/2024. It also provides more time for board-approved postgraduates training out-of-state to obtain their Physician’s and Surgeon’s (P&S) license – residents enrolled in a California ACGME-accredited program will have a total of 180 days from the date they being their training program to obtain a P&S license. 

CA SB 143
CA Medical Board News Release 9/18/2023

Effective January 1, 2024, the Medical Board of California will only accept certain licensing documents via the Direct Online Certification Submission (DOCS) system. These documents will no longer be accepted if submitted via mail. These documents include: 

• Certificate of Medical Education (Form MED)
• Official Transcript 
• Official English Translation of Transcript 
• Postgraduate Training License Enrollment Form (Form EF) 
• Certificate of Completion of ACGME/RCPSC/CFPC Postgraduate Training (Form PTA-B) 
• Certificate of Completion of CODA Postgraduate Training (Form CODA1-CODA2) 
• Current Postgraduate Training Verification (Form CTV) 
• Explanation to Application Question (Form EXP)

CA Medical Board News Release 9/12/2023

Colorado: 

Legislation has been proposed to regulate certified midwife licenses and include certified nurse midwives under the Board of Nursing. 

CO SB 23-167

Indiana: 

Indiana Senate Bill 400 made several updates to the statutes regarding provider agreements and credentialing for Managed Care Organizations (MCOs), Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and insurers. These changes will be effective 01/01/2024.  

• Medicaid providers are no longer required to use the centralized credentials verification organization to complete enrollment requirements. Enrollment requirements will be established by the secretary (amendments to IC 12-15-11-5).  
• All providers must use the CAQH application form for credentialing (amendments to IC 12-15-11-9). 
• MCO and HMOs must notify applicants of any errors or omissions in their applications within 5 days from receipt of application (amendments to IC 12-15-11-9). 
• The MCO must complete final determination of the provider credentialing no later than 60 days from provisional credentialing (amendments to IC 12-15-11-9) 
• Medical staff may make recommendations to grant clinical privileges, appoint or reappoint applicants for no longer than 36 months (amendments to IC 16-21-1-7.2)
• HMOs must do the following when handling “clean” applications: 
  • Notify the provider when they have been provisionally credentialed; 
  • Issue a credentialing determination within 15 days after having received a clean application from a provider
  • If the HMO fails to issue the credentialing determination, the provider will be provisionally credentialed in accordance with the standards and guidelines governing provisional credentialing under NCQA – this provisional credentialing remains valid until a determination is made on the application (amendments to IC 27-13-43-2). 

This is a summary of the changes to Indiana’s healthcare provider credentialing requirements.This is not a comprehensive list of all changes. Please see SB-400 for additional information. 

IN SB 400

*Disclaimer: This information has been gathered from a variety of sources. Although Verisys has made every effort to provide complete, accurate and up-to-date information, Verisys makes no warranties, express or implied, or representations as to the accuracy or reliability of this information. The information is fluid and evolving. Verisys assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the information contained in this resource.