Panel backs adding interstate licensure compacts to state disciplinary law

House Bill 16-40, presented Wednesday to the House Health Care & Wellness Committee, would bring licenses issued under the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact and the Physician Assistant licensure compact within the scope of Washington's Uniform Disciplinary Act (UDA) and designate the Washington Medical Commission as the disciplining authority for those compact-issued licenses.

Committee staff explained that the UDA currently covers health professionals credentialed by the Department of Health and by state boards and commissions; HB 16-40 would explicitly subject compact-issued physician and physician assistant licenses to the same disciplinary framework. The bill would make the Medical Commission the disciplining authority for these compact licenses.

Janice Saan, the prime sponsor, said the bill was requested by the Washington Medical Commission and framed it as a consistency and oversight fix to preserve the state's ability to regulate out-of-state licensed clinicians who obtain compact-issued licenses to practice in Washington. "This bill would create consistency by including these compacts into the uniform disciplinary act that governs the credentialing of these health professionals," Saan said, adding she introduced the bill as a first-time sponsor and that workforce shortages make interstate compacts important to the state.

Taylor Bacharach Nixon testified on behalf of the Washington Medical Commission in strong support, calling HB 16-40 "a necessary...technical fix" to close unintended regulatory gaps and ensure consistent application of the UDA to clinicians licensed through interstate compacts.

The committee held the bill for further consideration; no formal action was taken during the hearing.