Physician Assistant Board to form practice-agreement review committee under AB 1501, board says

At its Nov. 17 meeting the California Physician Assistant Board announced creation of a Practice Agreement Review Committee (PARC) to gather testimony and synthesize information about how practice agreements for physician assistants are used in other states.

Board President Kidd said the committee stems from language in Assembly Bill 1501 (AB 1501), enacted earlier in the year, which extended the board's sunset date to 2030 and included a legislative direction to review practice agreement structures. "To support this review, I hereby establish the practice agreement review committee," Kidd told the board, adding stakeholders such as the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA/CAPA), the Physician Assistant Education Association, and the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) would be invited to testify beginning in 2026.

Several board members questioned the committee's workload and whether soliciting and reviewing stakeholder summaries could lead the board into policymaking rather than remaining an oversight body. One member argued the statute states the review "shall not be construed to impose any additional regulatory responsibilities or workload on the board," and cautioned that reviewing data from every state could be substantial. President Kidd and other board members responded that the committee's primary role would be to receive stakeholder testimony and syntheses rather than conduct raw data collection, and said the PARC would inform future policy discussions but not itself adopt policy.

The board did not finalize membership at the Nov. 17 meeting; President Kidd said more details and committee membership would be provided once selections are made. Staff and members noted stakeholder testimony will be recorded in board minutes and may be used in sunset review reports or other publications.