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Committee hears split testimony on bill requiring provider badges and title limits
Summary
A bill requiring healthcare provider identification badges, advertising disclosures and a statutory 'physician surgeon' designation drew support from physician groups and patient-safety advocates and opposition from nursing groups and adult-family-home providers concerned about compliance burdens and unintended consequences.
Representative Marshall, the prime sponsor, told the House Health Care and Wellness Committee the goal of House Bill 2261 is transparency so patients can understand who is providing their care and what credentials those providers hold.
The bill would require credentialed healthcare providers to wear identification badges during patient encounters listing the provider’s name, the type of credential and healthcare-related degree initials, and would require advertisements naming a healthcare provider to include the same credential information. It would also create a statutory designation of "physician surgeon" limited to physicians who meet surgical residency/fellowship and specified board certification criteria.
Physician groups and patient-safety advocates largely supported the proposal. Amy Brackenberry of the Washington State Medical Association said the bill creates a uniform transparency standard and noted that 38 other states have similar laws. Dr. Stephanie Kramer of the Washington Academy of Eye Physicians and Surgeons and other physicians said the new "physician surgeon" designation would prevent patients from assuming that every physician is a surgeon.
Patient advocates said misrepresentation can harm patients. Rex Johnson of Voice and Advocates for Patient Safety described personal experiences being introduced to nonphysicians as "doctors" and said patients need clear distinctions between physicians, physician assistants and advanced practice nurses to make informed decisions.
Opponents — including nurse leaders, advanced practice nurses and small residential providers — urged the committee not to advance the bill as written. Justin Gill, president of the Washington State Nurses Association, called the bill administratively burdensome and said requiring clinicians to list multiple degrees could shift attention away from competence and access. Kelly Camp, president of the Washington Association of Nurse Anesthesiology, called the proposal a "compliance trap" that could worsen workforce shortages.
Adult family home providers asked for an explicit exemption. Dorothy Schlemme, executive board chair of the Adult Family Home Council, said caregivers in home residences are known personally by residents and that hospital-style badges would "erode the home-like atmosphere" and add disproportionate regulatory risk when noncompliance could be treated as unprofessional conduct.
Several witnesses — including Dee Bender — urged inclusion of board certification information, saying that a provider’s degree (MD, DO, DNP, etc.) does not automatically indicate specialty competence and that omitting board certification could leave out information patients consider the "gold standard." The transcript shows the sponsor acknowledged ongoing work on substitute language to narrow the degree listing and to address concerns about international medical graduates.
The committee closed public testimony on HB 2261 and moved on to the next item on the agenda; no formal committee vote on HB 2261 is recorded in the transcript.
The committee will consider substitute language and stakeholder input as the bill moves forward.
