It is with great joy and pride that CAPA announces that AB 1501 now includes a highly anticipated and crucial amendment to modernize PA practice in the state. As currently written, AB 1501 will increase physician to PA ratios from 1:4 to 1:8 in ALL practice settings. It will also stipulate that the Physician Assistant Board (PAB) conduct a review of the utility and structure of practice agreements that includes a comparison of other states' utilization (or lack thereof).
Once signed into law, this will be a major win for PAs and patients across California, and CAPA is very proud of this accomplishment. CAPA leadership and staff worked tirelessly for several months with our lobbyists, key stakeholders, legislators and their staffers to make this a reality. We anticipate that the bill will continue through the legislature as written, be signed by the governor, and become law in early 2026.
This win was hard won and involved the quick work (under a very short deadline) and coordination of many CAPA PAs and PA students. In total, CAPA leadership and its lobbying team organized and attended 32 meetings with key legislators. Five passionate PAs stood in front of the Business and Professions Committee to expound on the ways current legislation limits PA practice and obstruct healthcare access. Dozens more meetings occurred with various key stakeholders to obtain consensus and get this amendment added.
The PAB's leadership and support was crucial for this success, and we very much appreciate the leadership that current president Deon Kidd, DHSc, MPH, MS, PA-C, and immediate past president Sonya Earley, EdD, PA-C, displayed.
Lastly, we also could not have asked for a more supportive collaboration from the #PASCAN grassroots efforts led by our own Emily Thatcher, PA-C. This grassroots campaign unified the efforts of PAs and PA students throughout California who called upon their local district legislators to educate them and their staffers on the value and critical impact PAs are making in California’s healthcare. The combined work of this campaign and the many discussions CAPA leaders held with legislators helped to raise more awareness around PA contributions in all aspects of healthcare.
Doubling the supervision ratio in a state like CA was no easy task. It takes a significant amount of time, effort, coordination, and negotiations. While we could not have done it without support from key stakeholders, CAPA spearheaded the full effort, and CAPA alone is the reason that this amendment was added. CAPA is the one and only entity advocating for the PA profession in California, and we need every PA in the state to support CAPA with membership, conference attendance, PAC donations, engagement on social media, and conversations with colleagues and patients about who PAs are and what we do. Whichever call-to-action you choose, CAPA looks forward to modernizing your profession with you.
