The California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) discussed AB 890 regulations at their recent Board meeting and published the following background in its agenda:
BACKGROUND: AB 890 (Wood, Reg. Sess. 2019-2020) was signed into law by Governor Newsom in September 2020, adding (among other things) Article 8.5, Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (BPC § 2837.100 et seq.), to Chapter 6 of Division 2 of the Business and Professions Code. It creates two new categories of nurse practitioners (NPs) to function within a defined scope of practice within their areas of specialty – sometimes referred to as a 103 NP and a 104 NP, based on the parameters set out in BPC section 2837.103 and 2837.104, respectively. This adds to the existing category of NP, which may transition to practice to a 103 NP, who may choose to ultimately become a 104 NP, with each category of NP performing their duties with increasing degrees of independence. The proposed modification to the BRN’s regulations, Article 8, Standards for Nurse Practitioners, clarifies and provides details on how the new 103 NPs and 104 NPs will be implemented.
The language added to the regulations defines each category of NP and explains the steps needed for the basic NP to reach a 103 NP and 104 NP status. The Board, during its November 17-18, 2021, meeting, approved to move forward with rulemaking but did not adopt the language presented.
There was still some information missing, including the naming of the two new categories of NPs at that time. The Board, during its February 16-17, 2022, meeting decided not to give designated names to the two new categories of NPs, which has changed the regulatory language now presented. One other change reflected in the new language is that the required information to apply for the new categories of NPs is now embedded in the regulatory language and is not reflected in an application form incorporated by reference.
You may view the full write-up, including a summary of the changes beginning on page 18 of the agenda here.
The California Medical Association (CMA) and the California Academy of Family Physicians submitted a letter to the BRN to provide input regarding the proposed regulations implementing the statute adopted by AB 890. You may view the letter here. We expect the BRN to begin the formal rulemaking process soon. More to come.