Oklahoma Association of Nurse Anesthetists Speak Out Against Senate Bill in Local Newspaper

Written by Staff | March 04, 2010

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President Don Mordecai and Government Relations Chairman Victor Long of the Oklahoma Association of Nurse Anesthetists spoke out against a controversial bill in the Oklahoma Senate that would prohibit certified registered nurse anesthetists from providing certain injections for patients with chronic pain in an opinion piece published in The Edmond Sun.

Mr. Mordecai and Mr. Long argue that the states' 500-plus nurse anesthetists are just as qualified as physicians to provide pain management in patients with conditions such as arthritis. They further point out that many of Oklahoma's counties do not have an anesthesiologist, whereas CRNAs practice in every single county.

According to Mr. Mordecai and Mr. Long, nurse anesthetists provide "roughly 70 percent of anesthesia in the state." Prohibiting CRNAs from performing some services could be devastating to rural areas, they argue in the report.

Mr. Mordecai and Mr. Long also address some points raised by supporters of the bill. First, they note that nurse anesthetists do not solicit their own patients; rather, all patients must be referred by a physician to receive pain management care. Second, they say nurse anesthetists provide care at a less expensive rate than physicians.

Finally, Mr. Mordecai and Mr. Long note that the bill is not an issue of scope-of-practice, as nurse anesthetists are not asking for their practicing privileges to be expanded.

Read the Sun's report on the Oklahoma Senate CRNA bill.

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