HJBR Sep/Oct 2023

54 SEP / OCT 2023 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE NURSING COLUMN NURSING The 2023 Legislative Session was expected to be a slow session with few bills introduced that would have a significant effect on the Louisiana State Board of Nursing (LSBN). However, between bills and resolutions, it turned out to be a very active session for nursing, and the following statutory, practice, and education activities will have varying effects on the agency and nurses in Louisiana. HB 181/Act 363: Telemedicine access for coroners. This act allows for emergency certification designation by psychiatric/ mental health nurse practitioners or oth- er nurse practitioners in accordance with guidelines within their respective collab- orative practice agreements (CPAs). The psych/mental health examination may be conducted by means of telehealth. Within 72 hours after the initial examination, the patient must be examined independently by the coroner, his deputy, or his assistant. Act 363 became effective Aug. 1, 2023. HB 319/Act 4: This act repeals certain aspects of licensure by endorsement. Act 4 repeals RS 37:920(B)(1)(b) in its entirety, eliminating the requirement that an appli- cant for licensure by endorsement holds a current license issued from the juris- diction of his last employment. This cre- dentials check has routinely only been an issue for internationally educated nurses. While it will require more work for LSBN, we will still be able to check discipline and licensure through credentialing evaluation services (CES) documents and former em- ployers. The act became effective May 23, 2023. HB 320/Act 80: HB 320 is now Act 80, related to nursing education and qualifications for a certified nurse aide and apracticalnurse,neitherofwhichareunder LSBN’s regulatory authority but may have implications that affect LSBN. The act will allow graduates of any LSBN-approved pre-licensure RN program who fails the NCLEX-RN examination to register for and take the NCLEX-PN examination and, PRACTICE, REGULATION, & EDUCATION: 3rd Quarter LSBN Review of Activities