Prescriptive Authority Journal of Nursing

Prescriptive Authority for Nurse Practitioners

Tags: debate future of nursing Nurse Practitioners Prescriptive Authority

The physician shortage in primary care, plus the growth of nurse practitioners and increasing need for access to health care, creates a necessity for more autonomous nurse practitioners. However, current restrictions on nurse practitioners, particularly prescription regulations for controlled substances, limit what practitioners can do for patients. These restrictions also increase wait times for patients and have the potential to increase liability claims as physicians prescribe medications for patients they have not adequately evaluated. Nurse practitioners have proven to be a safe, quality, and cost saving approach to primary care. To meet the growing needs for patients, nurse practitioners must have the ability to prescribe controlled substances in all 50 states.