Poll Shows Patients Overwhelmingly Support Nurse Practitioners Working to the Full Extent of Their Education
Media Contact: Bryan Black
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Patients and health care providers continue to express their support of nurse practitioners and the need for greater access to NP-delivered care. The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) applauds the results of a poll that shows 82% of patients support allowing nurse practitioners (NPs) to practice to the full extent of their education and clinical training, including through telehealth.
The survey commissioned by the Alliance for Connected Care and conducted by Morning Consult also finds nearly 80% of health care providers — including a sample of physicians, NPs, PAs, nurses and therapists — also agree NPs should be practicing to the full extent of their training.
“The results of this survey come as no surprise, given the high-quality health care NPs deliver — in person and via telehealth — and the high degree of trust patients place in NPs,” said April N. Kapu, DNP, APRN, ACNP- BC, FAANP, FCCM, FAAN, president of AANP. “Recently, both New York and Kansas enacted legislation that removes barriers to NP-delivered care. Currently, 26 states have Full Practice Authority. It’s time for the remaining 24 states to do the same, and this poll clearly shows most Americans support that action.”
In 2021, Delaware and Massachusetts enacted Full Practice Authority (FPA), expanding patient access to quality care, and New York and Kansas enacted FPA legislation this year. For the first time in history, patients in a majority of states — as well as the District of Columbia and two U.S. territories — have full and direct access to NPs.
NPs deliver high-quality health care in more than 1 billion patient visits each year. Currently, there are more than 355,000 licensed NPs in the United States who provide care in communities of all sizes, and recently, U.S. News and World Report ranked the NP role first on its 2022 Best Health Care Jobs list.
The poll commissioned by the Alliance for Connected Care covered a number of topics asking patients and practitioners about their telehealth usage and telehealth experiences, their use of care across state lines, and the workforce implications of these developments. Another interesting result found 84% of recent telehealth patients say they have personally benefited from the option to receive care through telehealth, including telehealth visits with NPs.
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The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) is the largest professional membership organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) of all specialties. It represents the interests of the more than 355,000 licensed NPs in the U.S. AANP provides legislative leadership at the local, state and national levels, advancing health policy; promoting excellence in practice, education and research; and establishing standards that best serve NPs' patients and other health care consumers. To locate an NP in your community, visit npfinder.com. For more information about NPs, visit aanp.org