House Unanimously Approves Bill to Increase Use of Physician Assistants

The Montana House of Representatives unanimously approved a bill that would facilitate increased use of physician assistants by removing provisions that limit when they can treat injured workers or conduct impairment rating evaluations. The House on Monday voted 98-0 to pass HB 143, by Rep. Jodee Etchart, R-Billings. Montana law currently allows physician assistants to serve as an injured worker's treating physician and to perform impairment ratings only if there is not a licensed physician in the same geographic area. HB 143 would eliminate the geographic requirement and allow phys...