Come Jan. 1, the state’s nearly 1,340 physician assistants will no longer have to have a signed “collaboration agreement” with a physician for their entire career. The sponsors of House Bill 1222, which Gov. Chris Sununu signed Friday, July 26, said complaints from physician assistants prompted the legislation.

Some said they are being charged $1,000 a month for a collaboration agreement they don’t believe changes how they practice. Others said this year that they’ve lost jobs when new physicians arrive at their practice and refuse to sign agreements.

The agreements specify how a physician assistant will work with their physician and identify the scope of their practice, based on their education, training and experience. It must state that the physician shall be available for consults in person, by phone or by email whenever they are practicing.

The NH Medical Society opposed the bill, saying it stripped away guardrails defining a physician assistant’s scope of practice and identifying each party’s responsibilities.

Under the bill, collaboration agreements will be required only for physician assistants who have fewer than 8,000 hours of post-graduate clinical experience whose office or health care system does not include at least one physician doing similar work. Those with more than 8,000 hours whose practice does not include a physician working in their field of medicine will be able to seek a waiver to work without a written agreement.

This story was originally produced by the New Hampshire Bulletin, an independent local newsroom that allows NH Business Review and other outlets to republish its reporting.