Newswise — DALLAS – During a special two-day meeting Jan. 16-17, representatives from nearly 50 state medical boards explored a variety of new mechanisms that would streamline current licensing processes for physicians and better accommodate the use of telemedicine in the delivery of health care.
Speakers at the meeting addressed the opportunities and challenges that emerging technologies in medical practice present for state-based medical licensure. Speakers included James Geringer, former Governor of Wyoming, and Crady deGolian, Director of the National Center for Interstate Compacts at the Council of State Governments. Representatives from state medical boards provided overviews of work underway in their states and proposed new mechanisms to expedite licensure and expand telemedicine access.
“The level of dialogue in exploring new approaches to streamline medical licensing processes was outstanding,” said FSMB Chair Lance Talmage, MD. “State medical boards continue to build on momentum achieved in recent years to develop a robust system that makes it easier for physicians to get licensed in multiple states, while ensuring the safety and security of patients.”
Licensing approaches discussed during the Dallas meeting would create additional streamlining features for physician licensing, intended to respond to the growth of telemedicine and multi-state health care provider organizations.
The meeting was hosted by the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), a national non-profit organization representing the 70 medical boards within the United States and its territories, in conjunction with Administrators in Medicine, a national organization for state medical board executives. A set of recommendations from the meeting will be reviewed by the FSMB’s Board of Directors in February and then forwarded to the organization’s House of Delegates for consideration in April.
The event was the latest in a series of initiatives by the FSMB License Portability Project, which is funded by a grant from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration and is intended to streamline the state medical licensure process and reduce statutory and regulatory barriers to telemedicine.
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About the FSMBThe FSMB is a national non-profit organization representing all medical boards within the United States and its territories that license and discipline allopathic and osteopathic physicians and, in some jurisdictions, other health care professionals. It assists these state and territorial medical boards as they go about their mandate of protecting the public’s health, safety and welfare. The FSMB leads by promoting excellence in medical practice, licensure and regulation. For more information, please visit www.fsmb.org.
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