AB 2578: Nursing: students in out-of-state nursing programs.

Existing law, the Nursing Practice Act, establishes the Board of Registered Nursing to license and regulate the practice of nursing. The act prohibits a person from engaging in the practice of nursing without an active license but authorizes a student to render nursing services incidental to the students course of study, as specified.

This bill would additionally authorize a student to render nursing services if the student is a resident of the state and enrolled in a prelicensure distance education nursing program based at an out-of-state private postsecondary educational institution, as defined, for the purpose of gaining clinical experience in a clinical setting that meets certain criteria, including that the program is accredited by a programmatic accreditation entity recognized by the United States Department of Education and that the program maintains minimum faculty to student faculty-to-student ratios required of board-approved programs for in-person clinical experiences. The bill would require the student to be supervised in person by a registered nurse licensed by the board while rendering nursing services. The services, as specified, and would require payment to the board of a one-time fee of $100 per student placed in clinical experience in this state.

This bill would prohibit a clinical agency or facility from offering nonacute clinical experience placements to an out-of-state private postsecondary educational institution if the placements are needed to fulfill the clinical experience requirements of in-state students enrolled in a board-approved nursing program. The bill would require the program to provide initial and subsequent reports to the board, as specified. The bill would require the initial reports to include, among other things, proof of programmatic accreditation and good standing, with an attestation under penalty of perjury that the program will notify the board within 10 days of any changes in status. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.