MCNP Presents Testimony in Support of NP Capacity Bill Before the Joint Committee on the Judiciary 

On October 31, 2023, MCNP presented testimony before the Joint Committee on the Judiciary in support of H.1539, An Act Relative to Determining Capacity and Involving the Health Care Proxy.

If passed, the bill will give Nurse Practitioners legal authority to determine capacity regarding medical decision making and the ability to invoke the health care proxy. Currently, this authority is limited in statute to an “attending physician” and was not addressed in 2021 legislation granting Full Practice Authority to Nurse Practitioners.

MCNP Member Nicole DePace, a Hospice and Palliative Care NP and member of the MCNP Legislative Steering Committee working to advance the bill, led the 3-person panel highlighting the nature of capacity assessments in clinical care and challenges faced by patients and families under the current law.

She was followed by compelling testimony from Darlene Sawicki, Director of Advanced Practice Providers and ALS NP at Massachusetts General Hospital. When speaking of an instance when a patient she knew well had to be referred to the ER when there was not a physician readily available to make a time sensitive capacity determination, Darlene shared  “I cannot think of anything more unnecessary and cruel, than to ask caregivers to bring their loved one into the emergency department, wait for hours to be seen by a team that does not know their baseline and sometimes are not experienced with ALS, wait hours if not days to be admitted, for yet again, another round of physicians that do not know the patient only to call me to ask my professional opinion as to the patient’s capacity. Our patients deserve better.”

MCNP President, Laura Black closed the panel making a strong case for the bill and stressed “ When Nurse Practitioners cannot determine capacity and invoke the health care proxy for patients under their care, decisions regarding medical treatment are delayed, patient’s wishes cannot be honored, families and caregivers are subject to undue emotional stress, and our physician colleagues, who are already overstretched and may not be readily available, are forced to see and make capacity determinations on patients they may not know.” 

In addition to our panelists and members of our Legislative Steering Committee, MCNP would like to thank our members and other supporters who submitted written testimony in support of the bill.

As the Joint Committee on the Judiciary continues to deliberate the bill, YOU can support our efforts by sending a pre-formatted email to your legislators through our advocacy center.

It only takes a moment, and the more emails sent, the more powerful the message that this bill is important to you and the patients you care for. 

CLICK HERE TO ACT NOW AND VOICE YOUR SUPPORT OF H.1539