Video: Why Laws Had to Change to Allow More Doctors to Work Across State Lines
Karin Lips, President of NeW, and Shoshana Weissmann, Senior Manager of Digital Media and Communications for R Street Institute, talk about occupational licensing reform and why laws had to change during coronavirus to allow more doctors to work across state lines.
Should doctors and nurses registered in one state be able to practice in another state? Under traditional state licensing regimes, individual states require people to meet certain, specific requirements in order to get a license to practice an occupation, so trying to work across a state line requires a new license. Occupational licenses are justified as a means to protect the public health and safety. In some cases, they serve this purpose. But often, occupational licensing requirements are primarily barriers to entry meant to limit competition to existing workers and businesses. Occupational licensing is increasingly common. Today, occupational licensing covers nearly 30% of the U.S. workforce, up from 5% in the 1950s.
