July 25, 2025Open Access

The PA Licensure Compact: Identification of Significant Factors to Enacting Legislation

VHVirginia C. HughesRegeneron (United States)

Key Points

MAIN FINDING: The study identifies key factors influencing states to adopt the PA Licensure Compact for healthcare service improvements.
KEY EVIDENCE: Significant factors include the number of PA programs, amount of PA’s, and the number of physicians, especially in critical specialties.
APPROACH: The analysis used logistic regression on various factors such as population density, rural areas, and medical education resources.
SIGNIFICANCE: Understanding these factors can help streamline healthcare delivery by promoting interstate PA practice through the Compact.

Abstract

The PA Licensure Compact (PALC) is an optional agreement between states that aims to increase healthcare services for patients by allowing PA’s with a license in a compact member state to practice in any other member state. Currently eighteen states have enacted the PALC. A study was conducted assessing factors that impact a states decision to join the PALC. State population density, number of PA programs, number of medical schools, rural population, rural land area, rural population density, number of PA’s in each state, percentage of PA’s in each state, PA’s that participate in telemedicine, and number of physicians in each state with stratification into neonatal, cardiovascular, critical care, endocrinology, oncology, gastroenterology, and emergency medicine were analyzed in a logistic regression design. The number of PA Programs and PA’s in each state, number of physicians practicing in the US, cardiovascular, gastroenterology, and emergency medicine were found to be statistically significant (P

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