The Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare opened a hearing on Senate Bill 41, which would add advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) to the definition of “health care provider” under the Kansas Health Care Stabilization Fund and subject those APRNs to the fund’s minimum professional liability requirements, committee members heard.

Jenna Moyer, reviser in the Statute's Office, told the panel that the bill amends KSA 40-34-01, adds APRNs to the fund’s definition of health care provider, and applies the existing minimum professional liability requirement and access to fund protections to nurse practitioners and other APRNs. “It adds advanced practice registered nurses so ARNPs to the definition of health care provider,” Moyer said, adding the measure also cleans up numbering to make the statute more readable.

The bill drew a proponent from the Kansas Medical Society and an opponent from the state APRN organization. Rochelle Colombo, executive director of the Kansas Medical Society, said the measure stems from a recommendation by the Health Care Stabilization Fund Oversight Committee and would make malpractice requirements consistent across provider types. “It again would provide some clarity and, consistency that would protect patients,” Colombo said, noting the fund was created in 1976 amid a malpractice crisis and that participation currently requires $1 million in coverage per claim.

Dustin Baker, a family nurse practitioner and president of the Kansas Advanced Practice Registered Nurses Association (KAPEN), testified in opposition to SB 41 as introduced. Baker told the committee that more than 7,100 APRNs with prescriptive authority would be added under the bill and said APRNs already must carry malpractice insurance under 2022 changes to state law but that the amount was not specified in statute. He raised concerns about whether major APRN liability carriers would qualify under the fund’s rules, the fund’s current board composition, and potential surcharge and market impacts, particularly for part-time practitioners and small rural practices. “We would respectfully ask that the committee oppose SB 41, as the legislature has already addressed the malpractice insurance for APRNs,” Baker said, and requested time for a comprehensive review of eligibility and insurer qualification before adding APRNs to the fund.

Clark Schultz, executive director of the Health Care Stabilization Fund, told the committee the board has implemented additions in the past and stands ready to administer the law if the Legislature enacts it. Schultz said the fund uses actuarial studies to set fair surcharge rates and that, in many cases, joining the fund can reduce net cost for providers because the fund’s surcharge structure may lower total premiums paid. “If this bill goes forward and it becomes law, our Board of Governors stands ready to implement it and we will do it fairly,” Schultz said.

Senator Blasey, who said she brought the measure forward based on the oversight committee’s recommendation, argued the change is about protecting patients as APRNs’ prescribing and scope of practice have expanded. Several senators asked about board composition and whether the board should include additional APRN representation; committee staff pointed to KSA 40-34-03 for the board’s statutory makeup and said the Legislature could amend that composition if it chooses.

No formal vote or committee action occurred during the hearing. Supporters said SB 41 would standardize liability minimums and access to the fund’s protections for all APRN types; opponents asked for clarification about insurer eligibility, exemptions, how overlapping specialties would be treated, and whether the fund’s governance should be adjusted before adding all APRNs. The hearing closed with the committee taking no immediate action on the bill.

Questions the committee flagged for follow-up included whether major APRN liability carriers would qualify under fund rules, how the fund would classify overlapping APRN specialties, and whether the board should be expanded or restructured to include additional APRN representation. The Health Care Stabilization Fund indicated it would perform actuarial work and set surcharges if the change becomes law.