Healthcare (Medical Licensing)

in committee · Washington · House Mar 5, 2026

HB 2748: Using preceptorships to train primary care physicians.

This bill requires Washington's health care board to measure and report on primary care spending, aiming to increase it to 12 percent of total health care expenditures. It mandates annual reports detailing how much is spent on primary care by different insurance carriers and providers, along with recommendations for overcoming data barriers. The legislation also directs the board to study the costs of preceptorships used to train primary care physicians in hospitals and clinical settings, with a final report due by December 2027. These actions are intended to address the shortage of primary care providers in rural and underserved areas while ensuring the data collection does not create excessive administrative burdens.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill aims to increase primary care spending to 12% and study preceptorship training, strengthening healthcare workforce and access.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing Primary Care

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in committee · Washington · Senate Feb 26, 2026

SB 6356: Using preceptorships to train primary care physicians.

SB 6356 requires Washington's health care board to track and report on primary care spending, aiming to increase it to 12% of total health care expenditures. It mandates annual reports detailing primary care spending by payer, provider type, and service area (like physical vs. behavioral health), while analyzing barriers to data collection and defining "primary care" consistently. The bill also directs the board to study costs of preceptorships (supervised clinical training for doctors) by 2027, specifically to address provider shortages in rural and underserved areas. These reports and studies will guide strategies to expand primary care access without increasing administrative burdens or overall health care costs. The law directly affects health care providers, insurers, and the state's health care board through new reporting obligations.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill mandates increasing primary care spending to 12% of healthcare expenditures and requires tracking/reporting to improve funding allocation and access, directly advancing healthcare funding goals.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing Mental Health Primary Care

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in committee · Washington · Senate Jan 12, 2026

SB 6060: Concerning alternative routes to social worker licensure.

SB 6060 amends Washington State's social worker licensure rules to modify supervised experience requirements for three license types: Licensed Advanced Social Worker, Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. It specifies detailed hour requirements for direct client contact (e.g., 1,000+ hours for clinical licenses), direct supervision (e.g., 100+ hours one-on-one), and supervising professional qualifications. The bill also adds an option for clinical license applicants to use enhanced supervision instead of passing an exam, subject to supervisor attestation. These changes directly affect social workers completing training in Washington seeking state licensure. The bill is currently in committee referral after being prefaced in January 2026.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill modifies licensure requirements for mental health professionals (social workers/therapists), enabling alternative pathways to licensure and specifying standards to increase qualified providers, supporting mental health services access.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

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in committee · Washington · Senate Jan 15, 2026

SB 6166: Ensuring transparency in credentials and communications between patients and health care professionals.

SB 6166 requires health care professionals providing direct patient care to visibly display their full credentials (including degree titles) on identification badges during all patient interactions. It also mandates that any advertising naming a provider must specify their health care credential. The bill aims to reduce patient confusion about provider qualifications, particularly regarding titles like "doctor" that may imply a medical degree. These requirements apply to license holders in clinical settings but not to those without direct patient contact.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareRequires visible credential display to prevent patient confusion about provider qualifications, protecting patient rights and safety in healthcare interactions.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

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in committee · Washington · House Jan 12, 2026

HB 2302: Expanding prescriptive authority for pharmacists.

HB 2302 would allow Washington pharmacists to prescribe certain medications directly for chronic conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, behavioral health, and addiction - without requiring special agreements with physicians. Currently, pharmacists must maintain complex collaborative agreements, which the bill identifies as an unnecessary administrative burden. The change leverages pharmacists’ existing training (including 1,740 hours of patient care) to improve access to care, especially in rural and underserved communities. It amends state law to expand pharmacists’ scope of practice to fully utilize their expertise in medication management. The bill focuses on concrete policy change, not outcomes or advocacy.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExpands pharmacists' prescribing authority for chronic conditions (diabetes, addiction), removing administrative barriers to improve patient access to care without physician agreements.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Medical Licensing Prescription Drugs

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signed · Washington · Senate Mar 24, 2026

SB 6226: Protecting the clinical autonomy of audiologists.

SB 6226 (Protecting the clinical autonomy of audiologists) ensures Washington audiologists can use their clinical judgment to decide whether telehealth or in-person care is best for each patient. It amends state law to prevent regulations from creating different standards for telehealth versus in-person services, requiring all rules to be "modality-agnostic." The bill specifically prohibits the licensing board from making rules that block audiologists (and other hearing/speech professionals) from determining appropriate care methods. It allows the board to still set standards for care quality, safety, and documentation, as long as these don’t override clinical decisions about care delivery. This bill directly affects audiologists, hearing aid specialists, and speech-language pathologists providing care in Washington.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill protects audiologists' clinical judgment in care decisions, ensuring modality-agnostic rules to improve patient access and prevent regulatory barriers in healthcare services.92% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing Telehealth

in committee · Washington · House Feb 3, 2026

HB 2683: Promoting transparency and efficiency in health carrier relations with health care providers and facilities.

This bill requires Washington insurance companies (health carriers) to use a central database for provider credentialing applications, with strict deadlines: 30 days for final decisions by January 1, 2027. It mandates that insurers post all billing, coverage, and claims information - including prior authorization rules, payment policies, and medical necessity guidelines - on their websites without login requirements. The law directly affects insurance companies and healthcare providers by standardizing access to critical information needed for billing and patient care. It does not require insurers to approve providers or join networks, but ensures transparency in how coverage and claims are processed.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareMandates insurer transparency on billing/coverage claims and streamlines provider credentialing, improving access and efficiency for healthcare providers and patients.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

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in committee · Washington · House Feb 19, 2026

HB 2329: Concerning midwife supervision of medical assistants and lactation consultants.

HB 2329 amends Washington state law to clarify that licensed midwives may delegate certain midwifery tasks to medical assistants and coordinate with international board-certified lactation consultants. The bill specifically updates statutes to allow midwives to authorize medical assistants to perform tasks within the assistants' training and scope of practice, while maintaining required supervision standards. It also explicitly confirms that midwives may work with lactation consultants without restrictions. This directly affects midwives, medical assistants, and lactation consultants by expanding midwives' ability to delegate routine care tasks under supervision. The policy change streamlines midwifery practice without altering core supervision requirements.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareClarifies midwife delegation to medical assistants and lactation consultant coordination, expanding access to maternal health services without restricting coverage or funding.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Medical Licensing

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in committee · Washington · House Jan 28, 2026

HB 2261: Ensuring transparency in credentials and communications between patients and health care professionals.

HB 2261 requires health care professionals who interact directly with patients to clearly display their full credentials (including degree titles like "MD" or "DO") on visible identification badges during all patient encounters. It also mandates that any advertisement for health care services must specify the provider's exact credential type. The bill aims to prevent patient confusion about provider qualifications, particularly regarding titles like "doctor" that might imply a medical degree without clarification. This applies to all licensed health care providers in direct patient care settings but excludes those in non-patient care roles. The law seeks to improve transparency and trust by ensuring patients understand their care team's qualifications.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill mandates clear credential display to prevent patient confusion and protect patient rights, directly advancing transparency in healthcare services and provider qualifications.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

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in committee · Washington · House Jan 27, 2026

HB 2286: Concerning alternative routes to social worker licensure.

HB 2286 creates an alternative pathway to social worker licensure in Washington for applicants seeking a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) license. It allows candidates to fulfill the standard 3,000-hour supervised experience requirement through "enhanced supervision" instead of passing the typical exam, provided they receive an attestation of competence from an approved supervisor. This change directly affects social work professionals completing their supervised experience, particularly those who may face barriers to taking the standard exam. The bill modifies existing licensing rules to specify that enhanced supervision must include at least 1,000 hours of direct client contact and detailed supervision requirements, including 100 hours of direct supervision by a qualified mental health practitioner.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareHB 2286 creates alternative licensure for clinical social workers, expanding mental health workforce access and aligning with mental health service support indicators.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing Mental Health

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