EXECUTIVE ORDER 2024-002
Order directing the Nevada Patient Protection Commission to make recommendations aimed at addressing the state's health-care workforce shortage, so more patients have access to quality health care, statewide.
WHEREAS, ensuring high-quality health-care is available is essential to protecting the health and welfare of the residents of the State of Nevada;
WHEREAS, a healthy workforce is critical to a thriving state economy and attracting new businesses and fostering job growth;
WHEREAS, in 20I9 the Nevada Legislature created the Patient Protection Commission to perform a systematic review of issues related to the health-care needs of residents in the State of Nevada;
WHEREAS, as part of its systematic review under NRS 439.916, the Patient Protection Commission must look at the quality, accessibility, and affordability of health-care and prescription drugs by, among other things, comprehensively examining the system for regulating health-care, identifying gaps and duplication in the roles of licensing boards, examining the cost of health-care and the primary factors impacting those costs including looking at the quality and cost between different groups in the State, and reviewing the availability and adequacy of providers of health-care who participate in networks;
WHEREAS, in order to achieve the objectives of the Patient Protection Commission as outlined in NRS 439,916, Nevada must tackle the state's ongoing challenges with building an adequate health-care workforce to care for residents;
WHEREAS, new investments in the state's health-care workforce must be sustainable and existing investments evaluated for success to ensure the most efficient use of limited taxpayer dollars;
WHEREAS, the demand for health-care is expected to continue rising faster than supply, and Nevada must have a plan for bolstering and strengthening its health-care workforce;
WHEREAS, Nevadans living in rural areas of the state face unique challenges to finding an available health-care provider and require creative solutions for addressing these challenges;
WHEREAS, Nevada must identify and remove any unnecessary or outdated state requirements that present barriers for recruiting and retaining health-care providers; and
NOW, THEREFORE, by the authority vested in me as Governor by the Constitution and laws of the State of Nevada and the United States, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1:
The Nevada Patient Protection Commission, as established under NRS 439.908, shall in addition to the objectives outlined by NRS 439.916, review and make recommendations on how to address the state's health care workforce shortage.
Section 2:
The Executive Director of the Nevada Patient Protection Commission shall support commission members in reviewing available data and national best practices to develop recommendations for:
(a) Attracting and retaining talent to address health-care workforce challenges in urban and rural communities;
(b) Improving access to primary care and public health services;
(c) Removing unnecessary state administrative hurdles to recruiting and retaining health-care workers;
(d) Identifying sustainable funding strategies for strengthening the state's health-care workforce, which includes supporting competitive Medicaid reimbursements;
(e) Ensuring recommended strategies for increasing provider reimbursement are based on payment methodologies that incentivize and reward for better quality and value for the taxpayer dollar; and
(f) Identifying strategies for evaluating new and existing state investments in efforts to improve the capacity and size of the state's health-care workforce.
Section 3:
These recommendations shall be included in the Commission's report that is submitted in accordance with NRS 439.918