Have you heard of the newest game changer for boosting your locum CRNA salary?
As a locum nurse practitioner or registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) looking to boost your annual salary in the United States, you’re more than likely already aware of the eNLC, or Enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact, which streamlines the new state licensure process for RNs, and is especially useful for traveling healthcare workers.
As such, you’ve probably also wondered why no similar compact exists for your profession as a certified nurse anesthetist… After all, you’ve put in the work to earn a master’s degree, or perhaps even a doctorate degree, in order to provide the critical healthcare service of administering anesthesia for medical procedures.
Luckily, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) agrees that advanced practice registered nurses deserve to have compact license legislature of their own, and thus adopted the APRN Compact in August of 2020.
The APRN Compact is planned to function on a very similar basis to the eNLC. This means that NPs and certified registered nurse anesthetists will be able to hold a singular license, which can be used to practice in any other member state instead of applying for a brand new license every time they plan to practice somewhere new.
The implementation of APRN Compact legislation will be a huge step forward for locum and telehealth advanced practitioners that, through saving time and money, may open opportunities to boost average salaries for CRNAs.
The APRN Compact is, unfortunately, not expected to be fully and officially implemented until at least 7 states adopt the legislation. However, being proactive in informing yourself on this upcoming policy change is critical in setting yourself up to take full advantage and even increase your nurse anesthetist salary when the time comes.
Under the compact, advanced practice registered nurses such as CRNAs with 2,080+ hours of practice will be enabled to hold one multistate license in their home state, under the provision that the home state is a compact member.
Holding the compact license enables CRNAs to practice in other compact member states without having to apply for a new state license, reducing licensure costs as well as time commitments for nurse anesthetists.
Seamless Locum Practice Across State Lines
For locum CRNAs, who work temporary assignments in different health care settings across the country, holding the APRN Compact license would unmistakably make the locum lifestyle a whole lot easier. Eliminating the need for to go through the lengthy and costly process of obtaining new licenses to practice across state lines not only saves CRNAs money in expensive licensure fees, but also increases both job and income stability for locum CRNAs.
In general, the APRN Compact increases the amount of overall locum job opportunities available to CRNAs by enabling them to practice in a more states throughout the US with one single license. This means that recruiters are able to present a wider array of locum job openings, which should increase the number of opportunities that the provider finds appealing. With more opportunity matches, locums are much more likely to enjoy higher levels of job and income stability, because they’re likely to book more assignments altogether.
Furthermore, locum pay rates differ not only from assignment to assignment, but also from state to state. With a license that only allows a CRNA to practice in a single state, the provider is generally locked into the specific pay rate range for that state, depending mostly, or solely, on their years of experience to increase their earning potential. But with a multistate license, locum CRNAs may find that their experience will get them further in pay negotiations within another member state.
The APRN Compact License also opens doors for nurse anesthetists to serve vulnerable and/or underserved populations for emergency response, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid locum assignments in states outside of their primary licensure. This further adds to the range of possibilities that CRNAs can unlock and use to grow their income using the APRN Compact.
Thus far, as we near the end of 2022, APRN Compact legislation has only been enacted in the 3 states of North Dakoda, Utah, and Delaware, and is currently pending legislation in New York. Though the APRN Compact will not go into effect until at least 7 states have enacted the legislation, its worth staying informed on the newest pending and member states, as well as taking action to help bring the compact to your state.
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