Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Arkansas General Assembly, fetched 2026-07-23. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. The official bill page.
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1 State of Arkansas As Engrossed: H2/13/25
2 95th General Assembly
A Bill
3 Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1251
4
5 By: Representatives L. Johnson, F. Allen, Barnes, K. Ferguson, Gramlich, Long, Magie, K. Moore, Perry,
6 Pilkington, J. Richardson
7 By: Senators K. Hammer, Irvin, D. Wallace, Flippo, G. Leding, F. Love, J. Payton
8
9 For An Act To Be Entitled
10 AN ACT TO ESTABLISH THE ARKANSAS ANESTHESIOLOGIST
11 ASSISTANT ACT; TO PROVIDE FOR LICENSURE OF
12 ANESTHESIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
13
14
15 Subtitle
16 TO ESTABLISH THE ARKANSAS
17 ANESTHESIOLOGIST ASSISTANT ACT; AND TO
18 PROVIDE FOR LICENSURE OF
19 ANESTHESIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS.
20
21 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
22
23 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 17, Chapter 95, is amended to add an
24 additional subchapter to read as follows:
25 Subchapter 12 � Arkansas Anesthesiologist Assistant Act
26
27 17-95-1201. Title.
28 This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Arkansas
29 Anesthesiologist Assistant Act".
30
31 17-95-1202. Definitions.
32 As used in this subchapter:
33 (1) "Anesthesiologist" means a physician who has completed a
34 residency in anesthesiology and is board eligible or board certified in the
35 specialty of anesthesiology;
36 (2) "Anesthesiologist assistant" means a graduate of an approved
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1 program who is licensed to perform services delegated and directly supervised
2 by a supervising anesthesiologist;
3 (3) "Approved program" means a program for the education and
4 training of anesthesiologist assistants accredited by the Commission on
5 Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs; and
6 (4) "Direct supervision" means the on-site, personal supervision
7 by an anesthesiologist who is:
8 (A) Licensed by and in good standing with the Arkansas
9 State Medical Board;
10 (B) Present in the office or surgical or obstetrical suite when
11 a procedure is being performed in the office or surgical or obstetrical
12 suite; and
13 (C) In all instances immediately available to provide
14 assistance and direction to the anesthesiologist assistant while anesthesia
15 services are being performed.
16
17 17-95-1203. Arkansas State Medical Board -- Powers and duties under
18 subchapter.
19 (a) The Arkansas State Medical Board shall:
20 (1) License and renew the licenses of qualified applicants under
21 this subchapter;
22 (2)(A) Maintain a current list of every person licensed to
23 practice under this subchapter.
24 (B) The list under subdivision (a)(2)(A) of this section
25 shall show:
26 (i) The licensee's last known place of residence;
27 and
28 (ii) The date and number of the license;
29 (3) Discipline persons who violate this subchapter and incur
30 necessary expenses of the prosecution;
31 (4) Keep a record of all proceedings of the board under this
32 subchapter and make the record available to the public for inspection during
33 reasonable business hours;
34 (5) Conduct hearings regarding discipline of a licensee under
35 this subchapter or denial, revocation, or suspension of a license under this
36 subchapter; and
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1 (6)(A) Share information on a case-by-case basis of a person
2 whose license has been suspended, revoked, or denied under this subchapter.
3 (B) The information under subdivision (a)(6)(A) of this
4 section shall include:
5 (i) The name of the person whose license has been
6 suspended, revoked, or denied;
7 (ii) The type and cause of the action;
8 (iii) The date upon which a penalty is imposed;
9 (iv) The type of penalty imposed; or
10 (v) The duration of the penalty imposed.
11 (C) The information under subdivision (a)(6)(A) of this
12 section shall be available for public inspection during reasonable business
13 hours and shall be supplied to licensing entities in other states upon
14 request.
15 (b) The board may:
16 (1) Promulgate rules as necessary to enforce this subchapter
17 consistent with state law;
18 (2) Employ personnel as necessary to assist the board in
19 performing its duties under this subchapter;
20 (3) Establish license renewal requirements and procedures under
21 this subchapter, including without limitation continuing medical education
22 hours, as deemed appropriate by the board ;
23 (4)(A) Secure the services of resource consultants as deemed
24 necessary by the board in performing its duties under this subchapter.
25 (B) The board shall reimburse resource consultants for all
26 actual and necessary expenses incurred while engaged in consultative service
27 to the board; and
28 (5) Establish and assess fees under this subchapter by rule.
29
30 17-95-1204. Licensing.
31 (a) A person applying for licensure as an anesthesiologist assistant
32 under this subchapter shall submit an application to the Arkansas State
33 Medical Board on forms approved by the board.
34 (b) An application under this section is not effective for more than
35 one (1) year from the date of the original submission of the application and
36 fee, after which time an applicant shall submit to the board a new
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1 application and fee.
2 (c)(1) To qualify for licensure under this subchapter, an applicant
3 under this section shall obtain a passing score on the examination
4 administered through the National Commission for Certification of
5 Anesthesiologist Assistants.
6 (2) A passing score under subdivision (c)(1) of this section
7 shall be established by the National Commission for Certification of
8 Anesthesiologist Assistants.
9
10 17-95-1205. Supervisory relationship.
11 (a) An anesthesiologist or anesthesiologist group, upon entering into
12 a supervisory relationship with a licensed anesthesiologist assistant, shall
13 file with the Arkansas State Medical Board a written protocol, including
14 without limitation:
15 (1) The name, address, and license number of the
16 anesthesiologist assistant;
17 (2) The name, address, license number, and United States Drug
18 Enforcement Administration registration number of each anesthesiologist who
19 will supervise the anesthesiologist assistant;
20 (3) The address of the anesthesiologist assistant's primary
21 practice location where the anesthesiologist assistant may practice;
22 (4) The date the protocol was developed and the date of all
23 revisions;
24 (5) The designation and signature of the primary supervising
25 anesthesiologist;
26 (6) The signatures of the anesthesiologist assistant and all
27 supervising anesthesiologists;
28 (7) The duties and functions of the anesthesiologist assistant;
29 (8) The conditions or procedures that require the provision of
30 care by a supervising anesthesiologist; and
31 (9) The procedures to be followed in the event of an anesthetic
32 emergency.
33 (b) The protocol required under subsection (a) of this section shall
34 be filed with the board before the anesthesiologist assistant begins practice
35 with the supervising anesthesiologist or anesthesiology group.
36 (c) An anesthesiologist assistant may perform the following duties
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1 under the direct supervision of an anesthesiologist:
2 (1) Obtain a comprehensive patient history and present the
3 history to the supervising anesthesiologist;
4 (2) Pretest and calibrate anesthesia delivery systems and
5 monitor, obtain, and interpret information from the anesthesia delivery
6 systems;
7 (3) Assist the supervising anesthesiologist with implementation
8 of monitoring techniques;
9 (4) Establish basic and advanced airway interventions, including
10 intubations of the trachea and performance of ventilator support;
11 (5) Administer intermittent vasoactive drugs and start and
12 adjust vasoactive infusions;
13 (6) Administer anesthetic drugs, adjuvant drugs, and accessory
14 drugs;
15 (7) Perform epidural anesthetic procedures and spinal anesthetic
16 procedures;
17 (8) Administer blood, blood products, and supportive fluids;
18 (9) Support life functions during the administration of
19 anesthesia, including without limitation induction and intubation procedures,
20 the use of appropriate mechanical supportive devices, and the management of
21 fluids, electrolytes, and blood component balances;
22 (10) Recognize and take appropriate corrective action for
23 abnormal patient responses to anesthesia, adjunctive medication, or other
24 forms of therapy;
25 (11) Participate in management of the patient while in the post-
26 anesthesia recovery area, including the administration of supporting fluids;
27 and
28 (12) Place special peripheral and central venous and arterial
29 lines for blood sampling and monitoring as appropriate.
30 (d)(1) The supervising anesthesiologist shall delegate only tasks and
31 procedures to the anesthesiologist assistant that are within the supervising
32 anesthesiologist's scope of practice.
33 (2) The anesthesiologist assistant may work in any setting that
34 is within the scope of practice of the supervising anesthesiologist's
35 practice.
36 (e) Continuity of supervision in practice settings requires the
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1 anesthesiologist assistant to document in the anesthesia record any change in
2 supervising anesthesiologist.
3 (f) The tasks and procedures performed by the anesthesiologist
4 assistant shall be documented in the appropriate medical record.
5
6 /s/L. Johnson
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6 02-13-2025 10:42:10 JMB012Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.