PA = Patient Access
PAs are educated and licensed to see patients in every age group, in every clinical setting, and in every clinical discipline.
New York State is facing a serious healthcare provider shortage.
In the coming years, 1 in 5 physicians and 2 in 5 nurses are planning to leave the healthcare workforce. Meanwhile, the PA profession, known for providing high quality, cost-effective healthcare, continues to grow.
They expand access to care, reduce healthcare costs, and improve patient outcomes. And yes — you can ask to schedule a visit with a PA.
PAs are a critical part of the solution.
The PA Modernization Act (A.7988/S.7981) will update New York’s healthcare laws so patients get faster, better access to care.
Outdated laws limit how PAs can care for patients
Choose better access. Choose a PA.
Urge lawmakers to support A.7988/S.7981.
It is time to modernize New York State's practice laws so that PAs can work in true partnership with physicians and other healthcare providers.
Modernizing practice laws would increase access to high-quality care, address gaps in the healthcare workforce, and expand access for the underserved populations across New York State.
PAs are not seeking “independent practice.” While we work autonomously, we reaffirm our commitment to team-based practice by ensuring that decisions on how PAs practice are made at the practice level rather than by rigid state laws.
New York State Needs PAs
More than 23,000 licensed Physician Associates (PAs) provide preventive care, diagnose and treat illness, manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as patients’ principal healthcare providers. Practicing in primary care, surgery, critical care, rural health, hospice, telehealth, palliative medicine, and mental health, PAs deliver high-quality care with outcomes comparable to physicians and play a vital role in expanding access across New York.
Becoming a PA requires graduate-level medical education, hands-on clinical training, and national certification. New York’s PA programs are intensive two- to three-year graduate programs built on pre-medical coursework and prior healthcare experience. Students complete advanced studies in anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical medicine, followed by about 2,000 hours of supervised clinical rotations in areas such as family medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and emergency medicine.
After graduation, PAs must pass a national certifying exam and maintain certification by completing continuing medical education every two years and re-certifying every ten years through the National Commission on Certification of PAs (NCCPA). Licensure is granted by the New York State Education Department, ensuring that every PA meets the highest professional standards of patient care.
More than 40% of primary care PAs serve in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs), helping to close critical gaps in access and strengthen healthcare delivery statewide.
PAs are trusted medical professionals who bring accessible, high-quality care to every corner of New York.