North Mecklenburg News

The North Carolina General Assembly is creating a COVID-19 response plan as the current crisis continues to evolve, but a policy organization said a key to success is removing government barriers particularly ones related to health. 

The Civitas Institute published its analysis on its website on March 31. 

"Many of the most impactful health policy steps the legislature can take simply consist of getting burdensome government barriers out of the way in order to open up the state’s healthcare supply capacity," the institute said.

To expand current health care facilities in the state, providers need government permission, the Civitas Institute said, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If the General Assembly were to waive this policy, the Certificate of Need (CON), it would make treating patients with COVID-19 more manageable, especially when the virus surges. It will allow hospitals to have more hospital beds, equipment and emergency transportation when it is needed most. 

"CON is an outdated regulation that requires healthcare providers to get government permission to open or expand healthcare facilities," the institute said. "It is always bad policy, but the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the dangers that come from artificially restricting healthcare supply through government intervention."

Florida recently approved legislation allowing pharmacists to test and treat for the flu, strep throat and other non-chronic conditions, according to the Civitas Institute. Advanced practice registered nurses (APRN) are also trained and certified in many practices, but their job restricts them from using all of their training. 

The Civitas Institute said expanding practices for pharmacists and APRNs could help prevent the COVID-19 pandemic from overwhelming hospital capacity. 

By allowing pharmacists and APRNs to test and treat patients with illnesses that don't have a high risk, it would prevent the number of people being exposed to COVID-19 in hospitals and create a larger hospital capacity for those with COVID-19 or another serious condition. 

Expanding North Carolina's telemedicine capacity can also help during the pandemic, according to the Civitas Institute. 

Under Gov. Roy Cooper's executive order that declared a state of emergency, he expanded health care licensing to health care providers in other states that are in good standing. Also expanding telemedicine capacity to other states would help during the pandemic, because patients can consult remotely with health care providers. 

"Many insurance companies are currently electing toward reimbursement parity for telemedicine during this crisis, and it should be up to them to negotiate reimbursement terms with providers in the future as well," the institute said. "It will be important in this time for the legislature to resist the urge to over-regulate telemedicine through burdensome parity or coverage mandates."

If patients without COVID-19 are directed to alternate facilities and can be treated by APRNs and pharmacists, it will reduce the pressure on North Carolina's health care providers during this time of crisis.