Nonphysician Specialists
Gao ID: HEHS-96-135R May 29, 1996Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the policies and procedures governing the participation of certain nonphysician health specialists in several federal health care programs. GAO noted that: (1) although nonphysician specialists are authorized to participate and provide services in federal health care programs, participation requirements and allowable services vary among and within the programs; (2) participation requirements vary as to training, supervision, and specialty autonomy; and (3) some agencies that administer federal health programs are more involved in setting requirements and establishing service parameters for nonphysician specialists than other agencies.