Where Are You In All Of This?

Do You Have a Burning Desire To See Things Change For PAs in California?

• Are there things you would like to see changed about PA practice in California?
• Do you often think that other California mid-level providers “have it better” than PAs?
• Have you ever thought about how they got what they have?
• Do you find yourself asking why CAPA doesn't do more to change the things that affect you as a PA in California?
• Do you ever need to call the CAPA office for information and when you do, we have the answers?
• When a hot PA issue was on the table, e.g., prescriptive privileges for PAs or when the BRN was threatening to limit PA practice, etc., were you there to write a check to support CAPA's efforts for that one big issue/problem?

If you did support those hot issues we thank you for that. Your support helped to stop a potentially damaging situation or to support a major push at the height of our battle. It mattered a great deal at the time and perhaps made the difference in our success. Thank you.

Momentum Is Key To Our Success

What CAPA is missing that other California mid-level organizations may have is momentum. Momentum can't be built with intermittent membership as issues arise. We need every PA in the state to be a member each and every year. With that kind of consistent commitment comes; momentum. With high member numbers we can build for the big battles and easily take care of the smaller ones along the way. With large membership numbers legislators will consistently recognize PAs as a force to be reckoned with. The California Medical Association, the California Nurses Association, the Board of Registered Nurses, the Physician Assistant Committee, the California Academy of Family Physicians and scores of other groups will watch and see just how serious PAs are and how committed PAs are at creating and staying on a level playing field with other mid-levels in California. No other organization can or will do this for you. These are California PA issues. CAPA's only mission is to represent and serve PAs statewide.

What Will Make You See How Important YOU are to the Process?

How we wish we knew the answer to that question. We can only hope that you realize that our successes are due to PA (your) participation and our failures or lack of action are due largely because of apathy among California PAs.

You get what you give!! Fortunately for you, we have volunteer PA leaders in CAPA who spend much of their off work time making phone calls, attending regulatory meetings, meeting with legislators, serving on the Board of Directors and doing the work of the Academy. These are dedicated people driven to be involved at every level, doing more than their fair share. We need them but we also need thousands of PAs like you who simply join CAPA and show your support. It might take you 5 minutes to fill out the membership application below and write the check or fill in the credit card information. Most members are asked to do little else each year.

$175 divided by 12 months is $14.58 a month. This is a few lattes or less than 4 hours of pay for most PAs each year!. The return on your $175 investment is a better PA profession here in California. Without question it is the right thing to do. We hope you will join CAPA today and encourage every PA you know to do the same. Don't think that someone else will do it. Every PA needs to join to help build the momentum. We need to light a fire under California PAs. Health Care Issues in California in 2007 Will Affect PAs. PAs Need to Decide Whether They Will Be Active Participants in Their Own Future or Leave it to Someone Else. We Hope You Will Join Today.

Because of CAPA, PAs in California...

• Are able to sign to request and receive drug samples
• Are able to supervise MAs in certain rural and underserved areas
• Are able to write drug orders
• Are able to apply for their own DEA number
• Are able to write for Schedules II through V medications with a DEA number
• Are authorized in the California Labor Code to treat injured workers in the Work Comp system
• Are able to act as “an agent” of their supervising physician allowing them to give orders to RNs, among other things
• May have their name appear on the prescription bottle
• Are able to perform certain clinical lab examinations
• Are able to assist a podiatrist under certain conditions
• Remain licensed by the Physician Assistant Committee where PAs make up 50% of the licensing board instead of the Medical Board or Board of Registered Nurses (yes, there have been legislators who have suggested the BRN as the body to oversee PAs in California)
• Are included/considered for inclusion in any appropriate California legislation where medical providers are listed to perform certain tasks (e.g., treating a patient's sex partner for chlamydia without a good faith exam). We carefully track all legislation and when we see a bill that we think should include PAs, we get together with our lobbyist and see what can be done
• Are able to practice with limited supervision in a declared state of emergency
  

CAPA Members Can ...

• Call CAPA for information and have access to the CAPA Board and staff
• Have access to the Members' Only area of the CAPA website which includes job listings that are posted within 24 hours of receiving them
• Receive discounts on CAPA conferences
• Receive the CAPA News every other month to keep you informed of issues, new laws and regulations affecting California PAs

Join CAPA today!