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Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed a that requires healthcare providers to include their specific license or educational degrees in advertisements, on name badges, and in patient-facing interactions.

Advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants who have doctoral degrees and use the title "doctor" must "clearly state that he or she is not a medical doctor or physician" during patient interactions, according to the law, which will go into effect on July 1. Healthcare workers who violate this law are vulnerable to injunctions or other legal action taken by professional licensing boards.

In response to the new law, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and the Georgia Society of Anesthesiologists (GSA) supporting the new rules. (R), the bill's original sponsor, is a certified anesthesiologist assistant.

"This new law makes it clearer for patients to make informed decisions because they know the qualifications of the professional providing their care. Every patient deserves to be certain of exactly who is performing and responsible for their care during a procedure or surgery," Michael Champeau, MD, president of the ASA, said in the press release.

However, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) expressed concerns about the Georgia law to MedPage Today.

"A strength of today's healthcare workforce is the growing number of healthcare providers with doctoral preparation," said April Kapu, DNP, president of the AANP. "More than a dozen health professional disciplines -- like nurse practitioners, pharmacists, physical therapists, and psychologists -- are educated at the doctoral level. That depth of preparation and knowledge should be welcomed and embraced by all in the healthcare space."

"At the AANP, we support the use of the title 'doctor' in conjunction with licensure title for doctorally prepared nurse practitioners and other healthcare providers in the clinical setting," she added. "AANP believes patients have the right to know who is providing their care, which includes the academic preparation of those individuals."

Kapu also noted that laws like the one in Georgia make it harder for healthcare professionals to share their full academic credentials.

"Laws and regulations must reject anticompetitive and punitive measures that unnecessarily prohibit nurse practitioners and other health professionals from accurately communicating their education, licensure, and certifications to patients and the public," she said.

Amy Reeves, PA-C, a representative for the Georgia Association of Physician Assistants, also pointed out that most PAs already correctly identify themselves.

"I would say in an educational setting using titles is appropriate, but in patient care settings, PAs would never want to misrepresent ourselves as MDs or DOs and we refer to ourselves as a PA; for example, PA Reeves," she noted.

The Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) aligns more with the ASA, viewing the new law as a win for Georgia patients.

"The law is intended to ensure patients receive transparent information about who is providing their care," said Bethany Sherrer, JD, MBA, director of government relations and general counsel for the MAG. "The Medical Association of Georgia supports the law including language about how non-MDs and -DOs use the term doctor."

Georgia is not alone in this type of legislation; New Jersey passed a similar law in 2020 called the , which also limits what various healthcare providers can call themselves and requires any healthcare-related advertisements to list the doctor's type of license or degree, just as the Georgia law does.

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