Volunteers Needed - State Licensing Conditionally Waived
As Washington takes more steps to reduce the spread of COVID-19 the Department of Health (DOH) will now enroll and activate emergency volunteer health practitioners in preparation for health system requests and surging. This will help the state meet emerging demands for healthcare workers.
The DOH can perform this work under the authority of the Uniform Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioner Act (chapter 70.15 RCW), if an emergency proclamation by the Governor is in effect - as is the case in Washington as of Feb. 29, 2020.
If volunteers are registered in the volunteer health practitioner system and verified to be in good standing in all states where they are licensed, they may practice in Washington without obtaining a Washington license once activated and assigned by DOH.
In-state practitioners can become volunteers in two ways:
- Via RCW chapter 70.15 by registering and completing the Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioners Application which can be found here
- Via registering with their local Medical Reserve Corps; more information can be found at: https://mrc.hhs.gov
Out-of-state practitioners may:
- Become volunteers via RCW chapter 70.15 by registering and completing the Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioners Application which can be found here
- Out of state MDs and DOs that would like an expedited Washington license and to volunteer, may use the Interstate Medical License Compact and become registered under RCW 70.15. At this time, we are limiting our request for health care practitioners to U.S. jurisdictions due to technical issues. We may expand the call to international jurisdictions in the future as needs arise, and if that remains available to us based on federal restrictions.
Applications will be screened by the DOH to ensure the potential volunteer’s health license is in good standing in each state they where they are licensed. The DOH will activate, deploy and deactivate approved volunteer health practitioners as needs are identified and requested. Please share this urgent request broadly with your sister organizations, national groups, stakeholders, followers and readers.
Frequently Asked Questions about RCW 70.15 are available here.
Questions can be emailed to WAserv@doh.wa.gov or 360-236-4090.
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