The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri House Bill 1636 Eliminates Geographic Proximity Rules for Nurse-Physician Collaborative Practice
Last action · May 15, 2026: Referred: Emerging Issues(H)Sponsor: Matthew Overcast
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Would Do
Missouri House Bill 1636 eliminates all geographic proximity and distance restrictions for s and physicians entering into s, effective August 28, 2026. The legislation removes prior rules requiring practitioners to be within specific road mileage limits, repeals related board rulemaking authority over distance, and makes existing geographic proximity rules unenforceable.
The measure directly alters how s and collaborating physicians set up their practice arrangements by removing all statutory distance limits across the state, impacting rural health clinics, correctional centers, and telehealth setups.
- Collaborative practice arrangements in Missouri have historically required formal written agreements and adherence to specific distance or supervision rules between physicians and advanced practice registered nurses. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Advanced practice registered nurses
Collaborating physicians
Collaborating physicians are relieved of geographic distance limitations and retain statutory protections against being forced into collaborative agreements against their will.
State Board of Registration for the Healing Arts
The board is barred from enforcing geographic proximity restrictions and must track and publicly report physician collaborative practice arrangements.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What changes regarding the distance between advanced practice registered nurses and collaborating physicians?
Can a physician be forced to act as a collaborating physician?
How many advanced practice registered nurses can a single physician collaborate with?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
4 actions- May 15, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred: Emerging Issues(H)
- Jan 8, 2026HouseFloorRead Second Time (H)
- Jan 7, 2026HouseIntroducedRead First Time (H)
- Dec 1, 2025HouseIntroducedPrefiled (H)
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Removal of Geographic Restrictions
The bill represents a complete deregulation of distance and mileage boundaries previously imposed on nurse-physician collaborative practice arrangements in Missouri.
Connected Entities
Sources
house.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools