Payment for Services of Registered Nurse First Assistants (RNFSs)

State of New Jersey DEPARTMENT OF BANKING AND INSURANCE OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER PO BOX 325 TRENTON, NJ 08625‐0325 RICHARD J. CODEY DONALD BRYAN Acting Governor TEL (609) 292‐5360 Acting Commissioner Visit us on the Web at www.njdobi.org New Jersey is an Equal Opportunity Employer   •   Printed on Recycled Paper and Recyclable BULLETIN NO. 05-17 TO: ALL NEW JERSEY HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANIES, HOSPITAL SERVICE CORPORATIONS, MEDICAL SERVICE CORPORATIONS, HEALTH SERVICE CORPORATIONS AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES FROM: DONALD BRYAN, ACTING COMMISSIONER RE: PAYMENT FOR SERVICES OF REGISTERED NURSE FIRST ASSISTANTS (RNFAs) Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 13:35-4.1(c), a registered nurse first assistant (RNFA) is a registered nurse who is licensed in New Jersey and is permitted to serve as a first surgical assistant in major surgical procedures provided he or she is duly qualified as determined by a hospital's credentialing committee. N.J.S.A. 17:48E-12 (health service corporations), 17B:26-2.1f (individual health insurance) and 17B:27-51.1a (group health insurance) provide that any health insurance contract issued by a health insurance company or health service corporation covering services rendered by a physician must also cover, among other things, services within the lawful scope of practice of, and rendered by, a registered professional nurse for which he or she is not being compensated by a hospital or other facility. N.J.S.A. 17:48A-35 similarly requires a medical service corporation to cover professional nursing services. It has recently come to the Department's attention that some health carriers may be refusing to cover the services of RNFAs. Accordingly, the purpose of this Bulletin is to remind health insurance companies, health service corporations and medical service corporations that cover the services of assistant surgeons of their obligation to also cover the same services when provided by an RNFA where the RNFA is not being compensated by the hospital or other facility. 8/11/05 /s/ Donald Bryan Date Donald Bryan Acting Commissioner inoord/bbRNFA