RURAL Healthcare Act

The Reinforcing Underserved, Rural, and Local Healthcare Act, also known as the RURAL Healthcare Act, aims to classify specific healthcare professionals as independent contractors for federal labor laws. This reclassification applies to qualified locum tenens professionals and advanced care practitioners under both the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and the National Labor Relations Act . The bill specifies that these individuals will not be considered employees of the entities for which they provide temporary services, impacting their rights and protections under these statutes. A "qualified locum tenens professional or advanced care practitioner" is defined as an individual who provides temporary physician or advanced care practitioner services for up to one continuous year at a single site. These services must be rendered pursuant to a written contract explicitly stating that the individual will not be treated as an employee. The definition encompasses physicians, nurse practitioners, physician's assistants, and certified registered nurse anesthetists.