This bill amends existing Washington statutes to require the Washington State Medical Commission to contract with an entity to implement a physician health program. The contract may run up to six years and the statute lists possible program activities (relationships with evaluators and treaters; receiving and assessing reports; intervening, referring, and monitoring treatment; care management; prevention and education; and other agreed activities). The bill establishes a $70 per year surcharge (or equivalent) on each license renewal or new license for every practitioner under the commission’s purview; the Department of Health must collect the surcharge, deposit it into the impaired physician account, and pay all funds in that account to the contract entity within 60 days of deposit. The bill also amends anesthesiologist assistant licensure requirements (RCW 18.71D.020), requiring completion of an accredited anesthesiologist assistant program and, within one year, passing a commission‑approved examination (for example, the NCCAA exam). Applicants must file a commission form, pay fees set under RCW 43.70.250 and 43.70.280 plus the $70 surcharge, and show proof of physical and mental capability; the commission may require examinations to determine capability. The commission may take licensing actions under the Uniform Disciplinary Act, renewals follow existing fee statutes, the commission will request current practice information at renewal, and it is unlawful to practice or hold oneself out as a certified anesthesiologist assistant without a commission license. The bill also amends RCW 43.70.110 to allow license fees to include additional amounts in specified circumstances and updates the list of practitioners whose license fees may include up to an additional $25 to be transferred to the University of Washington. Affected entities include the Medical Commission, Department of Health, the unspecified contract entity that will operate the physician health program, the impaired physician account, and a broad list of practitioners under the commission’s purview. The specific identity of the contract entity, the prior statutory text being changed, and any fiscal details or other sections outside the amended RCW sections are not provided in the extracted facts.

If enacted, nearly every practitioner licensed by the Washington State Medical Commission (doctors, physician assistants, anesthesiologist assistants, nurses, therapists, etc.) will pay an extra $70 a year when they get or renew their license, and some license fees may also include up to another $25 that goes to the University of Washington. Those charges fund a contracted physician health program the Medical Commission must hire (contracts can run up to six years), and the Department of Health must collect the surcharge, deposit it into the impaired physician account, and transfer all deposited money to the contracted program within 60 days, giving the contractor a steady, quickly disbursed revenue stream to run screening, referral, monitoring, education, and related services. Practitioners will also face new administrative requirements: anesthesiologist assistants must complete an accredited program, pass a commission-approved exam within a year, submit forms and fees, and provide current practice information at renewal; the Commission can discipline licensees under the Uniform Disciplinary Act. It is unclear from the provided text which organization will run the physician health program, what specific services will be prioritized, or the broader fiscal impacts beyond the stated surcharges.