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Policy group seeks support for legislation requiring medical professionals to clearly disclose their licenses and qualifications

DOVER, Del. — The Caesar Rodney Institute is asking Delaware residents to sign an online petition supporting legislation that would require health care professionals to clearly identify their credentials before diagnosing or treating patients.

The petition calls on the General Assembly to revive and strengthen the Healthcare Professional Transparency Act, a 2024 proposal that did not advance to a vote.

CRI hopes signatures from patients, families and other community members will demonstrate public support for introducing the legislation again in 2027.

Michelle Parsons, M.D., director of CRI’s Center for Health Policy, said patients may not always understand whether the person providing their care is a physician, nurse practitioner, physician assistant or another licensed professional.

“Patients shouldn’t have to ask whether their doctor is actually a physician,” Parsons said. “They should already know.”

Petition calls for clearer identification

House Bill 447 would have required practitioners using the title “Doctor” to identify their educational degree and professional license. Most health care practitioners also would have been required to wear visible identification showing their license type.

The legislation also sought to require health care advertisements to accurately identify the professional licenses of the practitioners being promoted.

The bill was pulled before a committee vote in 2024 and was not brought back before the end of the legislative session.

Through its petition, CRI is asking Delaware lawmakers to bring the proposal back and strengthen its disclosure requirements. The institute wants patients to be told before receiving nonemergency care whether the person diagnosing or treating them is a physician, nurse practitioner, physician assistant or another licensed professional.

If a nonphysician uses the title “Doctor,” CRI wants that person’s profession disclosed at the same time.

“This isn’t about prohibiting earned academic titles or telling patients whom to choose,” Parsons said. “It’s about giving patients the information to make that choice for themselves.”

Expanded authority prompts questions

The petition follows Delaware’s expansion of the authority granted to several types of nonphysician health care professionals.

House Bill 141, enacted in 2021, eliminated the state’s previous collaborative-practice requirement for advanced practice registered nurses, including nurse practitioners. Nurse practitioners may independently evaluate patients, diagnose illnesses, order and interpret tests, prescribe medications and manage treatment.

Delaware has also expanded the role of pharmacists. Legislation approved in 2022 allowed pharmacists working under statewide protocols to test, screen and treat certain conditions. Additional legislation approved in 2026 broadened pharmacists’ authority to evaluate patients, identify certain health conditions, order laboratory tests and prescribe specified drugs and medical devices.

CRI said those changes make it more important for patients to understand the education, license and professional role of the person providing their care.

Some nurse practitioners earn a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree and may use the title “Doctor.” Parsons said that academic title is legitimate but does not mean the practitioner received the same education and clinical training as a physician.

An American Medical Association survey cited by CRI found that 39% of respondents identified someone with a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree as a physician. The survey also found that 19% believed a nurse practitioner was a physician and 17% believed a physician assistant was a physician.

CRI connects effort to AI protections

CRI is connecting its petition drive to House Bill 191, signed into law April 23. That law prohibits artificial intelligence and other nonhuman entities from being licensed as physicians, nurses, advanced practice registered nurses or physician assistants.

It also prohibits AI systems from using protected professional titles such as “Doctor” or “Dr.”

Parsons said the same principle — ensuring patients understand who or what is delivering their care — should apply to human health care professionals.

“If Delaware believes patients have a right to know when their ‘doctor’ is AI, surely they have a right to know when their ‘doctor’ isn’t a physician,” Parsons said.

Delaware law already requires a person using “Doctor” in connection with medicine or health care to specify the type of doctorate held. CRI contends, however, that existing law primarily regulates professional titles and does not require patients to be affirmatively told the license or professional classification of the person treating them.

CRI is asking Delawareans who agree with the proposal to add their names to the online petition and share it with friends, relatives and neighbors. The organization says broader community participation will strengthen its message to lawmakers ahead of the 2027 legislative session.

To Go Box

• What: Caesar Rodney Institute Healthcare Professional Transparency Petition
• What CRI is asking: Delawareans are encouraged to sign the petition urging lawmakers to revive and strengthen the Healthcare Professional Transparency Act.
• Who may participate: Delaware patients, families, health care consumers and other supporters
• Sign the petition: caesarrodney.org/healthcare-professional-transparency-petition

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