Certified registered nurse practitioners, authorized to sign student athlete physical examination participation eligibility forms

HB 553 amends Alabama law to explicitly allow certified registered nurse practitioners (NRPs) and certified nurse midwives to sign physical examination forms for K-12 student athletes, treating their signature as equivalent to a physician's. This directly affects student athletes in Alabama public and private schools requiring physicals for athletic participation. The bill updates Section 34-21-93.1 of the Alabama Code to add "physicals to verify eligibility for students to participate in K-12 school athletic activities" to the list of documents where an NRP’s endorsement satisfies physician signature requirements. It does not expand NRPs’ scope of practice or alter physician responsibilities, as clarified in the bill text. The change aims to streamline athletic eligibility processes without changing existing legal standards.