ACFAS Position on Uniform Licensure for Doctors of Podiatric Medicine
Approved by the ACFAS Board of Directors, October 2023Download as PDF
The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (ACFAS) represents just over 8,000 board- certified or qualified podiatric foot and ankle surgeons. ACFAS advocates that each state and territory should have one uniform license for all Doctors of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) and not be bifurcated along the lines of board certification.
Licensure signals to the public the safe, entry-level competence of a practitioner entering into practice. Licensure in any healthcare field is not permission to practice beyond competency. Healthcare institutions are charged with the credentialing and privileging of providers. This process is not related to licensure. It also differs from legislative authority regarding scopes of practice and the rulemaking authority granted to boards of podiatric medicine or other sanctioned regulatory bodies.
As with all healthcare providers, the standard for Doctors of Podiatric Medicine is one uniform license.