Boards of Nursing in United States

The board of nursing of each state has been formed by their respective state government. They control and manage nursing practice in their own state. It’s their duty to ensure safe practice of nursing by formulating standards and rules and issuing license to qualified nurses. However, the structure and powers granted to each nursing board varies from state to state. Due to this variation, the nurses are required to know about the nurse practice act and other nursing pre-requisites of the state they are working in.

Duties of Boards of Nursing:

All boards of nursing have to report to a specific administrative body. These bodies are:

  1. State’s governor
  2. State agency
  3. Both state’s governor and state agency
  4. Another official organization or state official

The main tasks and duties of all boards of nursing are mentioned below:

  1. Enforcement of the Nurse Practice Act
  2. Issuing the nurse licensure
  3. Develop and maintain standards for nursing practice
  4. Formulate rules, regulations and policies for all nurses in the state

U.S. Nursing Boards:

Here is the complete list of the nursing boards of all the states of the United States

  1. Alabama Board of Nursing
  2. Alaska Board of Nursing
  3. Arizona State Board of Nursing
  4. Arkansas State Board of Nursing
  5. California Board of Registered Nursing
  6. Colorado Board of Nursing
  7. Connecticut Board of Examiners for Nursing
  8. Delaware Board of Nursing
  9. District of Columbia Board of Nursing
  10. Florida Board of Nursing
  11. Georgia Board of Nursing
  12. Hawaii Board of Nursing
  13. Idaho Board of Nursing
  14. Illinois Board of Nursing
  15. Indiana State Board of Nursing
  16. Iowa Board of Nursing
  17. Kansas State Board of Nursing
  18. Kentucky Board of Nursing
  19. Louisiana State Board of Nursing
  20. Maine State Board of Nursing
  21. Maryland Board of Nursing
  22. Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing
  23. Michigan/DCH/Bureau of Health Professions
  24. Minnesota Board of Nursing
  25. Mississippi Board of Nursing
  26. Missouri State Board of Nursing
  27. Montana State Board of Nursing
  28. Nebraska Board of Nursing
  29. Nevada State Board of Nursing
  30. New Hampshire Board of Nursing
  31. New Jersey Board of Nursing
  32. New Mexico Board of Nursing
  33. New York State Board of Nursing
  34. North Carolina Board of Nursing
  35. North Dakota Board of Nursing
  36. Ohio Board of Nursing
  37. Oklahoma Board of Nursing
  38. Oregon State Board of Nursing
  39. Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing
  40. Rhode Island Board of Nurse Registration and Nursing Education
  41. South Carolina State Board of Nursing
  42. South Dakota Board of Nursing
  43. Tennessee State Board of Nursing
  44. Texas Board of Nursing
  45. Utah State Board of Nursing
  46. Vermont State Board of Nursing
  47. Virginia Board of Nursing
  48. Washington State Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission
  49. West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses
  50. Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing
  51. Wyoming State Board of Nursing


Nurse Practice Act:

The “Nurse Practice Act” is a law that is enforced by each state nursing board in their respective states. All nurses are required to abide by its rules and regulations in order to continue validity of their licenses.

The nurse practice act includes the following:

  1. Prerequisites for licensure
  2. Various actions that can be taken against the nurse if he breaks any of the rules of nursing
  3. Titles of nursing that are permitted to be used
  4. It defines the scope of nursing practice, that is, what activities the nurses are allowed to perform

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing:

The NCSBN is a central organization that, in a way, coordinates and syncs all state boards of nursing. Through the NCSBN, all matters that are of common interest are dealt for the benefit of all states. It is responsible for maintaining uniformity in the structure of nursing throughout the country. The NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN examinations for licensure are also conducted by NCSBN.