The state-specific regulations for Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in Arizona and South Carolina impact the scope of practice that they can provide to their patients. The regulations set limits on which services they can provide and what level of supervision is required. In both states, NPs are allowed to diagnose, treat and manage most medical conditions without physician supervision. They have prescriptive authority, as well as the ability to order tests and make referrals when needed. However, there are still some restrictions on their scope of practice related to prescribing certain controlled substances or providing treatments that require a higher level of training or expertise than the NP has.

In Arizona, NPs must be supervised by a collaborating physician if they wish to prescribe opioid medications or Schedule II drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin. Additionally, all procedures performed by an NP require advance approval from their collaborator and must take place in a facility licensed for ambulatory care. In South Carolina, NPs may not perform major invasive surgeries as this requires successful completion of postgraduate residency programs along with additional certifications.

Regulatory barriers continue to exist in both states for Nurse Practitioners due to the fact that many laws governing scope of practice were written decades ago before the role of NPs was fully established within healthcare systems. Laws often restrict how much autonomy an NP has in terms of making decisions about care for their patients or referring out when necessary due to outdated requirements regarding collaboration agreements with physicians. These barriers have been slowly lifting over time but still need further reform in order for NPs across both Arizona and South Carolina to be able to practice at full capacity without limitations imposed by outdated laws.

In conclusion, while both Arizona and South Carolina offer some scope of practice freedoms allowing Nurse Practitioners more autonomy throughout course treatment plans provided those under care regulatory barriers remain significant hindrance current progress desired end goal aim achieve having greater degree freedom expanding capabilities nurse practitioners future generations come share benefits such changes bring forth benefiting society whole!