Kansas may band together with other states to share doctors, nurses and other medical resources during an act of bioterrorism or other public health emergency.

Officials in the 10-state coalition say uncertainties about liability and licensing for medical professionals could otherwise keep doctors and nurses from crossing state lines during a crisis.

“A doctor from Kansas might be more than willing to cross the border to help out in an emergency, but if he or she is not licensed to do so, that’s an obstacle,” said Terri Teuber, spokeswoman for Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns, who is spearheading the effort. “It would be appropriate to make sure liability issues are addressed ahead of time to make sure that doctor is covered.”

Nebraska last month committed $200,000 to hire staff to research the matter. Richard Morrissey, interim director of the division of health at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said he’ll wait for a national gathering of state health officials later this month before Kansas officials decide how much money, if any, to contribute to the effort.

Talks, Morrissey said, are still in the early stages.

“There isn’t an actual compact at this point,” Morrissey said. “We’ve had a couple of conversations about it. It’s at that level of discussion.”

Other states in the proposed alliance are Colorado, Missouri, Iowa, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Utah.

Officials say the alliance, if created, would be the first of its kind in the nation.

“The intent of this group is to be a pilot project across the states,” Morrissey said.

Unlike driver’s licenses, a medical license in one state does not allow a doctor or nurse to practice their craft in any other state. Since the licensing doesn’t follow, neither does a medical professional’s liability insurance.

That could be a problem in a crisis, officials said, such as a widespread food-borne illness.

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“Right now, we don’t have a basis to send those folks across the state line without questions of liability, workman’s comp,” Morrissey said.

Since licensing is done at the state level, however, federal officials can’t impose a solution.

“They (states) need to work out the details,” said Kathy Harben, a spokeswoman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

The 9-11 terror attacks and the anthrax attacks soon after spurred health officials to address the issue.

“The idea has existed for some time,” Teuber said. “Many people have agreed it’s a good idea, but there hasn’t been a concerted effort to move it forward.”

Teuber said officials are still determining what other medical issues must be addressed by an agreement between the states.

Harben said federal officials supported the effort.

“It’s kind of hard to predict, but we saw during SARS (a viral outbreak in 2003) that people travel, they move from place to place,” she said. “This may well come in handy.”