Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when any contract or plan of health insurance, or any plan or agreement for health care services provides for the reimbursement or payment for services which are within the scope of practice of registered nurses who have passed or who are qualified to take the national certification examination for the specialty practice of nurse anesthetist as recognized by the Alabama Board of Nursing, then the insured, or any other person covered by the policy, plan, contract or certificate shall be entitled to reimbursement or payment for such services performed by the certified registered nurse anesthetist, and said certified registered nurse anesthetist shall be entitled to direct reimbursement by the insurer, unless the certified registered nurse anesthetist is employed by contract with a group practice of anesthesiologist or a hospital, then such services shall be reimbursed through the employer.

Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a licensed hospital from prescribing in its bylaws, policies, rules, or regulations, the qualifications, training, experience, scope of permissible activities, and level or degree of supervision required of any certified registered nurse anesthetist employed by or performing services in such hospital.

For the purposes of this section, certified registered nurse anesthetist means any licensed registered nurse licensed under Section 34-21-20, who is a graduate of a formal education program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs or its predecessor, the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, and is currently certified as a registered nurse anesthetist by the Council on Certification/Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists.