Working through the commission, a doctor licensed in one state could seek an “expedited license” from one or more additional states. To be eligible, a doctor would have to be certified in a medical specialty and have no history of being disciplined, penalized or punished by a court, a medical licensing agency or the Drug Enforcement Administration. (About three-fourths of doctors have been certified as specialists.) Moreover, the compact says, a doctor could not obtain an expedited license if the doctor was “under active investigation by a licensing agency or law enforcement authority in any state, federal or foreign jurisdiction.”

As part of the compact, states would agree to share information on doctors who had been disciplined or were under investigation. The commission would serve as a clearinghouse. If a license is revoked or suspended in a doctor’s home state, then all licenses issued to the doctor by other states participating in the compact could be automatically revoked or suspended.

The proposal comes as more doctors and hospitals are exploring the use of telemedicine.

The Mayo Clinic, in Minnesota, for example, has established links with more than two dozen hospitals and health systems including: Dartmouth-Hitchcock in New Hampshire; NorthShore University HealthSystem in the suburbs of Chicago; Baptist Health Care in Pensacola, Fla.; and ThedaCare in Wisconsin.

Mayo experts, working with local doctors, help evaluate patients and make treatment recommendations. Robots allow stroke experts to observe and examine patients hundreds of miles away.

“Cross-border licensure is a strategic imperative as we move forward in this brave new world,” said Kathleen M. Harrington, who is in charge of government relations at Mayo.

Interstate compacts have been used since the nation’s early years. More than 200 are in effect today. Initially they were used to settle boundary disputes. Many allocate water rights among states. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey was created by an interstate compact, as was the transit agency that runs subways in the Washington area. Other compacts govern use of the Great Lakes, the supervision of juvenile offenders and enforcement of state tax laws.

Mari E. Robinson, executive director of the Texas Medical Board, said her agency had voted to support the compact and would share its views with the State Legislature.