SB 466, as amended, Hill. Registered nurses: Board of Registered Nursing.
The Nursing Practice Act provides for the licensure and regulation of registered nurses by the Board of Registered Nursing within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law requires the board to appoint an executive officer to perform duties delegated by the board. Existing law repealsbegin insert those provisions establishingend insert the board and the executive officer position on January 1, 2016.
This bill would extend the repeal date to January 1, 2018.
The act authorizes the board to take disciplinary action against a certified or licensed nurse or to deny an application for a certificate or license for certain reasons, including unprofessional conduct. Existing law establishes the California State Auditor’s Office, which is headed by the California State Auditor, to conduct financial and performance audits as directed by statute.
This bill would require the board, by February 1, 2016, to contract with the California State Auditor’s Office to conduct a performance audit of the board’s enforcement program, as specified. The bill would require the board to reimburse the office for the cost of the performance audit. The bill would require the office to report the results of the audit to the Governor, the department, and the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature by January 1, 2017. The bill would require the board’s staff and management to cooperate with the office and provide the office with access to data, case files, employees, and information.
The act authorizes any person who has served on active duty in the medical corps of the Armed Forces of the United States and who successfully completed the course of instruction to qualify him or her for rating as a medical service technician--independent duty, or other equivalent rating, and whose service in the Armed Forces was under honorable conditions to submit the record of that training to the board for evaluation. The act requires the board to grant a license to that person if he or she meets specified qualifications and the board determines that his or her education would give reasonable assurance of competence to practice as a registered nurse in this state. The act requires the board to maintain records of those applicants, including, but not limited to, applicants who are rejected from examination.
This bill would repeal those provisions.
The act requires the board to maintain a list of approved schools or programs of nursing in this state, as specified, and provides that an approved school or program of nursing is one that has been approved by the board and meets certain academic requirements. The act requires the board to deny an application for approval of, and to revoke the approval given to, any school of nursing that does not give student applicants credit for previous education and the opportunity to obtain credit for other acquired knowledge by the use of challenge examinations or other methods of evaluation.
This bill would require the board to deny or revoke approval of a school of nursing that does not give student applicants credit in the field of nursing for military education and experience by the use of challenge examinations or other methods of evaluation. The bill would require the board, by January 1, 2017, to adopt regulations requiring schools seeking approval to have a process to evaluate and grant credit, as defined, for military education and experience. The bill would require the board to review a school’s policies and practices regarding granting credit for military education and experience at least every 5 years to ensure consistency in evaluation and application across schools. The bill would require the board to post on its Internet Web site information related to the acceptance of military coursework and experience at each approved school.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 2701 of the Business and Professions
2Code is amended to read:
(a) There is in the Department of Consumer Affairs the
4Board of Registered Nursing consisting of nine members.
5(b) For purposes of this chapter, “board,” or “the board,” refers
6to the Board of Registered Nursing. Any reference in state law to
7the Board of Nurse Examiners of the State of California or the
8California Board of Nursing Education and Nurse Registration
9shall be construed to refer to the Board of Registered Nursing.
10(c) The board shall have all authority vested in the previous
11board under this chapter. The board may enforce all disciplinary
12actions undertaken by the previous board.
13(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2018,
14and as of that date, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute that
15is enacted before January 1, 2018, deletes or extends that date.
16Notwithstanding any other law, the repeal of this section renders
17the board subject to review by the appropriate policy committees
18of the Legislature.
Section 2708 of the Business and Professions Code is
20amended to read:
(a) The board shall appoint an executive officer who
22shall perform the duties delegated by the board and who shall be
23responsible to it for the accomplishment of those duties.
24(b) The executive officer shall be a nurse currently licensed
25under this chapter and shall possess other qualifications as
26determined by the board.
27(c) The executive officer shall not be a member of the board.
P4 1(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2018,
2and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
3is enacted before January 1, 2018,
deletes or extends that date.
Section 2718 is added to the Business and Professions
5Code, to read:
(a) (1) By February 1, 2016, the board shall contract
7with the office to conduct a performance audit of the board’s
8enforcement program. The board shall reimburse the office for the
9cost of the performance audit. The office shall report the results
10of the audit, with any recommendations, to the Governor, the
11department, and the appropriate policy committees of the
12Legislature by January 1, 2017.
13(2) The performance audit shall include, but not be limited to,
14an evaluation of all the following:
15(A) The quality and consistency of, and compliance with,
16complaint processing and
investigation.
17(B) The consistency and adequacy of the application of board
18sanctions or discipline imposed on licensees.
19(C) The accuracy and consistency in implementing the laws and
20rules affecting discipline, including adherence to the Division of
21Investigation Case Acceptance Guidelines (Consumer Protection
22Enforcement Initiative Model), as revised July 1, 2014.
23(D) The timeframes for completing complaint processing,
24investigation, and resolution.
25(E) Staff concerns regarding licensee disciplinary matters or
26procedures.
27(F) The appropriate utilization of licensed professionals to
28investigate
complaints.
29(G) The adequacy of the board’s cooperation with other state
30agencies charged with enforcing related laws and regulations
31regarding nurses.
32(H) Any existing backlog, the reason for the backlog, and the
33timeframe for eliminating the backlog.
34(I) The adequacy of board staffing, training, and fiscal resources
35to perform its enforcement functions.
36(b) Board staff and management shall cooperate with the office
37and shall provide the office with access to data, case files,
38employees, and information as the office may, in its discretion,
39require for the purposes of this section.
P5 1(c) For the
purposes of this section, “office” means the
2California State Auditor’s Office.
Section 2736.5 of the Business and Professions Code
4 is repealed.
Section 2786 of the Business and Professions Code is
6amended to read:
(a) An approved school of nursing, or an approved
8nursing program, is one that has been approved by the board, gives
9the course of instruction approved by the board, covering not less
10than two academic years, is affiliated or conducted in connection
11with one or more hospitals, and is an institution of higher
12education. For purposes of this section, “institution of higher
13education” includes, but is not limited to, community colleges
14offering an associate of arts or associate of science degree and
15private postsecondary institutions offering an associate of arts,
16associate of science, or baccalaureate degree or an entry-level
17master’s degree, and is an institution that is not subject to the
18California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009
(Chapter
198 (commencing with Section 94800) of Part 59 of Division 10 of
20Title 3 of the Education Code).
21(b) A school of nursing that is affiliated with an institution that
22is subject to the California Private Postsecondary Education Act
23of 2009 (Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 94800) of Part 59
24of Division 10 of Title 3 of the Education Code), may be approved
25by the board to grant an associate of arts or associate of science
26degree to individuals who graduate from the school of nursing or
27to grant a baccalaureate degree in nursing with successful
28completion of an additional course of study as approved by the
29board and the institution involved.
30(c) The board shall determine by regulation the required subjects
31of instruction to be completed in an approved school of nursing
32for
licensure as a registered nurse and shall include the minimum
33units of theory and clinical experience necessary to achieve
34essential clinical competency at the entry level of the registered
35nurse. The board’s regulations shall be designed to require all
36schools to provide clinical instruction inbegin insert all phases ofend insert the
37educationalbegin delete process.end deletebegin insert process, except as necessary to accommodate
38military education and experience as specified in Section 2786.1.end insert
39(d) The board shall perform or cause to be performed an analysis
40of the practice of the registered nurse no less than every five years.
P6 1Results of the
analysis shall be utilized to assist in the
2determination of the required subjects of instruction, validation of
3the licensing examination, and assessment of the current practice
4of nursing.
Section 2786.1 is added to the Business and Professions
6Code, to read:
(a) The board shall deny the application for approval
8made by, and shall revoke the approval given to, any school of
9nursing that does not give student applicants credit in the field of
10nursing for military education and experience by the use of
11challenge examinations or other methods of evaluation.
12(b) The board shall adopt regulations by January 1, 2017,
13requiring schools to have a process to evaluate and grant credit for
14military education and experience. The regulations shall be adopted
15pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5
16(commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title
172 of the Government Code). The word “credit,” as used in
this
18subdivision, is limited to credit for licensure only. The board is
19not authorized to prescribe the credit that an approved school of
20nursing shall give toward an academic certificate or degree.
21(c) The board shall review a school’s policies and practices
22regarding granting credit for military education and experience at
23least once every five years to ensure consistency in evaluation and
24application across schools. The board shall post on its Internet
25Web site information related to the acceptance of military
26coursework and experience at each approved school.
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