BILL ANALYSIS �
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|Hearing Date:April 23, 2012 |Bill No:SB |
| |1575 |
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SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS
AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Senator Curren D. Price, Jr., Chair
Bill No: SB 1575Author:Business, Professions and
Economic Development Committee
As Amended April 16, 2012Fiscal:Yes
SUBJECT: Professions and vocations.
SUMMARY: Makes several non-controversial minor, non-substantive or
technical changes to various provisions pertaining to the
health-related regulatory Boards of the Department of Consumer Affairs
(DCA).
Existing law:
1)Provides for the licensing and regulation of various professions and
businesses by some
23 boards, 4 committees, 8 bureaus, and 1 commission within the DCA
under various Business and Professions Code (BPC) licensing acts.
Each licensing act specifies that protection of the public shall be
the highest priority of the Boards or Bureaus in exercising its
licensing, regulatory and disciplinary functions.
2)Contains the following provisions relating to the Respiratory Care
Board:
a) Establishes the Respiratory Care Practice Act. (BPC �3700 et
seq)
b) Allows the Respiratory Care Board to exercise authority over
licensing, regulatory and disciplinary functions. (BPC � 3710.1)
c) Includes substandard care in the capacity as a respiratory
care practitioner (RCP) or any capacity responsible for the care
of another. (BPC � 3750(p))
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d) Establishes that during the period of any clinical training, a
trainee shall be under the direct supervision of a person holding
a valid and current respiratory care license. (BPC � 3742)
3)Contains the following provisions relating to the Board of
Behavioral Sciences (BBS):
a) Licenses and regulates the following by the BBS: marriage and
family therapists (LMFT), clinical social workers (LCSW)
educational psychologists (LEP), and licensed professional
clinical counselors (LPCC). (BPC � 4980.34)
b) Requires that applicants complete a course in California law
and professional ethics. (BPC � 4980.78)
c) Specifies the requirements for an applicant to pass the
standard written examination and the California Law and Ethics
Examination. (BPC �� 4980.398, 4980.399, 4992.07, 4992.09)
d) Specifies the course content of the California law and ethics
course. (BPC � 4999.57,
� 4999.58 and � 4999.59)
e) Requires an intern to renew his or her registration annually
in order to retain their intern status. (BPC � 4999.45 (d))
f) Requires a LPCC intern to cease employment after six years
unless he or she obtains a new intern registration. (BPC
�4999.45(e))
g) Specifies the grounds for refusal of registration or licensure
due to unprofessional conduct. (BPC � 4999.90)
h) Establishes a fee for the annual renewal of licenses. (BPC �
4999.120)
i) Discusses the provisions of supervision for credited
experience. (BPC � 4980.43(c))
j) Describes advertisement of services for unlicensed interns and
trainees.
(BPC �� 4980.44, 4980.48)
aa) References the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act as it relates to education, licensees from other states and
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examination eligibility or registration.
(BPC �� 4980.78, 4980.80, 4999.62, 4999.57, 4999.58, 4999.59,
4999.32)
bb) Defines the number of hours of clinical experience needed in
either a clinical setting or community mental health setting.
(BPC � 4999.46(b)(5))
cc) Requires that LPCCs, who obtained their license through grand
parenting, and were not already licensed by the BBS as an LMFT or
LCSW, must complete 18 hours of annual continuing education.
(BPC � 4999.76)
4)Contains the following provisions relating to the Board of
Optometry:
a) Permits the Board to require an individual who meets all of
the following requirements to take the examinations for a
certificate of registration as an optometrist: (BPC � 3057.5)
i) Is over the age of 18 years.
ii) Is not subject to denial of a certificate.
iii) Has a degree as a doctor of optometry issued by a
university located outside of the United States.
5)Contains the following provisions relating to the Medical Board of
California (MBC):
a) Permits the MBC to regulate physician and surgeon certificate
holders. (BPC � 2220)
b) Grants the MBC jurisdiction over all of its licensees. (BPC �
2220)
c) Allows the MBC to license midwives. (BPC � 2518)
d) Specifies the period of validity for the United States Medical
Licensing Examination (USMLE) test scores extension. (BPC �
2184)
e) Uses the term "infant" to describe a newborn in the first four
weeks of life. (BPC � 2516)
f) Specifies the process for physicians to report change of
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address, received renewal and delinquency notices and pay renewal
and delinquency fees to the MBC.
(BPC �� 2021, 2424)
6)Contains the following provisions relating to the Board of
Psychology:
a) Specifies that a licensed psychologist is a health care
practitioner that may utilize telehealth. (BPC � 2904.5)
7)Contains the following provisions relating to the Board of Pharmacy:
a) Describes the number of practice hours required for an intern
pharmacist.
(BPC � 4209(a))
b) Ensures that final disciplinary action taken on a licensee's
record, even if that license is cancelled, is documented. (BPC �
4300.1)
8)Contains the following provisions relating to the Dental Hygiene
Committee of California (DHCC):
a) Specifies supervision and coursework requirements for
trainees. (BPC � 1909.5)
b) Indicates that a licensee that changes his/her physical
address and/or legal name is required to report this to the DHCC.
(BPC � 1934)
c) Defines unprofessional conduct for dental hygienists. (BPC �
1950.5)
9)Contains the following provisions relating to the California Massage
Therapy Council (Council):
a) Specifies the examination that an applicant has to pass in
order to receive a certificate. (BPC � 4601(c)(2)(B))
b) Describes the minimum number of hours that an applicant must
complete in order to receive a certificate. (BPC �
4601(b)(1)(B), (c )(2)(A))
c) Establishes that a city, county or city and county may charge
a massage business or establishment a business licensing fee
providing that the fee be no different than the fee that is
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uniformly applied to all other individuals and businesses
providing professional services. (BPC � 4612 (b)(3))
d) Specifies the requirements for obtaining an application for a
business license.
(BPC � 4612(b)(7))
e) Indicates that an owner or operator of a massage business or
establishment shall be responsible for the conduct of all
employees or independent contractors working on the premises of
the business. (BPC � 4612 (c))
f) Specifies what a background check of an owner of a massage
establishment may include. (BPC � 4612 (e))
This bill:
1)Makes the following changes relating to the Respiratory Care Board:
a) Includes illegal possession of drug paraphernalia as grounds
to take disciplinary action. (BPC � 3750(a))
b) Includes substandard care or negligence in the capacity as a
RCP or any capacity responsible for the care of another. (BPC �
3750(p))
c) Specifies that the person providing supervision to a RCP must
hold an unrestricted license. (BPC � 3742)
d) Ensures that all boards and bureaus can obtain certified
criminal records necessary to complete an applicant or licensee
investigation. (BPC � 144.5)
2)Makes the following changes relating to the Board of Behavioral
Sciences:
a) Adds LPCCs to the list of groups licensed by the Board. (BPC
� 4980.34)
b) Requires the California law and professional ethics course to
be 18 hours in length.
(BPC � 4980.78)
c) Requires an 18 hour course in California law and professional
ethics if the applicant has completed a 2 quarter unit or 3
semester unit course that does not meet the requirements as
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specified. (BPC � 4980.8)
d) Clarifies that if an applicant has previously passed the
standard written examination, but not the clinical vignette
examination, then under the examination restructure, he or she
would need to pass the new clinical examination. However, he or
she would not need to take the new California Law and Ethics
Examination because the previously passed standard written
examination had already fulfilled this requirement.
(BPC � 4980.398, � 4980.399, � 4992.07 and � 4992.09)
e) References the fingerprinting requirement in regulations.
(BPC � 4984.4 (LMFTs), � 4989.42 (LEPs), � 4996.6 (Licensed
Clinical Social Workers) and � 4999.106 (LPCCs))
f) References the Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act.
(BPC � 4980.04 and � 4999.22)
g) Deletes an obsolete reference to the 18 hour California law
and ethics course requirement as these sections already specify
that the applicant must meet the requirements of BPC � 4999.32
(e) which requires the same course. (BPC � 4999.57, � 4999.58
and � 4999.59)
h) Specifies that the course content of the California law and
ethics course must contain the elements that were previously
listed in BPC � 4999.57, � 4999.58 and � 4999.59. (BPC � 4999.32
(e) (6))
i) Replaces the term "Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act" with the clause "state and federal laws
related to confidentiality of patient health information."
(BPC � 4999.57, � 4999.58, � 4999.59 and � 4999.32)
j) Clarifies that a PCC intern must renew annually in order to
retain their intern status.
(BPC � 4999.45 (d))
aa) Deletes an obsolete reference in BPC �4999.45(e) which
requires a PCC intern to cease employment after six years unless
he or she obtains a new intern registration as subsections (d)
and (f) already cover this requirement.
bb) Adds language ensuring conformity with existing laws regarding
substance abuse, supervision and inclusion of LPCCs. (BPC �
4999.90)
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cc) Adds a provision stating that it is unprofessional conduct for
an LPCC applicant or registrant to violate the law regarding
patient access to his or her records.
(BPC � 4999.90)
dd) Removes the fee established in subsection (h) of LPCC code.
(BPC � 4999.120)
ee) Specifies the type of supervision that is required for
credited experience.
(BPC � 4980.43(c))
ff) Adds LPCCs to the list of supervisors. (BPC � 4980.44 and
4980.48)
gg) Removes the reference to Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act and replaces it with the clause: "state and
federal laws related to confidentiality of patient health
information." (BPC � 4980.78, 4980.80, and 4999.62)
hh) Defines the terms "clinical setting" and "community mental
health setting."
(BPC � 4999.46(b)(5))
ii) Deletes the requirement that LPCCs who obtained their license
through grand parenting, and who were not already licensed by the
Board as an LMFT or LCSW, must complete 18 hours of annual
continuing education. If this provision is deleted, these
licensees would be required to show completion of 36 hours of
continuing education every two years upon license renewal, as is
required of all other LPCCs. (BPC � 4999.76)
1)Makes the following changes relating to the Board of Optometry:
a) Amends language to explicitly state "graduate of a foreign
university" instead of "person" when referring to who is
eligible to sit for the examinations for a certificate of
registration as an optometrist. (BPC � 3057.5)
1)Makes the following changes relating to the Medical Board:
a) Clarifies existing law to make it clear that the Board has
jurisdiction over all licenses it issues regardless of the type
of license. (BPC � 2220)
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b) Adds language, similar to that in existing law for
physicians, which will create a retired license status for
licensed midwives. (BPC � 2518)
c) Makes technical code maintenance changes. (BPC � 2064)
d) Clarifies that clinical training should be included as a
way an applicant may have spent time in a postgraduate training
program, in order to qualify an applicant to have the period of
validity for the United States Medical Licensing Examination
(USMLE) scores extended. (BPC � 2184)
e) Uses the term "neonate" in place of "infant" to describe a
newborn in the first four weeks of life. (BPC � 2516)
f) Allows physicians the choice to be sent renewal and
delinquency notices via electronic mail. (BPC � 2021 and �
2424)
1)Makes the following changes relating to the Board of Psychology:
a) Makes technical changes to the BPC � 2904.5 dealing with
telehealth services.
2)Makes the following changes relating to the Board of Pharmacy:
a) Streamlines the processing of applicants for the
pharmacist licensure examination, and ensures that applicants
who submit verification of intern hours worked from another
state board of pharmacy have met the California requirements.
(BPC � 4209(a))
b) Ensures that final disciplinary action taken on a
licensee's record, even if that license is cancelled, is
documented. (BPC � 4300.1)
1)Makes the following changes relating to the Dental Hygiene Committee
of California (DHCC):
a) Authorizes the DHCC to obtain and keep required employment
records.
(BPC � 1902.2(a))
b) Deletes BPC � 1909.5 pertaining to supervision and
coursework as the requirements are now obsolete.
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c) Clarifies that a licensee that changes his/her physical
address and electronic mail information is required to report
this to the DHCC. (BPC � 1934)
d) Deletes obsolete language as the State Dental Auxiliary
Fund no longer exists.
(BPC � 1945)
e) Clarifies that this section applies to dental hygiene.
Makes changes to technical terminology such as: "radiograms" to
"radiographs." Clarifies that the DHCC is to determine
permitting standards. Conforms to Dental Board language
regarding failure to follow infection control guidelines. (BPC
� 1950.5)
f) Applies existing unprofessional conduct language relating
to dentists to dental hygienists. (BPC � 1958.1 (a))
1)Makes the following changes relating to the California Massage
Therapy Council (Council):
a) Allows for the investigation of a person who has
substantial authority over the operation of the establishment
including hiring and firing of certified massage professionals.
(BPC � 4600(e))
b) Provides clarifying language to prevent someone from
qualifying without any massage training by passing one of the
examinations that require no proof of education.
(BPC � 4601(c)(2)(B))
c) The U.S. Department of Education has issued new rules for
recognizing school credits issued. Currently, the California
Massage Therapy Council (CAMTC) converts credits to hours but
some states have recognized in rules that they will accept
both. Two schools have suggested that the CAMTC do the same to
avoid confusion regarding student financial aid. (BPC �
4601(b) (1)(B) and BPC � 4601 (c)(2)(A))
d) Standardizes practices for suspended or revoked
certifications and licenses.
(BPC � 4601(h))
e) Indicates that a city, county or city and county may
charge a massage business or establishment a business licensing
fee providing that the fee be no higher than the fee that is
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uniformly applied to all other individuals and businesses
providing professional services. (BPC � 4612 (b)(3))
f) Clarifies relevant information for a business license
application. (BPC � 4612(b)(7))
g) Clarifies that an owner or operator of a massage business
or establishment who is certified shall be responsible for the
conduct of all employees or independent contractors working on
the premises of the business. (BPC � 4612 (c))
h) Specifies what a background check of an owner of a massage
establishment may include as well as actions taken against the
establishment if the background check results in a relevant
finding. (BPC � 4612 (e))
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill has been keyed "fiscal" by
legislative counsel.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose. This bill is the annual Omnibus Committee bill authored by
the Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee which
consolidates a number of non-controversial provisions related to
various regulatory programs and professions governed by the Business
and Professions Code. Consolidating the provisions in one bill is
designed to relieve the various licensing boards, bureaus and
professions from the necessity and burden of having separate
measures for a number of non-controversial revisions.
Many of the provisions of this bill are minor, technical and
updating changes, while other provisions are substantive consensus
changes intended to improve the ability of various licensing
programs and other entities to efficiently and effectively
administer their respective laws.
As a Committee bill, this measure is jointly authored by each of the
members of the Committee. As such, by its very nature, it is a
consensus bill. If controversy or opposition should arise regarding
any provision in this bill that cannot be resolved, then that
provision will be removed from the bill. This will eliminate the
chance of placing any of the other provisions in jeopardy.
2.Background. The Board of Behavioral Sciences is the only board
which appears to have the more significant and substantive
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provisions in this measure :
a) Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS). Addition of LPCC.
Section 4980.34 states that it is the intent of the Legislature
that the BBS license LMFTs, LCSWs, and LEPs. It does not
currently include licensure of LPCCs. The BBS was given the
authority to license LPCCs with SB 788 (Chapter 619, Statutes of
2009). As such, the BBS has proposed changing several sections
within the BPC to reflect the addition of this new group.
Delete References to HIPAA. Certain sections of the BBS's
licensing laws require coursework in California law and ethics
that covers, among other topics, the Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
According to the BBS, during previous discussions of the 2012
omnibus bill at the BBS's October 13, 2011 Policy and Advocacy
Committee Meeting and the November 9, 2011 Board Meeting, it
was requested that reference to HIPAA in code sections 4999.32,
4999.57, 4999.58 and 4999.59 be removed and replaced with the
term "state and federal laws related to confidentiality of
patient health information." The BBS's reasoning is that HIPAA
is a federal law which in the future could be repealed or
replaced with a different title, therefore making the reference
obsolete.
Amendments deleting the reference to HIPAA in Sections 4999.57,
4999.58, and 4999.59 and instead including the new reference
term in Section 4999.32 have already been approved by the BBS.
However, there are three other code sections in LPCC licensing
law that also reference HIPAA and are proposed changes within
this bill.
3. Current Related Legislation. SB 1527 (Negrete McLeod, 2012)
requires an out of state licensee, under the jurisdiction of the
Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS), to be in good standing.
Requires the individual to pass the California law and ethics
examination, but would exempt the person from the clinical
examination if the person has previously obtained a passing score on
an examination accepted by the BBS as provided by a regulation
adopted by the BBS. The bill also provides that a passing score on
the clinical examination shall be accepted by the BBS for a period
of 7 years after the examination date. It also exempts an
applicant, who received their license out of state, from the
clinical examination if the person has previously obtained a passing
score on an examination accepted by the BBS, pursuant to a
regulation adopted by the BBS. The bill provides that a passing
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score on the clinical examination shall be accepted by the BBS for a
period of 7 years after the examination date.
SB 1202 (Leno and Wyland, 2012) Makes a number of clean up changes
regarding the licensure and regulation of registered dental
hygienists by the Dental Hygiene Committee of California; increases
various regulatory fee ceilings.
AB 2579 (Skinner, 2012) requires that on or after January 1, 2014, a
Marriage and Family Therapist license be issued to qualified
applicants upon the passage of a clinical examination and a
California law and ethics examination, subject to specified fees,
and requires applicants for licensure to retake the law and ethics
examination under certain circumstances, as specified. Also
requires that on or after January 1, 2014, marriage and family
therapist interns must take the law and ethics examination, subject
to specified fees.
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
Support:
Medical Board of California
Opposition:
None received as of April 16, 2012
Consultant:Le Ondra Clark