BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1972|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 1972
Author: Jones (R)
Amended: 3/28/14 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS, PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMMITTEE : 9-0, 6/16/14
AYES: Lieu, Wyland, Berryhill, Block, Corbett, Galgiani,
Hernandez, Hill, Torres
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 73-0, 5/8/14 (Consent) - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Respiratory care practitioners
SOURCE : California Society for Respiratory Care
Respiratory Care Board
DIGEST : This bill requires an applicant for licensure as a
respiratory care practitioner (RCP) to pass the national
registered respiratory therapist examination (RRT), unless the
applicant provides evidence that he/she passed the national
certified respiratory therapist examination (CRT) prior to
January 1, 2015, and there is no evidence of discipline against
the practitioner; and authorizes the Respiratory Care Board
(RCB) to extend the dates an applicant may perform as an RCP
applicant for up to six months under specified circumstances.
ANALYSIS :
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Existing law:
1. Establishes the Respiratory Care Practice Act (Act), which is
enforced by RCB, to license and regulate the practice of
RCPs.
2. Prohibits an applicant from receiving a license without first
successfully passing the national respiratory therapist
examination in the manner and under the rules and regulations
as prescribed by RCB.
3. Provides that the requirements to pass the written
examination shall not apply to an applicant who, at the time
of his/her application, has passed, to the satisfaction of
RCB, an examination that is, in the opinion of RCB,
equivalent to the examination given in this state.
4. Authorizes every person who has filed an application for
licensure with RCB to perform as an RCP applicant under the
direct supervision of an RCP licensed in this state, between
the dates specified by RCB, if he/she has met education
requirements for licensure as may be certified by his/her
respiratory care program, and, if ever attempted, has passed
the CRT examination.
5. Ceases all privileges to practice as an RCP applicant on the
date specified by RCB if for any reason the license is not
issued or the applicant fails the CRT examination.
6. Prohibits an applicant for an RCP license from performing as
an RCP applicant if cause exists to deny the license.
7. Requires, except as specified, all applicants for licensure
to have completed an education program for respiratory care
that is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for
Respiratory Care or its successor and been awarded a minimum
of an associate degree.
8. Deems as equivalent to the required education an applicant's
enrollment in a baccalaureate degree program, as specified,
and completion of science, general academic and respiratory
therapy coursework commensurate with the requirements of an
associate degree for respiratory care.
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9. Authorizes RCB to waive its educational requirements if
evidence is presented and RCB deems it as meeting the current
educational requirements that will ensure the safe and
competent practice of respiratory care.
This bill:
1. Specifies that any person applying for licensure who provides
evidence that he/she passed the CRT examination, prior to
January 1, 2015, shall not be required to pass the RRT
examination.
2. Specifies that there must be no evidence of prior license or
job-related discipline as determined by RCB.
3. Authorizes RCB to extend the dates an applicant may perform
as an RCP applicant for up to six months under the following
circumstances:
A. When the applicant is unable to complete the
application for licensure process to due to causes
outside his/her control; or
B. When the applicant provides evidence that he/she has
successfully passed the CRT examination and has
otherwise completed the application for licensure
process and has not previously been authorized to
practice as an RCP.
4. Specifies that authorization to practice as an RCP applicant
shall not exceed six months from the date of graduation or
the date the application was filed, whichever is later.
5. Authorizes RCB to deny, rescind the privilege to work as an
RCP applicant for any reason, including, but not limited to,
failure to pass the RRT examination or if cause exists to
deny the license.
Background
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RCPs . According to information received from the Association
for Respiratory Care, there are over 150,000 RCPs in the U.S.
The first RCP license in California was issued in 1985, and
nearly 10,000 applicants were licensed through a grandfather
provision in that same year. To date, over 35,000 RCP licenses
have been issued in California.
RCPs treat patients with chronic lung problems such as asthma,
bronchitis and emphysema. They also treat accident victims,
premature infants, patients who have had heart attacks, cystic
fibrosis, lung cancer and AIDS. Patients typically receive
treatment from an RCP under the supervision of a physician.
Most RCPs work in hospitals where they perform intensive care,
critical care and neonatal procedures. They are a vital part of
a hospital's lifesaving response team which handles patient
emergencies. Of more than 7,000 hospitals in the U.S.,
approximately 5,700 have respiratory care departments.
National Board of Respiratory Care (NBRC) Examinations . Since
1985, RCB has required the passage of the NBRC CRT examination.
The examination was designed to objectively measure the
knowledge, skills and abilities required of entry-level
practitioners. The NBRC's RRT examination was developed to
objectively measure the knowledge, skills and abilities of
advanced-level practitioners.
Each exam has slightly different admission requirements. For
example, for the CRT, the applicant must graduate from an
entry-level educational program, and for the RRT, the applicant
must graduate from an advanced-level educational program.
However, the entry-level educational programs were phased out in
December 2012; thus, all current graduates meet the minimum
admission requirements for the RRT examination. Additionally,
accreditation of education programs is based upon the RRT
passage rate. As such, numerous states are moving towards
adopting the RRT as a pre-requisite for licensure.
Comments
According to the author, "This bill is necessary because
advancements in technology and accreditation standards coupled
with the restructuring of nationally recognized exams (effective
1/1/15) will make the current requirement to pass the CRT exam
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for licensure as a Respiratory Care Practitioner inadequate,
outdated and insufficient in meeting the Respiratory Care
Board's consumer protection mandate or the needs of the
healthcare industry. Over the last ten years, there have been
legislative amendments and modifications in accreditation and
credentialing requirements to such a point that all current
graduates of respiratory care educational programs qualify to
take the NBRC's Registered Respiratory Therapist Exam."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/30/14)
California Society for Respiratory Care (co-source)
Respiratory Care Board (co-source)
California Hospital Association
Kaiser Permanente
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : One of the bill's sponsors, the
California Society for Respiratory Care, writes, "All current
graduates from Respiratory Care Practitioner accredited
educational programs meet the minimum admission requirements to
take the RRT exam as this is the direction the industry is
headed. Employers now seek RCP's who have passed the RRT exam
rather than the CRT exam?Changes made by the national exam
provider and oversight accreditation agency make it necessary to
remove the obsolete exam requirement."
The California Hospital Association writes, "AB 1972 will
combine the entry level exam and the higher level exam into one
exam and 'grandfather' currently licensed Respiratory Care
Practitioners by holding the affected date at January 2015.
This opportunity will increase the safe and practical utility of
California Respiratory Care Practitioners for California
consumers without negatively affecting those currently in
practice."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 73-0, 5/8/14
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Ch�vez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Fong, Fox,
Frazier, Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon,
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Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Roger Hern�ndez, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein,
Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Nestande,
Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, John A.
P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Eggman, Gorell, Gray, Hall, Mansoor, V.
Manuel P�rez, Vacancy
MW:d 7/2/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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