Substitute Senate Bill No. 1162
Substitute Senate Bill No. 1162
PUBLIC ACT NO. 97-213
AN ACT CONCERNING LICENSURE OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY
THERAPISTS, SANITARIANS, SPEECH PATHOLOGISTS,
PODIATRISTS, OPTICIANS, ACUPUNCTURISTS, CLINICAL
SOCIAL WORKERS AND MASSAGE THERAPISTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 20-195b of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
(a) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN SECTION 20-195f, AS
AMENDED BY THIS ACT, NO PERSON SHALL PRACTICE
MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY UNLESS LICENSED IN
ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 20-195c, AS AMENDED BY
THIS ACT.
(b) No person shall use the title
["Connecticut licensed] "LICENSED marital and
family therapist" unless he is licensed in
accordance with the provisions of [this chapter]
SECTION 19a-195c, AS AMENDED BY THIS ACT.
Sec. 2. Section 20-195c of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
(a) [On and after October 1, 1995, any person
certified under this chapter as a marital and
family therapist, as of October 1, 1995, shall be
deemed licensed as a marital and family therapist
pursuant to this chapter.] Each applicant for
licensure as a marital and family therapist shall
present to the department satisfactory evidence
that he has: (1) Completed a graduate degree
program specializing in marital and family therapy
from a regionally accredited college or university
OR AN ACCREDITED POSTGRADUATE CLINICAL TRAINING
PROGRAM APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION ON
ACCREDITATION FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY
EDUCATION AND RECOGNIZED BY THE UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; (2) completed a minimum
of twelve months of a supervised practicum or
internship to be completed within a period not to
exceed [eighteen] TWENTY-FOUR consecutive months
with emphasis in marital and family therapy
supervised by the program granting the requisite
degree or by an accredited postgraduate clinical
training program, approved by the commission on
accreditation for marriage and family therapy
education recognized by the United States
Department of Education in which the student
received a minimum of five hundred direct clinical
hours that included one hundred hours of clinical
supervision; (3) completed a minimum of twelve
months of relevant postgraduate experience,
including at least (A) one thousand hours of
direct client contact offering marital and family
therapy services subsequent to being awarded a
master's degree or doctorate or subsequent to the
training year specified in subdivision (2) of this
subsection, and [such postgraduate work shall
additionally include a minimum of] (B) one hundred
hours of postgraduate [supervised casework]
CLINICAL SUPERVISION provided by a licensed
marital and family therapist [, provided the
supervisor of an applicant who commences such year
of relevant postgraduate experience on and after
January 1, 1996, shall not be] WHO IS NOT directly
compensated by such applicant for providing such
supervision; and (4) passed an examination
prescribed by the department. The fee [payable in
the case of each application shall be in the
amount of] SHALL BE two hundred fifty dollars for
each initial application. Licenses [shall] MAY be
renewed annually in accordance with the provisions
of section 19a-88, AS AMENDED BY THIS ACT. The fee
for such renewal shall be two hundred fifty
dollars.
(b) The department may grant licensure
without examination, [but] subject to payment of
fees with respect to the initial application, to
any applicant who is currently licensed or
certified in another state as a marital or
marriage and family therapist on the basis of
standards which, in the opinion of the department,
are substantially similar to or higher than those
of this state. No license shall be issued under
this section to any applicant against whom
professional disciplinary action is pending or who
is the subject of an unresolved complaint.
(c) NOTWITHSTANDING THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS
SECTION, THE COMMISSIONER SHALL GRANT A LICENSE AS
A MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPIST TO ANY PERSON WHO
APPLIES FOR LICENSURE PRIOR TO JANUARY 1, 1998,
AND SUBMITS SATISFACTORY EVIDENCE THAT HE HAS (1)
A MINIMUM OF TEN YEARS OF RELEVANT EXPERIENCE AS
OF JANUARY 1, 1998, INCLUDING A MINIMUM OF FIVE
YEARS WORK EXPERIENCE UNDER AN APPROVED SUPERVISOR
OR APPROVED SUBSTITUTE SUPERVISOR OF THE AMERICAN
ASSOCIATION FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY OR
SUPERVISOR OR SUBSTITUTE SUPERVISOR CERTIFIED OR
LICENSED UNDER THIS CHAPTER, AND (2) SUCCESSFULLY
COMPLETED EITHER (A) A GRADUATE DEGREE PROGRAM
SPECIALIZING IN MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY OR (B)
AN ACCREDITED POSTGRADUATE CLINICAL TRAINING
PROGRAM APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION ON
ACCREDITATION FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY
EDUCATION AND RECOGNIZED BY THE UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
Sec. 3. Section 20-195f of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
[Nothing in this chapter shall be construed
to limit the activities and services of a] (a) NO
LICENSE AS A MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPIST SHALL BE
REQUIRED OF: (1) A student pursuing a course of
study in an educational institution meeting the
requirements of section 20-195c, AS AMENDED BY
THIS ACT, if such activities constitute a part of
his supervised course of study; [. Nothing in this
chapter shall be construed to limit the activities
and services of] (2) a faculty member within
[such] AN institution [from] OF HIGHER LEARNING
performing duties consistent with his position; [.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to
prohibit the activities and services provided by]
(3) a person holding a graduate degree in marriage
and family therapy or a certificate of completion
of a postdegree program for marriage and family
therapy education, provided such activities and
services constitute a part of his supervised work
experience required for licensure; [. Nothing in
this chapter shall be construed to prohibit] OR
(4) a person licensed or certified in this state
in a field other than marital and family therapy
[from] practicing within the scope of such license
or certification.
(b) A PERSON PRACTICING MARRIAGE AND FAMILY
THERAPY PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION (4) OF SUBSECTION
(a) OF THIS SECTION MAY ADVERTISE OR PRESENT
HIMSELF AS PRACTICING MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY
PROVIDED HE CLEARLY SETS FORTH, IN HIS
ADVERTISEMENT OR PRESENTATION, THE TYPE OF LICENSE
PURSUANT TO WHICH HE IS PRACTICING.
Sec. 4. Section 20-361 of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
(a) Except as provided in SUBSECTION (b) OF
THIS SECTION AND section 20-365, no person shall
be licensed as a sanitarian who does not prove to
the satisfaction of the commissioner that he holds
a degree from an accredited college or university
following four years of study and has two years of
full-time experience, or the equivalent, in the
field of environmental health acceptable to the
commissioner. An applicant who successfully
completes a special training course in
environmental health approved by the commissioner
may substitute such course for six months of such
required experience in the field of environmental
health. The applicant shall also be required to
pass a written or oral examination in the science
of environmental health as determined by the
commissioner. An applicant for licensure shall not
be required to be licensed while completing the
work experience requirements of this section,
provided, on and after January 1, 1998, such
experience shall be completed under the
supervision of a sanitarian licensed pursuant to
this chapter or licensed, certified or registered
in the jurisdiction in which such experience was
completed.
(b) FOR ANY PERSON APPLYING FOR LICENSURE AS
A SANITARIAN ON OR BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 1997, A
MINIMUM OF FOUR YEARS OF COMBINED TRAINING AND
WORK EXPERIENCE IN THE FIELD OF ENVIRONMENTAL
HEALTH WITHIN A CONNECTICUT MUNICIPAL OR DISTRICT
HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
OR THE ARMED FORCES, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 27-103,
MAY BE SUBSTITUTED FOR THE DEGREE FROM AN
ACCREDITED COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY SPECIFIED IN
SUBSECTION (a) OF THIS SECTION.
Sec. 5. Section 20-74bb of the general
statutes is amended by adding subsection (h) as
follows:
(NEW) (h) Notwithstanding the requirements of
this section, the commissioner shall grant a
license to any person who submits satisfactory
evidence that he has a degree in radiography or
identical field of study under a different
designation from an institution of higher
education authorized to grant degrees by the state
or country where located, has a minimum of ten
years experience in the field of radiography, has
a temporary license from the Department of Public
Health and applies for licensure prior to January
1, 1998.
Sec. 6. Section 20-413 of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as
prohibiting:
[(a) Persons not licensed hereunder from
consulting] (1) CONSULTING with or disseminating
[their] research findings and scientific
information to accredited academic institutions or
governmental agencies [, and such persons may
offer] OR OFFERING lectures to the public for a
fee, monetary or otherwise; [, without being
licensed under this chapter;]
[(b)] (2) The activities and services of a
graduate student or speech pathology intern in
speech pathology pursuing a course of study
leading to a graduate degree in speech pathology
at an accredited or approved college or university
or a clinical training facility approved by the
department, provided these activities and services
constitute a part of his supervised course of
study and that such person is designated as
"Speech Pathology Intern", "Speech Pathology
Trainee", or other such title clearly indicating
the training status appropriate to his level of
training;
[(c)] (3) The activities and services of a
graduate student or audiology intern in audiology
at an accredited or approved college or university
or a clinical training facility approved by the
department, provided these activities and services
constitute a part of his supervised course of
study and that such person is designated as
"Audiology Intern", "Audiology Trainee", or other
such title clearly indicating the training status
appropriate to his level of training;
[(d) (1)] (4) (A) A person from another state
offering [his] speech pathology or audiology
services in this state, provided such services are
performed for no more than five days in any
calendar year and provided such person meets the
qualifications and requirements for licensing in
this state; or [(2)] (B) a person from another
state who is licensed or certified as a speech
pathologist or audiologist by a similar authority
of another state, or territory of the United
States, or of a foreign country or province whose
standards are equivalent to or higher than, at the
date of his certification or licensure, the
requirements of this chapter and regulations
adopted hereunder, or a person who meets such
qualifications and requirements and resides in a
state or territory of the United States, or a
foreign country or province which does not grant
certification or license to speech pathologists or
audiologists, from offering speech pathology or
audiology services in this state for a total of
not more than thirty days in any calendar year;
[(e)] (5) The activities and services of a
person who meets the requirements of subdivisions
(1) and (2) of subsection (a) of section 20-411,
while such person is engaged in full or part-time
employment in fulfillment of the professional
employment requirement of subdivision (3) of said
[section] SUBSECTION (a);
[(f)] (6) Nurses and other personnel from
engaging in screening and audiometric testing,
under the supervision of a licensed physician,
surgeon or audiologist, for the purpose of
identifying those persons whose sensitivity of
hearing is below the standard acceptable level;
[(g)] (7) The activity and services of
hearing aid dealers;
(8) THE USE OF SUPERVISED SUPPORT PERSONNEL
TO ASSIST LICENSED SPEECH PATHOLOGISTS WITH TASKS
THAT ARE (A) DESIGNED BY THE LICENSED SPEECH
PATHOLOGISTS BEING ASSISTED, (B) ROUTINE, AND (C)
RELATED TO MAINTENANCE OF ASSISTIVE AND PROSTHETIC
DEVICES, RECORDING AND CHARTING OR IMPLEMENTATION
OF EVALUATION OR INTERVENTION PLANS. FOR PURPOSES
OF THIS SUBDIVISION, "SUPERVISED" MEANS (i) NOT
MORE THAN THREE SUPPORT PERSONNEL ARE ASSISTING
ONE LICENSED SPEECH PATHOLOGIST, (ii) IN-PERSON
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE LICENSED SPEECH
PATHOLOGIST AND SUPPORT PERSONNEL IS AVAILABLE AT
ALL TIMES, AND (iii) THE LICENSED SPEECH
PATHOLOGIST PROVIDES THE SUPPORT PERSONNEL WITH
REGULARLY SCHEDULED DIRECT OBSERVATION, GUIDANCE,
DIRECTION AND CONFERENCING FOR NOT LESS THAN
THIRTY PER CENT OF CLIENT CONTACT TIME FOR THE
SUPPORT PERSONNEL'S FIRST NINETY WORKDAYS AND FOR
NOT LESS THAN TWENTY PER CENT OF CLIENT CONTACT
TIME THEREAFTER.
Sec. 7. Section 20-50a of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
Podiatric surgery requiring an anesthetic
other than a local anesthetic shall be performed
in a facility accredited by the Joint Commission
on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations or a
free standing surgery center accredited by the
Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health
Care, by a licensed podiatrist who is accredited
by the credentials committee of the medical staff
of such facility to perform podiatric surgery in
conformance with rules promulgated by the chief of
the surgical department of said facility taking
into account the training, experience,
demonstrated competence and judgment of each such
licensed podiatrist, and such podiatrist shall
comply with such rules. Podiatric surgery shall
not include amputation of the leg [,] OR foot [or]
OTHER THAN FROM THE TRANSMETATARSAL LEVEL TO THE
toes.
Sec. 8. Section 20-146 of the general
statutes is amended by adding subsection (c) as
follows:
(NEW) (c) Each licensed optician shall meet
such continuing education requirements as the
Commissioner of Public Health may establish. The
commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance
with the provisions of chapter 54, setting forth
continuing education requirements for licensed
opticians.
Sec. 9. Subsection (c) of section 20-206bb of
the general statutes is repealed and the following
is substituted in lieu thereof:
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of
subsection (b) of this section, the department
[may, not later than thirty days following June 4,
1996] SHALL, PRIOR TO JANUARY 1, 1999, issue a
license to any applicant who presents to the
department satisfactory evidence that he [(1) has
completed sixty semester hours or its equivalent
of postsecondary education which, if in the United
States or its territories, was accredited by a
recognized regional accrediting body or, if
outside the United States or its territories, was
legally chartered to grant postsecondary degrees
in the country in which located, or is acceptable
to the department, (2) has successfully completed
a course of study in acupuncture in a program
located outside the United States or its
territories, fully licensed and approved by the
appropriate regulatory body of the jurisdiction in
which located, or accepted by the department and
which included a minimum of one thousand three
hundred fifty hours of didactic and clinical
training, five hundred hours of which were
clinical, (3) has passed an examination prescribed
by the department pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section or its equivalent as prescribed by
the department, (4)] has (1) PASSED THE NATIONAL
COMMISSION FOR THE CERTIFICATION OF ACUPUNCTURISTS
WRITTEN EXAMINATION BY TEST OR BY CREDENTIALS
REVIEW, (2) SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE PRACTICAL
EXAMINATION OF POINT LOCATION SKILLS OFFERED BY
THE NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR THE CERTIFICATION OF
ACUPUNCTURISTS, AND (3) successfully completed a
course in clean needle technique prescribed by the
department pursuant to subsection (b) of this
section. [, and (5) has worked continuously as an
acupuncturist for eight years immediately
preceding the submission of an application for
licensure to the department.]
Sec. 10. Subsection (b) of section 20-195o of
the general statutes is repealed and the following
is substituted in lieu thereof:
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section
20-195n concerning examinations, the commissioner
may issue a license without examination, prior to
January 1, [1996] 1998, to any applicant who
offers proof to the satisfaction of the
commissioner that he met the requirements of
subdivisions (1) and (2) of section 20-195n [prior
to October 1, 1993] AND WAS AN EMPLOYEE OF THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WITH NOT LESS THAN THREE
THOUSAND HOURS POSTMASTER'S SOCIAL WORK EXPERIENCE
PRIOR TO OCTOBER 1, 1986.
Sec. 11. Section 20-206b of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
(a) No person shall [on and after February 1,
1994,] engage in the practice of massage therapy
unless he has obtained a license from the
department pursuant to this section. Each person
seeking licensure as a massage therapist shall
make application on forms prescribed by the
department, pay an application fee of three
hundred dollars and present to the department
satisfactory evidence that he (1) has
[successfully completed] GRADUATED FROM A SCHOOL
OF MASSAGE THERAPY OFFERING a course of study of
not less than five hundred classroom hours, with
the instructor present, [at a school of massage
therapy which (A) is] AND, AT THE TIME OF HIS
GRADUATION, WAS EITHER (A) accredited by an
[accrediting] agency recognized by the [Department
of Higher Education in this state, the Department
of Education, or an equivalent state agency, of
the state in which the school is located or by
the] United States Department of Education and
[(B) provided, at the time of the applicant's
graduation, a curriculum which was] approved by
the American Massage Therapy Association, or [was]
(B) accredited [or approved] by the Commission on
Massage Training Accreditation/Approval, [or by
the accrediting agency recognized by the state in
which the school is located] and (2) has passed an
examination prescribed by the department or has
passed a national certification examination
approved by the American Massage Therapy
Association prior to July 1, 1995. [, except that
from June 1, 1993, until June 30, 1994, a person
seeking such licensure may present to the
department satisfactory evidence that he had not
later than February 1, 1994, met the requirement
either of subdivision (1) or (2) of this
subsection.] Passing scores on the examination
shall be prescribed by the department. Licenses
shall be renewed annually in accordance with the
provisions of section 19a-88. The fee for renewal
shall be one hundred dollars. No license shall be
issued under this section to any applicant against
whom professional disciplinary action is pending
or who is the subject of an unresolved complaint
in this or any other state or territory. Any
certificate granted by the department prior to
June 1, 1993, shall be deemed a valid license
permitting continuance of profession subject to
the provisions of this chapter.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of
subsection (a) of this section, the department may
issue a license to an applicant whose school of
massage therapy does not satisfy the requirement
of subparagraph (A) or (B) of subdivision (1) of
said subsection, provided the school held, at the
time of the applicant's graduation, a certificate
issued by the Commissioner of Education pursuant
to section 10-7b and provided the applicant
graduated within thirty-three months of the date
said school first offered the curriculum completed
by the applicant. No license shall be issued under
this subsection to a graduate of a school which
fails to apply for and obtain accreditation by an
accrediting agency recognized by the United States
Department of Education and either accreditation
or approval by the Commission on Massage Training
Accreditation/Approval within thirty-three months
of the date said school first offered the
curriculum.
(c) All persons licensed pursuant to this
section shall have an affirmative duty to make a
written referral to a licensed healing arts
practitioner of any client who has any physical or
medical condition which would constitute a
contraindication for massage therapy or which may
require evaluation or treatment beyond the scope
of massage therapy.
(d) No person shall use the title
"Connecticut licensed massage therapist" unless he
holds a license issued in accordance with this
section.
(e) NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF
SUBSECTION (a) OF THIS SECTION, THE COMMISSIONER
MAY ISSUE A LICENSE TO AN APPLICANT WHO SUBMITS
EVIDENCE SATISFACTORY TO THE COMMISSIONER, NOT
LATER THAN OCTOBER 1, 1997, OF (1) AN ADVANCED
DEGREE, FROM A FOREIGN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER
LEARNING, WITH A FOCUS ON THERAPEUTIC MASSAGE AND
A MINIMUM OF TEN YEARS' EXPERIENCE AS A MASSAGE
THERAPIST, OR (2) CONNECTICUT LICENSURE AS A
REGISTERED NURSE AND CERTIFICATION (A) AS A
NEUROMUSCULAR THERAPIST OR (B) BY THE NATIONAL
CERTIFICATION BOARD FOR MASSAGE AND BODY WORK.
Sec. 12. Section 20-12c of the general
statutes is repealed and the following is
substituted in lieu thereof:
(a) Each physician assistant practicing in
this state or participating in a resident
physician assistant program shall have a clearly
identified supervising physician who maintains the
final responsibility for the care of patients and
the performance of the physician assistant. No
physician assistant issued a license or temporary
permit by the department shall practice until such
time as a supervising physician has been
registered with the department. An individual may
register with the department as a supervising
physician provided he: (1) Possesses a current
unrestricted license to practice medicine or
osteopathy issued pursuant to this chapter or
chapter 371; and (2) has submitted a completed
application, on such forms as the department may
require, with a fee of thirty-seven dollars and
fifty cents. No physician or osteopathic physician
shall function as a supervising physician unless
so registered with the department. The department
shall not register any applicant against whom
professional disciplinary action is pending or who
is the subject of an unresolved complaint in this
or any other state or territory.
(b) [No] A physician or osteopathic physician
[shall] MAY function as a supervising physician
for [more than two full-time physician assistants
concurrently, or the part-time equivalent thereof,
unless such physician assistants are directly
employed as staff of an institution licensed as a
hospital pursuant to subsection (a) of section
19a-491 or are participating in a resident
physician assistant program] AS MANY PHYSICIAN
ASSISTANTS AS IS MEDICALLY APPROPRIATE UNDER THE
CIRCUMSTANCES, PROVIDED (1) THE SUPERVISION IS
ACTIVE AND DIRECT, AND AT THE SPECIFIC LOCATION IN
WHICH THE PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT IS PRACTICING, AND
(2) THE PHYSICIAN IS SUPERVISING NOT MORE THAN SIX
FULL-TIME PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS CONCURRENTLY, OR
THE PART-TIME EQUIVALENT THEREOF.
(c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed
to prohibit the employment of physician assistants
in a hospital or other health care facility where
such physician assistants function under the
direction of a supervising physician.
(d) A supervising physician shall notify the
department in writing within thirty days of
termination of a physician-physician assistant or
osteopathic-physician assistant supervisory
relationship. Nothing in this subsection shall
relieve a supervising physician of his
responsibility to report pursuant to section
20-12e.
Sec. 13. This act shall take effect from its
passage, except that sections 6 to 8, inclusive,
and 12 shall take effect October 1, 1997.
Approved June 26, 1997