Bill Text: NY S02911 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Defines occupational therapy assistant and provides requirements for authorization as an occupational therapy assistant.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2011-08-17 - SIGNED CHAP.460 [S02911 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-S02911-Amended.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 2911--A Cal. No. 127 2011-2012 Regular Sessions I N S E N A T E February 3, 2011 ___________ Introduced by Sens. LAVALLE, ADDABBO, OPPENHEIMER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the profession of occupational therapy THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: 1 Section 1. Article 156 of title 8 of the education law, as added by 2 chapter 779 of the laws of 1975, section 7901 as amended by chapter 146 3 of the laws of 1993, section 7903 as amended by chapter 326 of the laws 4 of 1977, subdivision 2 of section 7904 as amended by chapter 161 of the 5 laws of 1978, subdivision 8 of section 7904, subdivision 4 of section 6 7905 and subdivision 6 of section 7906 as amended by chapter 62 of the 7 laws of 1989, paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 7905 as amended 8 by chapter 396 of the laws of 1977 and subdivision 2 of section 7905 as 9 amended by chapter 173 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as 10 follows: 11 ARTICLE 156 12 OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY 13 Section 7900. Introduction. 14 7901. Definition. 15 7902. Practice of occupational therapy and use of title "occupa- 16 tional therapist". 17 7903. State board for occupational therapy. 18 7904. Requirements for a professional license. 19 7905. Limited permits. 20 7906. Exempt persons. 21 7907. Special conditions. EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD06142-02-1 S. 2911--A 2 1 S 7900. Introduction. This article applies to the profession of occu- 2 pational therapy. The general provisions for all professions contained 3 in article one hundred thirty of this title apply to this article. 4 S 7901. Definition. The practice of the profession of occupational 5 therapy is defined as the functional evaluation of the client [and], the 6 planning and utilization of a program of purposeful activities [to], THE 7 DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATION OF A TREATMENT PROGRAM, AND/OR CONSULTATION 8 WITH THE CLIENT, FAMILY, CAREGIVER OR ORGANIZATION IN ORDER TO RESTORE, 9 develop or maintain adaptive skills, AND/OR PERFORMANCE ABILITIES 10 designed to achieve maximal physical, COGNITIVE and mental functioning 11 of the [patient in] CLIENT ASSOCIATED WITH his or her ACTIVITIES OF 12 DAILY LIVING AND daily life tasks. [Such] A treatment program DESIGNED 13 TO RESTORE FUNCTION, shall be rendered on the prescription or referral 14 of a physician [or], nurse practitioner OR OTHER HEALTH CARE PROVIDER 15 ACTING WITHIN HIS OR HER SCOPE OF PRACTICE PURSUANT TO THIS TITLE. 16 However, nothing contained in this article shall be construed to permit 17 any licensee hereunder to practice medicine or psychology, including 18 psychotherapy OR TO OTHERWISE EXPAND SUCH LICENSEE'S SCOPE OF PRACTICE 19 BEYOND WHAT IS AUTHORIZED BY THIS CHAPTER. 20 S 7902. Practice of occupational therapy and use of title "occupa- 21 tional therapist". Only a person licensed or otherwise authorized to 22 practice under this article shall practice occupational therapy or use 23 the title "occupational therapist". 24 S 7903. State board for occupational therapy. A state board for occu- 25 pational therapy shall be appointed by the board of regents on the 26 recommendation of the commissioner for the purpose of assisting the 27 board of regents and the department on matters of professional licensing 28 and professional conduct in accordance with section sixty-five hundred 29 eight of this title. The board shall be composed of not less than seven 30 licensed occupational therapists, [and two additional members who shall 31 include] one physician [and one member who is primarily and actively 32 engaged in hospital administration. Members of the first board, who are 33 occupational therapists, need not be licensed prior to their appointment 34 to the board], AND TWO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO ARE NOT LICENSED UNDER 35 THIS TITLE. An executive secretary to the board shall be appointed by 36 the board of regents on recommendation of the commissioner. 37 S 7904. Requirements for a professional license. To qualify for a 38 license as an occupational therapist, an applicant shall fulfill the 39 following requirements: 40 (1) File an application with the department. 41 (2) Have satisfactorily completed an approved occupational therapy 42 curriculum in a baccalaureate or masters program, or a certificate 43 program satisfactory to the department which is substantially equivalent 44 to a baccalaureate degree program, in accordance with the [commissioner 45 of education's] COMMISSIONER'S regulations. 46 (3) Have a minimum of six months of supervised occupational therapy 47 experience which supervision and experience shall be satisfactory to the 48 board of occupational therapy and in accordance with the commissioner's 49 regulations. 50 (4) Pass an examination satisfactory to the board of occupational 51 therapy and in accordance with the commissioner's regulations. 52 (5) Be at least twenty-one years of age. 53 (6) Meet no requirements as to United States citizenship. 54 (7) Be of good moral character as determined by the department. 55 (8) [Fees: pay] PAY a fee of one hundred forty dollars to the depart- 56 ment for admission to a department conducted examination and for an S. 2911--A 3 1 initial license, a fee of seventy dollars for each re-examination, a fee 2 of one hundred fifteen dollars for an initial license for persons not 3 requiring admission to a department conducted examination, and a fee of 4 one hundred fifty-five dollars for each triennial registration period. 5 S 7905. Limited permits. Permits limited as to eligibility, practice, 6 and duration, shall be issued by the department to eligible applicants, 7 as follows: 8 (1) The following persons shall be eligible for a limited permit: 9 (a) An occupational therapist who has graduated from an occupational 10 therapy curriculum with a baccalaureate degree or certificate in occupa- 11 tional therapy which is substantially equivalent to a baccalaureate 12 degree satisfactory to the board of occupational therapy and in accord- 13 ance with the commissioner's regulations; or 14 (b) A foreign occupational therapist who is in this country on a non- 15 immigration visa for the continuation of occupational therapy study, 16 pursuant to the exchange student program of the United States Department 17 of State. 18 (2) A LIMITED permittee shall be authorized to practice occupational 19 therapy only under the DIRECT supervision of a licensed occupational 20 therapist or a licensed physician and shall practice only in a public, 21 voluntary, or proprietary hospital, health care agency or in a preschool 22 or an elementary or secondary school for the purpose of providing occu- 23 pational therapy as a related service for a handicapped child. 24 FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, SUPERVISION OF AN INDIVIDUAL WITH A 25 LIMITED PERMIT TO PRACTICE OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT 26 SHALL BE DIRECT SUPERVISION AS DEFINED BY THE COMMISSIONER'S REGU- 27 LATIONS. 28 (3) A limited permit shall be valid for one year. It may be renewed 29 once for a period not to exceed one additional year, at the discretion 30 of the department, upon the submission of an explanation satisfactory to 31 the department for an applicant's failure to become licensed within the 32 original one-year period. [A limited permit shall become null and void 33 if and when the holder thereof fails to pass a licensing examination.] 34 (4) The fee for a limited permit shall be seventy dollars. 35 S 7906. Exempt persons. This article shall not be construed to affect 36 or prevent the following, provided that no title, sign, card or device 37 shall be used in such manner as to tend to convey the impression that 38 the person rendering such service is a licensed occupational therapist: 39 (1) A licensed physician from practicing his OR HER profession as 40 defined under article one hundred thirty-one and article one hundred 41 [thirty-one-A, as added by chapter eleven hundred thirty-five of the 42 laws of nineteen hundred seventy-one, respectively] THIRTY-ONE-B OF THIS 43 TITLE. 44 (2) Qualified members of other licensed or legally recognized 45 professions from performing work incidental to the practice of their 46 profession, except that such persons may not hold themselves out under 47 the title occupational therapist or as performing occupational therapy. 48 (3) A student from engaging in clinical practice as part of an accred- 49 ited program in occupational therapy, pursuant to subdivision three of 50 section seventy-nine hundred four of this article. 51 (4) AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT STUDENT FROM ENGAGING IN CLIN- 52 ICAL PRACTICE UNDER THE DIRECT SUPERVISION OF AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST 53 AS PART OF AN ACCREDITED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT PROGRAM, AS 54 DEFINED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE COMMISSIONER'S 55 REGULATIONS. NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY IN THIS SECTION, 56 AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT STUDENT SHALL BE PERMITTED TO WORK S. 2911--A 4 1 WITH AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT, WHO HAS OBTAINED AUTHORIZATION 2 PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF THIS SECTION, UNDER THE DIRECT SUPER- 3 VISION OF AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST. 4 (5) The care of the sick by any person, provided such person is 5 employed primarily in a domestic capacity. This shall not authorize the 6 treatment of patients in a home care service of any hospital, clinic, 7 institution or agency. 8 [(5)] (6) An employee of a federal agency from using the title [of] OR 9 practicing as an occupational therapist insofar as such activities are 10 required by his salaried position and the use of such title shall be 11 limited to such employment. 12 [(6) The following people from working under the direct supervision of 13 a licensed occupational therapist or a licensed physician: 14 Occupational therapy assistants certified by the commissioner as 15 having successfully completed a program for occupational therapy assist- 16 ants in accordance with the commissioner's regulations. However, in the 17 case of those working under a licensed physician such exemption shall 18 apply only in a public, voluntary or proprietary hospital or health or 19 home care agency. All such certified occupational therapy assistants 20 shall register with the education department in accordance with regu- 21 lations of the commissioner. The fee for such certification shall be 22 forty-five dollars. The registration fee shall be fifty dollars for each 23 triennial registration period.] 24 (7) OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANTS, AS DEFINED BY THE COMMISSIONER, 25 AUTHORIZED BY THE DEPARTMENT, AND UNDER THE DIRECTION AND SUPERVISION OF 26 A LICENSED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST OR A LICENSED PHYSICIAN. IN THE CASE 27 OF THOSE WORKING UNDER A LICENSED PHYSICIAN SUCH EXEMPTION SHALL APPLY 28 ONLY IN A PUBLIC, VOLUNTARY OR PROPRIETARY HOSPITAL OR HEALTH OR HOME 29 CARE AGENCY. SUCH AUTHORIZATION SHALL BE ISSUED TO INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE 30 MET STANDARDS, INCLUDING THOSE RELATING TO EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, EXAM- 31 INATION AND CHARACTER, AS PROMULGATED IN REGULATIONS OF THE COMMISSION- 32 ER. SUCH AUTHORIZATION SHALL BE SUBJECT TO FULL DISCIPLINARY AND REGULA- 33 TORY AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS AND THE STATE EDUCATION 34 DEPARTMENT, PURSUANT TO THIS TITLE, AS IF SUCH AUTHORIZATION WERE A 35 PROFESSIONAL LICENSE ISSUED UNDER THIS ARTICLE. THE APPLICATION FEE FOR 36 SUCH AUTHORIZATION SHALL BE ESTABLISHED IN REGULATION BY THE BOARD OF 37 REGENTS. EACH AUTHORIZED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT SHALL REGISTER 38 WITH THE DEPARTMENT EVERY THREE YEARS AND SHALL PAY A REGISTRATION FEE 39 ESTABLISHED IN REGULATION BY THE BOARD OF REGENTS. 40 (8) The following people from working under the direct supervision of 41 a licensed occupational therapist: 42 An individual employed by the state or municipal government at the 43 effective date of this [act] ARTICLE who performs supportive services in 44 occupational therapy solely for the time such person continues in that 45 employment. 46 [(8)] (9) Any occupational therapist who is licensed in another state, 47 United States possession or country or who has received at least a 48 baccalaureate degree or its equivalent in occupational therapy and who 49 is either in this state for the purposes of (a) consultation, provided 50 such practice is limited to such consultation; or (b) an occupational 51 therapist authorized to practice in another state or country from 52 conducting a teaching clinical demonstration in connection with a 53 program of basic clinical education, graduate education or post graduate 54 education in an approved school of occupational therapy or its affil- 55 iated clinical facility or health care agency or before a group of 56 licensed occupational therapists; or (c) because he OR SHE resides near S. 2911--A 5 1 a border of this state, provided such practice is limited in this state 2 to the vicinity of such border and said occupational therapist does not 3 maintain an office or place to meet patients or receive calls in this 4 state. 5 S 7907. Special conditions. (1) A person who on the effective date of 6 this [act] ARTICLE: 7 [(1)] (A) submits evidence of a minimum of three years experience with 8 training satisfactory to the board in occupational therapy and in 9 accordance with the regulations of the commissioner; or 10 [(2)] (B) a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent in occupational 11 therapy, shall be licensed upon the filing of an application with the 12 department [of education] within six months of the effective date of 13 this [act] ARTICLE. 14 (2) A PERSON WHO ON THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF 15 TWO THOUSAND ELEVEN WHICH ADDED THIS SUBDIVISION HAS A CURRENT REGISTRA- 16 TION WITH THE DEPARTMENT AS AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT, IF SUCH 17 PERSON MEETS THE REQUIREMENTS FOR AN AUTHORIZATION ESTABLISHED WITHIN 18 THIS ARTICLE, EXCEPT FOR EXAMINATION, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ISSUE AN 19 AUTHORIZATION WITHOUT EXAMINATION. 20 S 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi- 21 sion, section or part contained in any part of this act shall be 22 adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such 23 judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, 24 but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para- 25 graph, subdivision, section or part contained in any part thereof 26 directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have 27 been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature 28 that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions 29 had not been included herein. 30 S 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 31 it shall have become a law; provided, however, the commissioner of 32 education and the board of regents are authorized, prior to such effec- 33 tive date, to promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary 34 for the timely implementation of this act.