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Professions and Occupations

Passed

P HB44

Health professions; pronouncement of death. Allows registered nurses, in situations meeting explicit criteria, to pronounce death when they are employed by a hospital or nursing home. State-operated hospitals are to be considered hospitals for these purposes. Registered nurses employed by home health organizations, hospices or the Department of Corrections may already pronounce death. Specific criteria are established in this law for those patients who may be pronounced dead by registered nurses, i.e., those patients whose deaths were expected, who had valid do not resuscitate orders and who were under the care of a physician who could not be present within a reasonable period of time. The nurse is required to notify the patient's attending and consulting physicians as soon as practical.
Patron - Hamilton

P HB127

Minors' consent to treatment for substance abuse. Provides that a parent, legal guardian or person standing in loco parentis will not be prevented from obtaining the results of a minor's nondiagnostic drug test when the minor is not receiving care, treatment or rehabilitation for substance abuse.
Patron - Rollison

P HB154

Health; certain unused drugs provided to free clinics. Permits nursing homes to enter into voluntary agreements with pharmacists to return any drugs that are no longer necessary for their residents in order that the pharmacy may dispense such drugs to the indigent, free of charge, subject to certain restrictions. The drugs must be in the manufacturers' original sealed containers or sealed individual dose or unit dose package and the return must comply with federal law. Only an authorized person will accomplish the physical transfer, consent must be obtained from the relevant patient or his authorized representative for return of the medication, the expiration date remains, all identifying data relating to the patient for whom the drug was dispensed must be removed, inventories must accompany the transferred drugs, and outdated drugs cannot be transferred and must be destroyed according to the Board's regulations. The pharmacist-in-charge at the participating pharmacy will be responsible for determining the suitability of the drug for redispensing. Prescriptions dispensed for Medicaid or children's health insurance program recipients cannot be donated. The Board of Pharmacy shall promulgate emergency regulations to implement the program.
Patron - Van Yahres

P HB213

Board of Medicine regulations. Requires the Board of Medicine to promulgate regulations governing the practice of medicine related to the administration of anesthesia in physicians' offices. This bill notes the Boards authority, pursuant to § 54.1-2400, to establish the qualifications for registration, certification or licensure that is necessary to ensure competence and integrity to engage in the regulated practice. In compliance with the second enactment, the Board is required to promulgate emergency regulations to implement this provision. In doing so, the Board must solicit and respond to public comment prior to adoption.
Patron - O'Bannon

P HB217

Advisory boards to the Board of Medicine and membership on certain disciplinary committees and panels. Revises the names, appointing authority, and membership of various advisory boards to the Board of Medicine to provide consistency. All statutorily established "committees" are renamed as advisory boards with five members to be appointed by the Governor. In addition, various statutes are amended to provide for inclusion of one member of the relevant advisory board on the disciplinary body when the respondent holds a license or certificate authorizing practice in the profession represented by the relevant advisory board. The advisory board member of the disciplinary committee or panel will have full voting privileges.
Patron - O'Bannon

P HB337

Professions and occupations; wax technicians. Provides a definition and license program for wax technicians (persons who remove hair from the follicle using a wax depilatory or by tweezing), waxing salons, and waxing schools, and provides procedures for endorsement based on training or practical experience.
Patron - Hamilton

P HB375

Pawnbrokers; daily reports. Allows the Town of Front Royal, described by population, to require a pawnbroker to electronically maintain and file the mandated daily report consisting of goods, articles or things pawned or pledged.
Patron - Athey

P HB487

Practice of pharmacy. Provides two exceptions from the requirements for the practice of pharmacy for practitioners of medicine or osteopathy relating to obtaining prescription drugs without charge for indigent patients, i.e., through pharmaceutical manufacturers' indigent programs and through donations from other entities. Practitioners who participate in pharmaceutical manufacturers' indigent programs in which the manufacturer donates a stock bottle of the prescription drug that is to be dispensed to an indigent patient are provided authority to dispense such drugs. The labeling and packaging standards will apply (packaging can be changed by the practitioner or the patient) and the drug cannot be used for any other purpose, unless the manufacturer authorizes dispensing to another indigent patient. Practitioners may, in lieu of dispensing directly to the patient, transfer the stock bottle to a pharmacy participating in the indigent program. The participating practitioner and the pharmacy are prohibited from charging the patient a fee for the medication. A reasonable dispensing or administrative fee to offset the cost of dispensing may be charged, not to exceed the comparable allowable fee reimbursed by the Virginia Medicaid program; however, if the patient is unable to pay the dispensing or administrative fee, this fee must be waived. In addition, practitioners of medicine or osteopathy are authorized to provide controlled substances to their own patients in free clinics without charge when the drugs have been donated by an entity other than a pharmaceutical manufacturer. The practitioner must first obtain a controlled substances registration and will be required to comply with the existing labeling and packaging requirements. Enactment clauses require emergency regulations and mandate that the Board of Pharmacy advise and assist free clinics in revolving issues relating to the practice of pharmacy and the Drug Control Act. This bill is identical to SB 145.
Patron - Broman

P HB494

Professions and occupations; itinerant merchants; sale of regulated products; penalty. Provides that no itinerant merchant shall offer for sale or knowingly permit the sale of baby food, infant formula, or any nonprescription drug. The provisions of this section shall not apply to a person who keeps available for public inspection a written authorization identifying himself as an authorized representative of the manufacturer or distributor of such product, provided such authorization is not false, fraudulent, or fraudulently obtained. The bill defines "baby food" and "nonprescription drug" and provides for the penalty for violation.
Patron - Reid

P HB531

Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; tattoo parlors and body-piercing salons. Provides for the licensure of tattoo parlors, body-piercing salons and those individuals who practice tattooing or body piercing by the Board of Barbers and Cosmetology. The bill requires the Board to adopt regulations establishing the requirements for licensure of any tattoo parlor, body-piercing salon and those individuals who practice tattooing or body piercing. Currently, these establishments are regulated at the local level. The bill removes the authority of localities to regulate tattoo parlors and body-piercing salons.
Patron - Devolites

P HB534

Health professions; substance abuse counselors. Removes the deemed certification language for those persons who meet the certification standards for a certified substance abuse counselor in effect prior to July 1, 2001. Current law provides that those persons who are certified under the standards in effect prior to July 1, 2001, will be deemed to hold certification at the appropriate level under the new provisions, when adopted, unless such certification is suspended or revoked. This language is struck; however, retained language requires the Board to certify individuals who applied before the new certification regulations became effective if they met the requirements in place prior to July 1, 2001. Thus, the deeming language is no longer necessary.
Patron - Devolites

P HB625

Practice of pharmacy. Provides greater flexibility in the practice of pharmacy to be consistent with current health care practice trends while still providing sufficient safeguards for the integrity of controlled substances and patient safety. This bill changes the definition of the "pharmacy" to include any establishment in which drugs, medicines or medicinal chemicals are dispensed or offered for sale and, thereby, authorizes pharmacists to practice in locations other than permitted pharmacies, e.g., in a clinical oncology practice providing chemotherapy; softens the restrictions on the use of chart orders with multiple prescriptions to allow for such orders for home infusion and hospice patients; clarifies that a combination of manual and automated recordkeeping may be used, so long as the required prescription information is maintained and retrievable; and authorizes alternate delivery sites for prescriptions, such as "drop stations" where patients may pick up the drugs from a central location.
Patron - Morgan

P HB629

Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; summary suspension of boxing license. Authorizes the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation to suspend the license of a boxer without a hearing or informal fact-finding conference when warranted by the medical condition of the boxer or when there is substantial danger to the public health or safety. The hearing or conference must be initiated simultaneously with the summary suspension and be scheduled within a reasonable time of the date of the summary suspension.
Patron - O'Brien

P HB665

Health professions; nursing. Provides an exemption from the nursing licensure requirements for a period of 30 days pending licensure in Virginia for nurses holding a current unrestricted license in Canada whose training was obtained in a nursing school in Canada where English was the primary language and requires the Board of Nursing to issue licenses by endorsement to applicants who hold current unrestricted licenses in Canada whose training was obtained in a nursing school in Canada where English was the primary language and who have passed the Canadian Registered Nurses Examination (CRNE). Current law already provides for licensure by endorsement for nurses licensed in other states, the District of Columbia, and any U.S. possession or territory if the applicant meets the qualifications required of nurses in the Commonwealth.
Patron - Cox

P HB687

Physician assistants. Clarifies that the physician must provide continuous supervision of the assistant; however, the requirement for physician supervision of assistants must not be construed as requiring the physical presence of the supervising physician during all times and places of service delivery by an assistant. Further, this bill details that each team of supervising physician and physician assistant must identify the relevant physician assistant's scope of practice, including, but not limited to, the delegation of medical tasks as appropriate to the physician assistant's level of competence, the physician assistant's relationship with and access to the supervising physician, and an evaluation process for the physician assistant's performance. The Board of Medicine is required, pursuant to a second enactment clause, to promulgate emergency regulations to implement this provision.
Patron - Tata

P HB837

Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers; continuing education. Establishes continuing education requirements for funeral service licensees, funeral directors and embalmers. The bill also authorizes the Board for Funeral Directors and Embalmers to establish an inactive status for licensees and registrants of the Board and prohibits the practice as a funeral service licensee, funeral director or embalmer in the Commonwealth without a current and active license or registration. In addition, the bill requires the Board to promulgate regulations for implementing the act within 280 days of its effective date.
Patron - Thomas

P HB1055

Health professions; temporary permits for dentists. Expands the authority of the Board of Dentistry to issue a temporary license to dentists providing services in free clinics and community health centers. Temporary permits are already granted to dentists not licensed in the State who meet certain criteria and provide services in dental clinics operated by the Departments of Health and Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services. This bill is a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care.
Patron - Melvin

P HB1085

Health professions; nursing workforce. Authorizes the Board of Nursing to accept private grants or donations in addition to any licensure or certification fee for the purposes of collecting and utilizing nursing workforce information.
Patron - Brink

P HB1151

Board for Contractors; exemptions. Exempts from the licensure or certification requirement of the Board for Contractors any person licensed as a private security services business by the Department of Criminal Justice Services.
Patron - Marshall, R.G.

P HB1318

Volunteer services by certain providers of health care. Exempts from the Virginia licensure or certification requirements of the Board for Opticians and the Boards of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Optometry, Pharmacy, and Veterinary Medicine certain out-of-state practitioners who (i) do not regularly practice in Virginia, (ii) hold current valid licenses or certificates to practice in another state, territory, district or possession of the United States, (iii) volunteer to provide free health care to an underserved area of this Commonwealth under the auspices of a publicly supported all-volunteer, nonprofit organization with no paid employees that sponsors the provision of health care to populations of underserved people throughout the world, (iv) file copies of the licenses or certificates issued in such other jurisdiction with the appropriate board, (v) notify the appropriate board, within 15 days prior to the voluntary provision of services of the dates and location of such services, and (vi) acknowledge in writing that such licensure exemption shall only be valid during the limited period that such free health care is made available on the dates and at the location filed with the various boards. Enactment clauses require emergency regulations and authorize the various boards to require the sponsoring organization to register and pay a fee prior to delivering services in Virginia.
Patron - Stump

P SB24

Itinerant merchants; prohibited sale of certain merchandise; penalty. Prohibits the sale by an itinerant merchant of infant formula or nonprescription drugs unless the seller maintains for public inspection a valid authorization identifying that such person is an authorized representative of the manufacturer or distributor of the prohibited merchandise. "Infant formula" is defined as any food manufactured, packaged and labeled specifically for sale for consumption by a child under the age of two. "Nonprescription drug" is defined as any substances or mixture of substances containing medicines or drugs for which no prescription is required and which are generally sold for internal or topical use in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in human beings. Under the bill any person convicted of violating this provision is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor on the first offense and a Class 2 misdemeanor upon conviction of any subsequent offense.
Patron - Wagner

P SB53

Regulatory authority of the Board of Counseling. Requires the Board of Counseling to promulgate regulations establishing requirements for evidence of continued competency as a condition of licensure renewal. The Board is authorized to approve persons who provide or accredit continuing education programs in order to accomplish this purpose and to grant waivers and reduce the number of continuing education hours in certain cases.
Patron - Edwards

P SB59

Board of Medicine. Revises the statute that sets forth the data required for the profiles of doctors of medicine, osteopathy, and podiatry. The Board will require telephone numbers and access to translating services for all practice settings, and will remove the mandatory reporting of insurance participation while allowing voluntary reporting of this information. For the sole purpose of expedited dissemination of information about a public health emergency, doctors must also provide any e-mail addresses or facsimile numbers. The e-mail addresses and facsimile numbers will not be published on the profile database or released or made available for any other purpose other than the public health emergency. In addition, the scope of data to be made available on malpractice claims has been clarified to prohibit the release of specific numeric values of reported paid claims in any individually identifiable manner under any circumstances. This bill has numerous technical amendments to change references to "physicians" to the more accurate term "doctor." A second enactment clause requires the Board of Medicine to promulgate emergency regulations and a provision for the display of final disciplinary orders of the Board together with notices thereof and any summary suspension of a license.
Patron - Watkins

P SB61

Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; Board for Professional Soil Scientists and Wetland Professionals; penalty. Adds certified professional wetland delineators to the current Board for Soil Scientists. The bill also (i) establishes certification standards for "certified professional wetland delineators," (ii) prohibits a certified professional wetland delineator from performing professional engineering, landscape architecture and land surveying, and (iii) provides that any person practicing or offering to practice wetland delineation who represents himself as a certified professional wetland delineator without holding such a certificate shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2004.
Patron - Watkins

P SB101

Practice of physical therapy. Adds nurse practitioners as authorized in their practice protocols to the list of health care professionals who may order physical therapy services. At this time, physical therapy orders may be issued by doctors of medicine, osteopathy, chiropractic, podiatry, or dental surgery.
Patron - Howell

P SB145

P SB179

Conservators of the peace; Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. Designates as conservators of the peace investigators of the Criminal Investigation section of the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. The bill also creates a registry of all conservators of the peace with the Department of State Police. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2003.
Patron - Trumbo

P SB398

Disciplinary proceedings of health regulatory boards. Revises the authority of health regulatory boards relating to disciplinary proceedings to (i) amend the present FOIA exemption to authorize closed meetings of health regulatory boards or conference committees to consider settlement proposals in pending disciplinary actions or modifications to previously issued board orders as requested by either of the parties; (ii) authorize health regulatory boards to meet by telephone conference call to consider settlement proposals in matters pending before special conference committees or matters referred for formal proceedings or to consider modifications of previously issued board orders when such considerations have been requested by either of the parties; (iii) correct references to court or agency orders to more accurately refer to "documentation" of the order; and (iv) authorize, if reasonable notice of the information is given to the person, the health regulatory boards to consider other information concerning possible violations of Virginia law in hearings relating to suspensions because of felony convictions or adjudications of incapacity.
Patron - Martin

P SB425

Prescription Monitoring Program established. Requires the Director of the Department of Health Professions to establish the Prescription Monitoring Program, which will require reports to the Department from dispensers of certain drugs (to be called "covered substances") that will include detailed information on the recipient of the prescription and the drug prescribed as the result of a specific investigation of a recipient dispenser or prescriber by the State Police, a grand jury, or by the board regarding any allegation of misconduct by a dispenser. The "covered substances" will include all Schedule II controlled substances as defined in the Drug Control Act. Certain dispensing circumstances are exempted, for example, the dispensing of manufacturers' samples. The information in possession of the Program is exempted from the Freedom of Information Act; however, the Director is authorized to disclose information under limited circumstances to prescribers, dispensers, the Department of State Police and others. The Director is also authorized to notify the Attorney General or the appropriate attorney for the Commonwealth of possible violations of law and to disclose information to dispensers and prescribers that indicates a potential detriment to a recipient. In addition, the Director is authorized to contract for the implementation and maintenance of the Prescription Monitoring Program. Immunity from liability is provided to the Director and the Department's employees for the accuracy or lack thereof of the data reported. Penalties for violations of this act will be Class 1 misdemeanors. Licensees may be subject to disciplinary action by the relevant board for failure to report or for unauthorized use or disclosure of the confidential information. Pursuant to enactment clauses, (i) the Director is required to promulgate emergency regulations; (ii) the reporting requirements will not be implemented until the date specified in the regulations; and (iii) all dispensers and prescribers must be notified of the implementation date. The fourth enactment clause provides that these provisions will be implemented with federal funds or other federal grants that may become available for these purposes and the last enactment requires the program to be implemented solely in State Health Planning Region III for two years after which time an evaluation will be prepared by the superintendent of State Police and the director and forwarded to the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health.
Patron - Wampler

P SB483

Medical treatment of incapacitated persons. Expands medical treatment statute that applies to incapacitated patients and residents of state mental health and mental retardation facilities to apply to incapacitated community services board consumers and to include dental treatment. A licensed health professional or licensed hospital will not be subject to liability arising from a claim based on lack of informed consent or be prohibited from providing services when a delay in treatment might adversely affect the recovery of an individual who has no guardian or committee and who is receiving community mental health services from a community services board or behavioral health authority if two physicians (or dentists in the case of dental treatment) document this in writing. This bill is a recommendation of the Select Committee on Substitute Consent for People with Mental Disabilities.
Patron - Howell

P SB503

Health professions; dental hygienists. Requires the Board of Dentistry to adopt regulations to allow for the "general supervision" of dental hygienists by dentists. "General supervision" means that a dentist has evaluated the patient and prescribed authorized services to be provided by a dental hygienist; however, the dentist need not be present in the facility while the authorized services are being provided. This bill is a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care.
Patron - Bolling

P SB651

Health professions; physical therapy. Adds to the list of persons who make referrals to physical therapists a licensed physician assistant acting under the supervision of a licensed physician. Referrals are currently made by a licensed doctor of medicine, osteopathy, chiropractic, podiatry, or dental surgery.
Patron - Blevins

Failed

F HB76

Health professions; chiropractors. Clarifies that chiropractors may continue to provide physical therapy modalities to their patients. When the Board of Physical Therapy was created in 2001, questions arose as to whether chiropractors would be able to provide physical therapy to their patients. The Attorney General opined that legislation "was not intended to change, and did nothing to change the scope of practice of chiropractors, and . . .[that] chiropractors may lawfully provide physical therapy modalities. . ."
Patron - Hamilton

F HB787

Health professions; chiropractic. Creates an independent Board of Chiropractic by incorporating current statutory language regarding the regulation of chiropractors into a separate board.
Patron - Purkey

F HB889

Health professions; practice of midwifery. Provides for the licensure by the Board of Medicine of those persons who have obtained the Certified Professional Midwife credential to practice midwifery. The bill also creates the Advisory Council on Midwifery to provide consultation to the Board in the development of regulations regarding the licensure and practice of midwives. Licensed midwives must disclose to clients certain background, training and experience, malpractice or liability insurance coverage, and procedures to file complaints with the Board. Licensed midwives are not required to have any agreement or assessment of the potential client by another health care professional. This bill would leave in place current midwifery practice as governed by the Board of Health.
Patron - Hamilton

F HB1263

Health professions; dispensing of emergency contraceptives. Establishes procedures by which a physician, in accordance with a protocol developed by the Board of Medicine, may authorize a licensed pharmacist to dispense emergency contraception to women. Pharmacists may dispense such emergency contraception according to regulations adopted by the Board of Pharmacy. This is similar to current law that allows a practitioner to permit pharmacies to dispense immunizations even to persons who are not patients of the physician who initiates the authorization. The bill also provides that nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and physicians may dispense emergency contraceptives at any time according to procedures developed by the Board. The bill also contains technical amendments.
Patron - Baskerville

F HB1360

F HB1368

Duty to disclose certain drug's contraindications. Requires every physician who prescribes or administers misoprostol and every pharmacist who fills a prescription for misoprostol to disclose to any woman to whom the drug is prescribed or administered the manufacturers' contraindications, specifically noting the warnings regarding pregnancy and miscarriage. Misoprostol is a synthetic prostaglandin and is also known as Cytotec. This drug can cause uterine contractions that may lead to miscarriage and the risk of complications therefrom. This bill is incorporated into HB 1290.
Patron - Black

F SB180

Professions and occupations; unlawful acts; penalties. Provides that the third or subsequent conviction of certain enumerated misdemeanors relating to specified professions and occupations shall constitute a Class 6 felony. Under current law, the penalty increases only if the three or more convictions occur within 36 months of each other.
Patron - Trumbo

F SB623

Carried Over

C HB126

Arborists; title protection. Prohibits any person from using the titles "arborist" and "consulting arborist" unless he possesses the proper certification. The bill provides for injunctive relief to restrain the invalid use of the titles and exempts any person who is not certified from performing arboriculture, defined as the specialized field involving the cultivation of trees and shrubs especially for ornamental purposes, if the person does not represent himself to the public as being an arborist or a consulting arborist.
Patron - Hull

C HB299

Health professions; director. Includes in the powers of each health regulatory board the ability to issue advisory opinions to members of that profession pursuant to the system established by the Director of the Department of Health Professions with regard to requests by individual practitioners for guidance on questions as to whether the facts of a particular case would constitute a violation of provisions governing the practice of that profession. The Director would review each opinion, with the assistance of the Office of the Attorney General, if necessary, prior to the issuance of such opinion. If a complaint is filed against the practitioner involving such actions, the practitioner may introduce the advisory opinion into evidence at his hearing.
Patron - McDonnell

C HB545

Prescription Monitoring Program established. Requires the Director of the Department of Health Professions to establish the Prescription Monitoring Program, which will require reports to the Department from dispensers of certain drugs (to be called "covered substances") that will include detailed information on the recipient of the prescription and the drug prescribed. The "covered substances" will include all Schedule II through Schedule IV controlled substances as defined in the Drug Control Act and may include, pursuant to the Department's regulations, substances designated by the Director from Schedules V and VI. Certain dispensing circumstances are exempted, for example, the dispensing of manufacturers' samples. The information in possession of the Program is exempted from the Freedom of Information Act; however, the Director is authorized to disclose information under limited circumstances to prescribers, dispensers, the Department of State Police and others. The Director is also authorized to notify the Attorney General or the appropriate attorney for the Commonwealth of possible violations of law and to disclose information to dispensers and prescribers that indicates a potential detriment to a recipient. Immunity from liability is provided to the Director and the Department's employees for the accuracy or lack thereof of the data reported. Penalties for violations of this act will be Class 1 misdemeanors. Licensees may be subject to disciplinary action by the relevant board for failure to report or for unauthorized use or disclosure of the confidential information. Pursuant to enactment clauses, the Director is required to promulgate emergency regulations and the reporting requirements will not be implemented until the date specified in the regulations. All dispensers and prescribers must be notified of the implementation date. The Director is authorized to contract for the implementation and maintenance of the Prescription Monitoring Program.
Patron - Kilgore

C HB1128

Board of Nursing. Requires the Board of Nursing to collect, store and make available aggregate nursing workforce information electronically, to implement an online nursing workforce information website, and to implement an electronic system for certification, registration, and licensure application, renewal and fee collection. This bill also strikes the language requiring appropriation of funds for the implementation of the workforce information system. The health regulatory boards and the Department of Health Professions are self-funded entities that are required to analyze their budgets at the end of every biennium and to revise their fees in the event their revenues are more or less than 10 percent of their expenditures. Thus, in 2004, this bill could result in a revision in the Board's fee structure.
Patron - Bryant

C HB1129

Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; regulation of land surveyor photogrammetrists. Provides for the licensure of land surveyor photogrammetrists by the Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects. The bill defines "land surveyor photogrammetrists" and sets the criteria for licensure.
Patron - Bryant

C HB1177

Minors' abortions; penalty. Provides, notwithstanding the provisions of § 16.1-241, that, in the event an unemancipated minor who does not have a life-threatening medical condition receives an abortion for which no custodial parent has given consent and complications resulting from the abortion require additional medical treatment for which a custodial parent is obligated to pay, if the practitioner who performed the abortion without such parental consent fails to treat the complications, he shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.
Patron - Marshall, R.G.

C HB1259

Health professions; surgical assistants. Defines a "nonphysician surgical assistant" and "intraoperative surgical care" and requires the Board of Medicine to establish a procedure for the certification of such individuals who meet the requirements established by the Board. Nonphysician surgical assistants are certified individuals who provide such services, under the direction of a physician or, in the absence of a physician, that of a registered nurse, as positioning and draping the patient, observing the operative site, assisting in incision closing or wound dressing, and any other task that may be delegated by the physician or, in the absence of a physician, by a registered nurse that is within the scope of practice of a certified nonphysician surgical assistant.
Patron - Jones, S.C.

C HB1290

Administration of pharmaceuticals. Requires, prior to administering any pharmaceutical to any patient, every person licensed or certified by a health regulatory board whose scope of practice includes administration of drugs must disclose the name of the pharmaceutical and obtain informed consent for administration of the relevant pharmaceutical from the patient or the patient's authorized representative. These requirements will not apply in a medical emergency.
Patron - Devolites

C SB261

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2002 SUMMARY HOME | DLS | GENERAL ASSEMBLY