§ 10-3A-01. Interstate Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact
West's Annotated Code of MarylandHealth OccupationsEffective: October 1, 2021
Effective: October 1, 2021
MD Code, Health Occupations, § 10-3A-01
§ 10-3A-01. Interstate Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact
<Section effective upon occurrence of the contingency specified in Acts 2021, c. 93, § 2, and Acts 2021, c. 94, § 2.>
The Interstate Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact is enacted into law and entered into with all other states legally joining in it in the form substantially as it appears in this section as follows:
The purpose of this Compact is to facilitate interstate practice of occupational therapy with the goal of improving public access to occupational therapy services. The practice of occupational therapy occurs in the state where the patient/client is located at the time of the patient/client encounter. The Compact preserves the regulatory authority of states to protect public health and safety through the current system of state licensure. The Compact is designed to achieve the following objectives:
As used in the Compact, and except as otherwise provided, the following definitions shall apply:
(2) “Adverse action” means any administrative, civil, equitable, or criminal action permitted by a state's laws that is imposed by a licensing board or other authority against an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant, including actions against an individual's license or compact privilege such as censure, revocation, suspension, probation, monitoring of the licensee, or restriction on the licensee's practice.
(4) “Compact privilege” means the authorization, that is equivalent to a license, granted by a remote state to allow a licensee from another member state to practice as an occupational therapist or practice as an occupational therapy assistant in the remote state under its laws and rules. The practice of occupational therapy occurs in the member state where the patient/client is located at the time of the patient/client encounter.
(6) “Current significant investigative information” means investigative information that a licensing board, after an inquiry or investigation that includes notification and an opportunity for the occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant to respond, if required by state law, has reason to believe is not groundless and, if proved true, would indicate more than a minor infraction.
(2) Communication between a member state and the Commission or among member states regarding the verification of eligibility for licensure through the Compact may not include any information received from the Federal Bureau of Investigation relating to a federal criminal records check performed by a member state under Public Law 92-544.
(f) Individuals not residing in a member state shall continue to be able to apply for a member state's single-state license as provided under the laws of each member state. However, the single-state license granted to these individuals may not be recognized as granting the compact privilege in any other member state.
(e) A licensee providing occupational therapy in a remote state is subject to that state's regulatory authority. A remote state may, in accordance with due process and that state's laws, remove a licensee's compact privilege in the remote state for a specific period of time, impose fines, and/or take any other necessary actions to protect the health and safety of its citizens. The licensee may be ineligible for a compact privilege in any state until the specific time for removal has passed and all fines are paid.
(2) Upon receipt of an application for obtaining a new home state license by virtue of compact privilege, the new home state shall verify that the occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant meets the pertinent criteria outlined in Section 4 via the data system, without need for primary source verification except for:
(2) Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations that require the attendance and testimony of witnesses as well as the production of evidence. Subpoenas issued by a licensing board in a member state for the attendance and testimony of witnesses or the production of evidence from another member state shall be enforced in the latter state by any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the practice and procedure of that court applicable to subpoenas issued in proceedings pending before it. The issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses, mileage and other fees required by the service statutes of the state in which the witnesses or evidence are located.
(c) For purposes of taking adverse action, the home state shall give the same priority and effect to reported conduct received from a member state as it would if the conduct had occurred within the home state. In so doing, the home state shall apply its own state laws to determine appropriate action.
(d) The home state shall complete any pending investigations of an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant who changes primary state of residence during the course of the investigations. The home state, where the investigations were initiated, shall also have the authority to take appropriate action(s) and shall promptly report the conclusions of the investigations to the data system. The data system administrator shall promptly notify the new home state of any adverse actions.
(e) A member state, if otherwise permitted by state law, may recover from the affected occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant the costs of investigations and disposition of cases resulting from any adverse action taken against that occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant.
(h) If an adverse action is taken by the home state against an occupational therapist's or occupational therapy assistant's license, the occupational therapist's or occupational therapy assistant's compact privilege in all other member states shall be deactivated until all encumbrances have been removed from the state license. All home state disciplinary orders that impose adverse action against an occupational therapist's or occupational therapy assistant's license shall include a statement that the occupational therapist's or occupational therapy assistant's compact privilege is deactivated in all member states during the pendency of the order.
(3) Venue is proper and judicial proceedings by or against the Commission shall be brought solely and exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction where the principal office of the Commission is located. The Commission may waive venue and jurisdictional defenses to the extent it adopts or consents to participate in alternative dispute resolution proceedings.
(10) Hire employees, elect or appoint officers, fix compensation, define duties, grant such individuals appropriate authority to carry out the purposes of the Compact, and establish the Commission's personnel policies and programs relating to conflicts of interest, qualifications of personnel, and other related personnel matters;
(4) The Commission shall keep minutes that fully and clearly describe all matters discussed in a meeting and shall provide a full and accurate summary of actions taken, and the reasons therefore, including a description of the views expressed. All documents considered in connection with an action shall be identified in such minutes. All minutes and documents of a closed meeting shall remain under seal, subject to release by a majority vote of the Commission or order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) The Commission may levy on and collect an annual assessment from each member state or impose fees on other parties to cover the cost of the operations and activities of the Commission and its staff, which must be in a total amount sufficient to cover its annual budget as approved by the Commission each year for which revenue is not provided by other sources. The aggregate annual assessment amount shall be allocated based upon a formula to be determined by the Commission, which shall promulgate a rule binding upon all member states.
(5) The Commission shall keep accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursements. The receipts and disbursements of the Commission shall be subject to the audit and accounting procedures established under its bylaws. However, all receipts and disbursements of funds handled by the Commission shall be audited yearly by a certified or licensed public accountant, and the report of the audit shall be included in and become part of the annual report of the Commission.
(g)(1) The members, officers, executive director, employees and representatives of the Commission shall be immune from suit and liability, either personally or in their official capacity, for any claim for damage to or loss of property or personal injury or other civil liability caused by or arising out of any actual or alleged act, error or omission that occurred, or that the person against whom the claim is made had a reasonable basis for believing occurred within the scope of Commission employment, duties or responsibilities; provided that nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to protect any such person from suit and/or liability for any damage, loss, injury, or liability caused by the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person.
(2) The Commission shall defend any member, officer, executive director, employee, or representative of the Commission in any civil action seeking to impose liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, error, or omission that occurred within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or responsibilities, or that the person against whom the claim is made had a reasonable basis for believing occurred within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or responsibilities; provided that nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit that person from retaining his or her own counsel; and provided further, that the actual or alleged act, error, or omission did not result from that person's intentional or willful or wanton misconduct.
(3) The Commission shall indemnify and hold harmless any member, officer, executive director, employee, or representative of the Commission for the amount of any settlement or judgment obtained against that person arising out of any actual or alleged act, error or omission that occurred within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or responsibilities, or that such person had a reasonable basis for believing occurred within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or responsibilities, provided that the actual or alleged act, error, or omission did not result from the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person.
(b) The Commission shall promulgate reasonable rules in order to effectively and efficiently achieve the purposes of the Compact. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event the Commission exercises its rulemaking authority in a manner that is beyond the scope of the purposes of the Compact, or the powers granted hereunder, then such an action by the Commission shall be invalid and have no force and effect.
(m) Upon determination that an emergency exists, the Commission may consider and adopt an emergency rule without prior notice, opportunity for comment, or hearing, provided that the usual rulemaking procedures provided in the Compact and in this section shall be retroactively applied to the rule as soon as reasonably possible, in no event later than 90 days after the effective date of the rule. For the purposes of this provision, an emergency rule is one that must be adopted immediately in order to:
(n) The Commission or an authorized committee of the Commission may direct revisions to a previously adopted rule or amendment for purposes of correcting typographical errors, errors in format, errors in consistency, or grammatical errors. Public notice of any revisions shall be posted on the website of the Commission. The revision shall be subject to challenge by any person for a period of 30 days after posting. The revision may be challenged only on grounds that the revision results in a material change to a rule. A challenge shall be made in writing and delivered to the chair of the Commission prior to the end of the notice period. If no challenge is made, the revision will take effect without further action. If the revision is challenged, the revision may not take effect without the approval of the Commission.
(a)(1) The executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state government in each member state shall enforce the Compact and take all actions necessary and appropriate to effectuate the Compact's purposes and intent. The provisions of the Compact and the rules promulgated hereunder shall have standing as statutory law.
(3) The Commission shall be entitled to receive service of process in any such proceeding, and shall have standing to intervene in such a proceeding for all purposes. Failure to provide service of process to the Commission shall render a judgment or order void as to the Commission, the Compact, or promulgated rules.
(2) If a state in default fails to cure the default, the defaulting state may be terminated from the Compact upon an affirmative vote of a majority of the member states, and all rights, privileges and benefits conferred by the Compact may be terminated on the effective date of termination. A cure of the default does not relieve the offending state of obligations or liabilities incurred during the period of default.
(3) Termination of membership in the Compact shall be imposed only after all other means of securing compliance have been exhausted. Notice of intent to suspend or terminate shall be given by the Commission to the governor, the majority and minority leaders of the defaulting state's legislature, and each of the member states.
(6) The defaulting state may appeal the action of the Commission by petitioning the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district where the Commission has its principal offices. The prevailing member shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reasonable attorney's fees.
(2) By majority vote, the Commission may initiate legal action in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district where the Commission has its principal offices against a member state in default to enforce compliance with the provisions of the Compact and its promulgated rules and bylaws. The relief sought may include both injunctive relief and damages. In the event judicial enforcement is necessary, the prevailing member shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reasonable attorney's fees.
(a) The Compact shall come into effect on the date on which the Compact statute is enacted into law in the tenth member state. The provisions, which become effective at that time, shall be limited to the powers granted to the Commission relating to assembly and the promulgation of rules. Thereafter, the Commission shall meet and exercise rulemaking powers necessary to the implementation and administration of the Compact.
(b) Any state that joins the Compact subsequent to the Commission's initial adoption of the rules shall be subject to the rules as they exist on the date on which the Compact becomes law in that state. Any rule that has been previously adopted by the Commission shall have the full force and effect of law on the day the Compact becomes law in that state.
The Compact shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes thereof. The provisions of the Compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence or provision of this Compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of any member state or of the United States or the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person, or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the Compact and the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person, or circumstance shall not be affected thereby. If the Compact is contrary to the constitution of any member state, the Compact shall remain in full force and effect as to the remaining member states and in full force and effect as to the member state affected as to all severable matters.
Credits
Added by Acts 2021, c. 93, § 1; Acts 2021, c. 94, § 1.
MD Code, Health Occupations, § 10-3A-01, MD HEALTH OCCUP § 10-3A-01
Current through legislation effective through April 9, 2023, from the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
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