CCS SS SCS HCS HB 780 -- PROFESSIONAL REGISTRATION

This bill changes the laws regarding the licensure of certain
professionals in the Division of Professional Registration within
the Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions, and
Professional Registration.

PROFESSIONAL LICENSE RENEWAL

Deaf interpreters, occupational therapists, occupational therapy
assistants, clinical perfusionists, dietitians, massage
therapists, interior designers, acupuncturists, tattooists, body
piercers, and branders are added to the list of licensed
professionals who are allowed to extend their license renewal
with the division while on active military duty until up to 60
days after completing their service.

CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE TASK FORCE

The Chronic Kidney Disease Task Force is established to educate
the public and health care professionals about early screening,
prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and complications of chronic
kidney disease.  The task force must submit a report of its
findings and recommendations to the General Assembly within one
year of the first task force meeting.

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

The bill changes the laws regarding the regulation of mixed
martial arts, full-contact karate, boxing, kickboxing, and
wrestling.  The bill:

(1)  Defines "amateur," "boxing," "mixed martial arts,"
"full-contact karate," "kickboxing," and "wrestling";

(2)  Revises the definition of "combative fighting";

(3)  Revises the definition of "bout" to include professional
mixed martial arts;

(4)  Authorizes the division to establish rules governing amateur
sanctioning bodies;

(5)  Allows a gross receipts tax to be assessed on pay-per-view
telecasts of these events;

(6)  Removes the limit on the number of rounds and the time of
each round for professional events;

(7)  Increases the length of the medical suspension for
contestants who lose consciousness during a professional event
from 120 to 180 days;

(8)  Expands the disciplinary authority of the Office of
Athletics within the division; and

(9)  Requires contestants participating in boxing, kickboxing,
wrestling, full-contact karate, or mixed martial arts to sign a
bout contract with the event promoter before each contest which
specifies their weight, how much they are being paid, and the
date and location of the event.

TATTOOISTS, BRANDERS, AND BODY PIECERS

The department director is authorized to establish educational
and training requirements for individuals engaged in tattooing,
branding, and body piercing.  Specific causes for complaints to
be filed with the Administrative Hearing Commission are
established.

PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS

The Board of Private Investigator Examiners is established within
the division.  No person can provide private investigative
services without being licensed.  The bill specifies the
membership and duties of the board; exemptions from licensure;
requirements for application and licensure; proof of liability
insurance; training and written examinations; fees; background
checks on applicants; the appeal process for the denial,
suspension, or revocation of licenses; types and terms of
licenses; continuing education requirements; and the procedure
for applicants seeking reciprocity.  Licensees are allowed to
disclose to the board, any law enforcement agency, a prosecutor,
or the licensee's own representative any information regarding a
criminal offense or to instruct their clients to do so if they
are victims of a criminal act.  Licensees are prohibited from
making false reports, presenting themselves as a state or federal
officer, or manufacturing false evidence.  Certain identifying
evidence must be filed with the board by licensees.  Private
investigators or investigator agencies are required to maintain
complete records of business transactions.  Records may be
confidentially examined by the board under certain circumstances.
Certain exemptions are allowed for current private investigators.

ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS, LAND SURVEYORS, AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS

The Missouri Board for Architects, Professional Engineers,
Professional Land Surveyors, and Landscape Architects is
authorized to impose civil penalties upon any person practicing
these professions without a valid license, subject to an
administrative action by the board.

Complaints must be filed with the Administrative Hearing
Commission.  If the commission finds that an unlicensed person
has violated the provisions of the bill, the board may issue a
civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each day of violation,
with a maximum penalty of $25,000.  The person being fined has
the right to appeal to a circuit court.  If the case is finalized
and the penalty is not timely paid, the Attorney General may
commence an action to recover the penalty, including court costs,
attorney fees, and surcharges.

The board is also authorized to assess reasonable costs and
expenses incurred in conducting the investigation and
administrative hearing and impose a civil penalty against a
licensee after the commission has found a cause for discipline.

An unlicensed individual will be allowed to use a form of the
word "engineer" without being subject to disciplinary action if
the use of the term is reflective of his or her profession and
does not imply that he or she is a professional engineer.

CHIROPRACTORS

The bill specifies that the term "practice of chiropractic" is
the examination, diagnosis, and treatment by methods commonly
taught in any chiropractic college or chiropractic program in a
university accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education,
its successor entity, or a program approved by the State Board of
Chiropractic Examiners.

STATE BOARD OF REGISTRATION FOR THE HEALING ARTS

A graduate of a medical school accredited by the Liaison
Committee on Medical Education or recognized by the Educational
Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates is allowed to serve as a
member of the State Board of Registration for the Healing Arts.

NURSES

The bill changes the laws regarding the licensing of nurses.  The
bill:

(1)  Establishes a lapsed and a retired license status;

(2)  Requires the notice of a disciplinary hearing before the
State Board of Nursing to be served in person or by certified
mail.  If this cannot be accomplished, the board may publish the
notice in a local newspaper;

(3)  Authorizes the board to establish an impaired nurse program
to promote early intervention and treatment of nurses who may be
impaired by reasons of illness, substance abuse, or mental
illness and may require a nurse to enter treatment as a condition
for licensure;

(4)  Allows the board to request an expedited hearing before the
Administrative Hearing Commission if the board determines that a
nurse has committed an act which is a clear and present danger to
the public.  Fifteen days after the complaint and after a
preliminary hearing, the board may immediately restrict or
suspend the license.  Temporary authority to suspend a license
becomes final if the nurse does not request a full hearing within
30 days;

(5)  Allows for the sealing of records if the board, commission,
or a court of competent jurisdiction determines that a complaint
does not constitute a violation of the Nursing Practice Act and
is unsubstantiated;

(6)  Allows a person holding the title of advanced practice
registered nurse to use the title or any other title appearing on
his or her license;

(7)  Makes it unlawful for any unlicensed person to use the title
of nurse;

(8)  Makes a person who violates any provision of Chapter 335,
RSMo, guilty of a class D felony.  Currently, it is a class A
misdemeanor;

(9)  Specifies that reports made to the board do not violate the
federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
because the board qualifies as a health oversight agency;

(10)  Defines "temporary nursing staffing agency" as any person,
firm, partnership, or corporation doing business within the state
that supplies, on a temporary basis, registered nurses or
licensed practical nurses to a hospital, nursing home, or other
facility and requires them to report any disciplinary action
against a licensed health care professional to the respective
licensing board;

(11)  Allows a person listed as a Christian Science nurse in the
Christian Science Journal to use the title Christian Science
nurse under certain conditions; and

(12)  Revises the definition of "qualified employment" as it
relates to the Nursing Student Loan Program to include any agency
in an area of need as well as any public or nonprofit agency.

OPTOMETRISTS

The bill changes the laws regarding the licensing of optometrists
and the practice of optometry.  The bill:

(1)  Specifies that the term "practice of optometry" is the
examination, diagnosis, treatment, and preventative care of the
eye, adnexa, and vision;

(2)  Prohibits any person from practicing optometry without a
license;

(3)  Specifies who is qualified to receive a license;

(4)  Requires an optometrist practicing away from his or her
principal place of business to obtain a duplicate license and
display it in clear public view;

(5)  Allows an optometrist licensed in another state who has
practiced for at least three years in the preceding five years
with a pharmaceutical certification to be eligible to make
application for licensure;

(6)  Increases the continuing education requirements;

(7)  Removes the requirement that the State Board of Optometry
give 30 days' notice of the time and place of board meetings; and

(8)  Changes the laws regarding the administering of
pharmaceuticals, course of instruction necessary to administer
pharmaceuticals, standards of care, and referrals to physicians.

SOCIAL WORKERS

The bill changes the laws regarding the licensing of social
workers.  The bill:

(1)  Defines "advanced macro social worker," "licensed advanced
macro social worker," "licensed baccalaureate social worker,"
"licensed master social worker," "master social work," "practice
of advanced macro social work," "practice of baccalaureate social
work," "practice of master social work," "qualified advanced
macro supervisor," and "qualified baccalaureate supervisor";

(2)  Renames the Clinical Social Workers Fund to the Licensed
Social Workers Fund;

(3)  Requires clinical social worker applicants to complete 3,000
hours of supervised clinical experience with a qualified clinical
supervisor instead of a licensed clinical social worker;

(4)  Changes the membership of the State Committee for Social
Workers by adding one licensed advanced macro social worker and
changing the current two licensed baccalaureate social workers to
one licensed master social worker and one licensed baccalaureate
social worker;

(5)  Authorizes the committee to establish rules regarding
supervised experience and competency for master, advanced macro,
and baccalaureate social workers;

(6)  Establishes the qualifications for applying for a license as
a master social worker or advanced macro social worker; and

(7)  Authorizes the committee to issue certificates to licensed
baccalaureate social workers to practice independently if they
have met certain criteria specified in the bill.

MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPISTS

The definition of "marital and family therapy" is revised to
include diagnosing marital, family, and individual behavior and
intrapersonal or interpersonal dysfunctions within the context of
marital and family systems.

Beginning August 28, 2008, an applicant for a marital and family
therapist license must complete at least three semester hours of
graduate course work in diagnostic systems and supervised
diagnosis education as a core component of postgraduate
supervised clinical experience.

The reciprocity provision regarding licensed marital and family
therapists is changed to allow a person holding a current,
unsanctioned license from another state whose requirements are
substantially the same as Missouri's to apply for a license with
the State Committee on Marital and Family Therapists within the
department without passing an examination.

VETERINARIANS

The bill specifies that nothing will prevent a veterinarian from
compounding and dispensing his or her own prescriptions and that
a veterinary license is not required for a person to sell,
dispense, or fill pharmaceutical products or drugs for treating
animals.

REAL ESTATE COMMISSION

The  Missouri Real Estate Commission is authorized to impose
civil penalties upon a licensee for a violation of the real
estate licensing regulations and also against an unlicensed
person performing any acts for which a valid real estate license
is required.  Complaints must be filed with the Administrative
Hearing Commission; and if the commission finds that a person has
violated provisions of the bill, the Missouri Real Estate
Commission may issue a civil penalty, not to exceed $2,500 for
each day of violation.

NURSING HOME ADMINISTRATORS

The bill changes the laws regarding the licensing of nursing home
administrators.  The bill:

(1)  Requires licensing fees to be paid to the Department of
Health and Senior Services;

(2)  Prohibits an applicant for licensure who has failed three
times the national examination administered by the Missouri Board
of Nursing Home Administrators from being licensed unless he or
she has successfully completed the board-prescribed course of
instruction and passed the examination;

(3)  Allows a temporary emergency license to be issued to an
applicant whose licensing examination results have not been
received by the board;

(4)  Authorizes the board to issue probationary licenses and to
establish an inactive license for a licensee who requests it;

(5)  Allows the board to file a complaint with the Administrative
Hearing Commission for a violation of any provision of
Chapter 198 or rule established by the board and adds additional
grounds for which a licensee can be disciplined; and

(6)  Requires that certain members of the board be citizens of
the United States and reside in Missouri for at least one year
prior to their appointment and replaces the Director of the
Division of Aging with the department director.

AUDIOLOGISTS AND HEARING INSTRUMENT FITTERS

The term "practice of audiology" is expanded by adding the
fitting, programming, and dispensing of assistive listening
devices and other amplification systems.  Licensees who sell
these devices are required to provide a purchase agreement to the
buyer containing product information including the terms of sale,
name of manufacturer, make, model, current condition of the
product, and other details.

Currently, hearing instrument retailers must employ a licensed
hearing instrument specialist.  The bill allows them to employ
either a licensed audiologist or a licensed hearing instrument
specialist.  The bill also phases in educational requirements for
applicants for hearing instrument specialist licenses or hearing
instrument specialist-in-training permits.

DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES

The bill prohibits any person from advertising or conducting a
live musical performance in Missouri while using a false,
deceptive, or misleading affiliation between the performing group
and the original recording group.  The bill does not apply when:

(1)  One member of the performing group was a member of the
original recording group and has a legal right to advertise the
affiliation;

(2)  The performance is identified as a tribute or salute to the
original recording group;

(3)  The advertising does not relate to a performance to be held
in Missouri;

(4)  The performing group has express authorization from the
original recording group to use the affiliation; or

(5)  The performing group is an authorized registrant or owner of
a trademark for the original recording group name.

The Attorney General or prosecuting attorney is authorized to
bring an action for a temporary or permanent injunction against
any person who is in violation of these provisions.  Any person
found in violation will be assessed a civil penalty of $5,000 to
$15,000 per violation and may be required to pay restitution to
the original recording artist in an amount equal to the money
acquired due to the false, deceptive, or misleading affiliation
between the performing group and the original recording group.

The provisions regarding the mixed martial arts become effective
July 1, 2008.

Missouri House of Representatives
94th General Assembly, 1st Regular Session
Last Updated July 25, 2007 at 11:20 am