H. B. 2987
(By Delegates Beach, Pethtel,
Houston, Shaver and Perry)
[Introduced February 13, 2003; referred to the
Committee on Government Organization.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section six, article seven, chapter
thirty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section six,
article seven-a of said chapter, all relating to requiring the
board of examiners for registered nurses and licensed
practical nurses to return exam results within five days of
completing the exam.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section six, article seven, chapter thirty of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended and reenacted; and that section six, article seven-a of
said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7. REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL NURSES.
§30-7-6. Qualifications; licensure; fees; temporary permits.
To obtain a license to practice registered professional nursing, an applicant for such license shall submit to the board
written evidence, verified by oath, that he or she: (a) Is of good
moral character; (b) has completed an approved four-year high
school course of study or the equivalent thereof, as determined by
the appropriate educational agency; and (c) has completed an
accredited program of registered professional nursing education and
holds a diploma of a school accredited by the board.
The applicant shall also be required to pass a written
examination in such subjects as the board may determine. Each
written examination may be supplemented by an oral examination.
The board shall return all exam results to the applicant within
five days of the completion of the exam. Upon successfully passing
such examination or examinations, the board shall issue to the
applicant a license to practice registered professional nursing.
The board shall determine the times and places for examinations.
In the event an applicant shall have failed to pass examinations on
two occasions, the applicant shall, in addition to the other
requirements of this section, present to the board such other
evidence of his or her qualifications as the board may prescribe.
The board may, upon application, issue a license to practice
registered professional nursing by endorsement to an applicant who
has been duly licensed as a registered professional nurse under the
laws of another state, territory or foreign country if in the
opinion of the board the applicant meets the qualifications required of registered professional nurses at the time of
graduation.
The board may, upon application and proper identification
determined by the board, issue a temporary permit to practice
registered professional nursing by endorsement to an applicant who
has been duly licensed as a registered professional nurse under the
laws of another state, territory or foreign country. Such
temporary permit authorizes the holder to practice registered
professional nursing in this state while the temporary permit is
effective. A temporary permit shall be effective for ninety days,
unless the board revokes such permit prior to its expiration, and
such permit may not be renewed. Any person applying for a
temporary license under the provisions of this paragraph shall,
with his or her application, pay to the board a nonrefundable fee
of ten dollars.
Any person holding a valid license designated as a "waiver
license" may submit an application to the board for a license
containing no reference to the fact that such person has
theretofore been issued such "waiver license." The provisions of
this section relating to examination and fees and the provisions of
all other sections of this article shall apply to any application
submitted to the board pursuant to the provisions of this
paragraph.
Any person applying for a license to practice registered professional nursing under the provisions of this article shall,
with his or her application, pay to the board a fee of forty
dollars: Provided,
That the fee to be paid for the year commencing
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-two, shall
be seventy dollars: Provided, however,
That the board in its
discretion may, by rule, or regulation, decrease either or both
said license fees. In the event it shall be necessary for the
board to reexamine any applicant for a license, an additional fee
shall be paid to the board by the applicant for reexamination:
Provided further,
That the total of such additional fees shall in
no case exceed one hundred dollars for any one examination.
Any person holding a license heretofore issued by the West
Virginia state board of examiners for registered nurses and which
license is valid on the date this article becomes effective shall
be deemed considered to be duly licensed under the provisions of
this article for the remainder of the period of any such license
heretofore issued. Any such license heretofore issued shall also,
for all purposes, be deemed considered to be a license issued under
this article and to be subject to the provisions hereof.
The board shall, upon receipt of a duly executed application
for licensure and of the accompanying fee of seventy dollars, issue
a temporary permit to practice registered professional nursing to
any applicant who has received a diploma from a school of nursing
approved by the board pursuant to this article after the date the board last scheduled a written examination for persons eligible for
licensure: Provided, That no such temporary permit shall be
renewable nor shall any such permit be valid for any purpose
subsequent to the date the board has announced the results of the
first written examination given by the board following the issuance
of such permit.
ARTICLE 7A. PRACTICAL NURSES.
§30-7A-6. Examination and licensure of practical nurses; present
practitioners.
The applicant, except as hereinafter provided, shall be
required to pass a written examination in such subjects as the
board shall determine. Each written examination may be
supplemented by such oral or practical examination as the board may
deem consider necessary. The board shall return all exam results
to the applicant within five days of the completion of the exam.
The board shall determine the times and places for the examination.
Notices of examination shall be sent by mail to each person known
by the secretary to be an applicant for an examination or
registration at least thirty days previous to any such scheduled
examination. Upon the applicant's successful completion of an
appropriate examination as prescribed by the board and satisfaction
of the other requirements of this article, the board shall issue to
the applicant a license to practice practical nursing. The board
shall issue such license by endorsement to any applicant who has been duly licensed or registered as such, or to a person entitled
to perform similar services under a different title, in another
state, territory or foreign country if, in the opinion of the
board, the applicant meets the other requirements for licensed
practical nurses in this state. On or before the thirtieth day of
June, one thousand nine hundred sixty-eight, any practical nurse
who exhibits proof, satisfactory to the board, that he or she has
been engaged in practical nursing in this state for a period of
three years and who satisfactorily completes an appropriate
examination as prescribed by the board shall be issued a license by
waiver by said board, which shall be so designated on its face.
Any person obtaining a license by waiver who has completed
extension courses equal in theory to those for the graduate
practical nurses, as determined by the board, may at any time
thereafter take the examination prescribed by the board for
graduate practical nurses and obtain a license without the
designation of "waiver" thereon.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
require the board of
examiners for registered nurses and licensed practical nurses to
return exam results within five days of completing the exam.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.