COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

H. B. 4104

         (By Delegates Morgan, Stephens, Hatfield, Butcher,

               Cann, D. Poling, Craig and Swartzmiller)

    [Originating in theCommittee on Government Organization.]

(February 9, 2012)

A BILL to amend and reenact §30-1-7a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to authorizing professional licensing boards to exempt licensees who have been licensed for a total of twenty years or more from continuing education requirements.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

    That §30-1-7a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:

ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO ALL STATE BOARDS OF EXAMINATION OR REGISTRATION REFERRED TO IN CHAPTER.

§30-1-7a. Continuing education.

    (a) Each board referred to in this chapter shall establish continuing education requirements as a prerequisite to license renewal. Each board shall develop continuing education criteria appropriate to its discipline, which shall include, but not be limited to, including course content, course approval, hours required and reporting periods, as a prerequisite to license renewal: Provided, That a board may, by legislative rule, exempt from continuing education requirements licensees who have been licensed for a total of twenty years or more, in this state or in any jurisdiction with licensure requirements that are substantially similar to licensure requirements in this state.

    (b) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code or the provision of any rule to the contrary, each person issued a license to practice medicine and surgery or a license to practice podiatry or a license as a physician assistant by the West Virginia Board of Medicine, each person licensed as a pharmacist by the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy, each person licensed to practice registered professional nursing or licensed as an advanced nurse practitioner by the West Virginia board of examiners for registered professional nurses, each person licensed as a licensed practical nurse by the West Virginia State Board of Examiners for licensed practical nurses and each person licensed to practice medicine and surgery as an osteopathic physician and surgeon or certified as an osteopathic physician assistant by the West Virginia Board of Osteopathy shall complete two hours of continuing education coursework in the subject of end-of-life care including pain management during each continuing education reporting period through the reporting period ending June 30, 2005. The two hours shall be part of the total hours of continuing education required by each board by rule and not two additional hours.

    (2) Effective as of the reporting period beginning July 1, 2005, the coursework requirement imposed by this subsection will become a one-time requirement, and all licensees who have not completed the coursework requirement shall complete the coursework requirement prior to his or her first license renewal.