Section R4-24-401. Continuing Competence Requirements for Renewal

A.      Except as provided in subsection (F), beginning September 1, 2000, a licensed physical therapist shall earn 20 contact hours of continuing competence activities for each compliance period to be eligible for renewal of license.

1.        The licensee shall earn at least 10 contact hours from Cat- egory A continuing competence activities. No more than five of the required contact hours from Category A shall be obtained from nonclinical course work.

2.        No more than 10 contact hours may be earned by the licensee during any compliance period from Categories B and C continuing competence activities. No more than five contact hours from categories B and C may be obtained from nonclinical course work.

3.        If the licensee’s initial license is for one year or less, the licensee shall earn 10 contact hours during the initial compliance period.

B.       A licensee shall not receive contact hour credit for repetitions of the same activity.

C.      The continuing competence compliance period for a licensee begins on September 1 following the issuance of an initial license or a license renewal and ends on August 31 of even-numbered years.

D.      A licensee shall not carry over contact hours from one compli- ance period to another.

E.       An applicant for license renewal shall submit a signed state- ment to the Board with the renewal application stating whether continuing competence requirements have been fulfilled for the current compliance period.

F.       The Board may, at its discretion, waive continuing competence requirements on an individual basis for reasons of extreme hardship such as illness, disability, active service in the mili- tary, or other extraordinary circumstance as determined by the Board. A licensee who seeks a waiver of the continuing com- petence requirements shall provide to the Board, in writing, the specific reasons for requesting the waiver and additional information that  the Board  may  request  in  support  of  the waiver.

G.      A licensee is subject to Board auditing for continuing compe- tence compliance.

1.        Selection for audit shall be random and notice of audit sent within 60 calendar days following the license renewal deadline.

2.        Within 30 days of receipt of a notice of audit, a licensee shall submit evidence to the Board that shows compliance with the requirements of continuing competence. Docu- mentation of a continuing competence activity shall include:

a.         The date, place, course title, sponsor, schedule, and presenter;

b.        The number of contact hours received for the activ- ity; and

c.         Proof of completion, such as an abstract, certificate of attendance, sign-in log, or other certification of completion.

H.      A licensee shall retain evidence of participation in a continu- ing competence activity for the two preceding compliance periods.

I.        The Board shall notify a licensee who has been audited whether the licensee is in compliance with continuing compe- tence requirements. A licensee shall be notified by the Board, by certified mail, within 30 working days following the deter- mination by the Board

J.        A licensee found not in compliance with continuing compe- tence requirements shall have six months from the notice of noncompliance to satisfy the continuing competence require- ments. A licensee may request a hearing to contest the Board’s decision under A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, Article 10.

K.      Penalties for failure to comply with continuing competence requirements may be imposed by the Board under A.R.S § 32-2047 following a hearing conducted under A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, Article 10.

Historical Note

New Section adopted by final rulemaking at 6 A.A.R.

2399, effective June 9, 2000 (Supp. 00-2).