The NH state legislature is in session and actively working through hundreds of proposed bills. APTA NH has been closely following many of these bills and at this point in the session were are down to following about 20 bills.
This month, we would like to highlight one bill in particular that could have a potentially significant impact on physical therapy practice in NH.
HB1676-FN: Establishing a Sunset Commission to Evaluate Various Occupational Boards and Commissions, and Sunsetting Various Boards and Commissions. In its current form, this bill could convey the legislative authority to “sunset” a significant number of professional boards, including the Physical Therapy Governing Board in 2030.
The protection of our patients is paramount. This bill could alter the ability for therapists to practice critical self-governed oversight. There is no entity better positioned to oversee the appropriate application of the education, training and conduct of physical therapists and physical therapist assistants in the State of NH than a board of our peers, the Physical Therapy Governing Board.
Shortly, APTA NH will be asking for you to join us in opposing this bill through communication and outreach to your NH representatives. If you haven’t already, this is a great time to download the APTA Action App that will afford access and information related to important issues affecting the physical therapy profession in our state.
Finally, pertaining to the recent correspondence from OPLC that updated the regulations surrounding continuing competence as part of license renewal, we are working with contacts at the state to determine a definitive answer regarding the acceptance of distance/online courses.
For more information on this and other pending bills, go to www.nh.gov , put your cursor over the “Government” tab at the top of the webpage and click on NH State Legislature from the dropdown list. You can enter bill numbers like the one above or do a keyword search for bills to access more information. Please feel free to reach out to us at www.nhapta.org for more information or to get involved.
State Legislative APTA NH CONTACT: Mark Mailloux
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