2022 -- S 2464 | |
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LC004787 | |
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022 | |
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A N A C T | |
RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES -- REGISTRATION OF NURSING ASSISTANTS | |
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Introduced By: Senator Walter S. Felag | |
Date Introduced: March 01, 2022 | |
Referred To: Senate Health & Human Services | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Sections 23-17.9-2, 23-17.9-3 and 23-17.9-5 of the General Laws in Chapter |
2 | 23-17.9 entitled "Registration of Nursing Assistants" are hereby amended to read as follows: |
3 | 23-17.9-2. Definitions -- Supervision of nursing assistants -- Inapplicability of chapter. |
4 | (a) As used in this chapter: |
5 | (1) "Certifying agency" means the state department of health. |
6 | (2) "Director" means the director of the state department of health, or his or her designee. |
7 | (3) "Home care nursing assistant" is defined as a paraprofessional trained as an aide to a |
8 | nurse exclusively in a home care setting to give personal care and related health care and assistance |
9 | based on his or her level of preparation to homebound individuals who are sick, disabled, |
10 | dependent, or infirm. The director of the department of health shall, by regulation, license these |
11 | paraprofessionals as a separate licensure pursuant to this chapter than those licensed under § 23- |
12 | 17.9-2(4). Home care nursing assistants shall be trained with a minimum of sixty (60) hours prior |
13 | to licensing examination and are exempt from training specific to any facility-based care. |
14 | (3)(4) "Nursing assistant" is defined as a nurses' aide, or orderly, or home health aide who |
15 | is a paraprofessional trained to give personal care and related health care and assistance based on |
16 | his or her level of preparation to individuals who are sick, disabled, dependent, or infirmed and |
17 | who are residents of or who receive services from healthcare facilities licensed pursuant to chapter |
18 | 17 of this title or receiving services from agencies licensed pursuant to chapter 17.7 of this title. |
19 | The director of the department of health may, by regulation, establish different levels of nursing |
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1 | assistants. |
2 | (b) Nursing assistants shall be supervised by professional (registered nurses) and other |
3 | appropriate professional members of a healthcare facility or physician. |
4 | (c) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, nothing in this section shall apply to |
5 | those persons designated solely as personal-care attendants, or programs established and |
6 | administered for the purpose of providing personal-care-attendant service, established by chapter |
7 | 8.1 of title 40. |
8 | (d) No provision of this chapter shall apply to those persons who are actively matriculated |
9 | in a bachelor of science in nursing, associate degree program in nursing, an accredited licensed |
10 | practical nursing program, or registered nurse course of study in a national league for nursing |
11 | accredited nursing program, provided those persons have completed a minimum of two (2) clinical |
12 | courses and provided those individuals are supervised by a R.N. |
13 | (e) No provision of this chapter or of the rules and regulations pertaining to Rhode Island |
14 | certificates of registration for nursing assistants, medication aides, and the approval of nursing |
15 | assistant and medication aide training programs, including the provisions related to medication |
16 | aides, shall apply to those persons who are actively matriculated in a bachelor of science in nursing, |
17 | associate degree program in nursing, an accredited licensed practical nursing program, or registered |
18 | nurse course of study in a national league for nursing accredited nursing program; provided, those |
19 | persons have completed a minimum of two (2) clinical courses and appropriate training in |
20 | medication administration and provided those individuals are supervised by a registered nurse. |
21 | 23-17.9-3. Training and competency evaluation program for levels of nursing |
22 | assistants. |
23 | Standards for training and/or competency evaluation programs for nursing assistants and |
24 | exemptions for applicants from the requirements of training programs shall be consistent with |
25 | federal statutory and regulatory requirements and shall be defined according to the rules and |
26 | regulations promulgated by the department of health. The national standards pertaining to nursing |
27 | assistants, nurse aides-home health aides, and the national home caring council or its succeeding |
28 | agency, (model curriculum and teaching guide for the instruction of homemaker-home health aide) |
29 | and any other appropriate standards shall serve as guidelines in the development of regulatory |
30 | standards for other levels of nursing assistants as determined by the director. The department may |
31 | require a fee as set forth in § 23-1-54 as an application fee for biennial training and competency |
32 | evaluation program certification. |
33 | 23-17.9-5. Qualifying examination. |
34 | Nursing assistants as defined in § 23-17.9-2 who are employed or have had experience as |
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1 | a nursing assistant prior to the enactment of this chapter, and the effective date of the regulations |
2 | promulgated in relation to this chapter, shall pass the appropriate level of examination administered |
3 | by the department approved by the director in lieu of the training program. Exempt from the |
4 | qualifying examination are home health aides/homemakers who have successfully passed the |
5 | qualifying examination and/or successfully completed an approved home health aide/homemaker |
6 | program under the provisions of chapter 17.7 of this title and the regulations promulgated in relation |
7 | to that chapter. Also exempt from the qualifying examination are classes of individuals, regardless |
8 | of employment setting, who are exempted from examination by federal statute or regulations and |
9 | these exemptions shall be defined according to rules and regulations promulgated by the department |
10 | of health. Successful completion of the qualifying examination and the provisions of this section |
11 | shall be deemed satisfactory for employment as a nursing assistant. Unless exempted by rules and |
12 | regulations promulgated by the department of health, each application must be submitted with a |
13 | processing fee as set forth in § 23-1-54 to be paid by the employing facility or agency if the |
14 | applicant has been continuously employed by the facility for six (6) months prior to the application |
15 | or by another responsible party as defined in rules and regulations promulgated by the department |
16 | of health consistent with federal statutory and/or regulatory requirements; but, if the applicant is |
17 | unemployed, to be submitted by the applicant. If the applicant shall be continuously employed by |
18 | the same facility for six (6) months after the application, then the fee shall be directly refunded to |
19 | the applicant by the facility or agency. If federal statutory or regulatory requirements mandate that |
20 | the certifying agency conduct an examination of manual skills proficiency as a component of the |
21 | examination process to meet minimal federal compliance, a manual skills proficiency examination |
22 | may be required by rules and regulations promulgated by the department of health for all applicants |
23 | not otherwise exempted from the examination requirements. If a manual skills proficiency |
24 | examination is required to be conducted by the certifying agency as a component of the certifying |
25 | examination, each application shall be accompanied by a fee as set forth in § 23-1-54 to be paid by |
26 | the employing facility or agency if the applicant has been continuously employed by the facility |
27 | for six (6) months prior to the application or by another responsible party as defined in rules and |
28 | regulations promulgated by the department of health consistent with federal statutory and/or |
29 | regulatory requirements; but, if the applicant is unemployed, to be submitted by the applicant. If |
30 | the applicant shall be continuously employed by the same facility for six (6) months after the |
31 | application, then the fee shall be directly refunded on a pro rata basis between months six (6) and |
32 | twelve (12) to the applicant by the facility or agency. |
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1 | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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LC004787 | |
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EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES -- REGISTRATION OF NURSING ASSISTANTS | |
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1 | This act would establish the position of home care nursing assistants, who are |
2 | paraprofessionals licensed by the department of health to work exclusively in home care; would |
3 | require training specific to home-based care for vulnerable homebound patients; and would allow |
4 | greater opportunities for home care agencies to compete in the labor market in order to reduce long |
5 | wait lists for activities of daily living services and supports at home. |
6 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
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LC004787 | |
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