2025 -- H 6088

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LC002394

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS -- PODIATRISTS

     Introduced By: Representatives Boylan, Cotter, Fogarty, Hopkins, Stewart, Potter,
McGaw, Carson, Speakman, and Spears

     Date Introduced: March 14, 2025

     Referred To: House Health & Human Services

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 5-29-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 5-29 entitled "Podiatrists" is

hereby amended to read as follows:

     5-29-1. Definitions.

     (a) “Board” means the Rhode Island board of examiners in podiatry.

     (b) “Certified foot care nurse” or “CFCN” means a registered nurse or nurse practitioner

who is certified and credentialled as a CFCN by the Wound Ostomy and Continence Nursing

Certification Board.

     (c) “Certified foot care specialist” or “CFCS” means a nurse practitioner who is certified

and credentialed as a CFCS by the American Foot Care Nurses Association.

     (b)(d) “Department” means the Rhode Island department of health.

     (c)(e) “Director” means the director of the Rhode Island department of health.

     (d)(f) “Healthcare facility” means any institutional health service provider licensed

pursuant to the provisions of chapter 17 of title 23.

     (e)(g) “Health maintenance organization” means a public or private organization licensed

pursuant to the provisions of chapter 17 of title 23 or chapter 41 of title 27.

     (f)(h)“Limited registrant” means a person holding a limited registration certificate pursuant

to the provisions of this chapter.

     (g)(i) “Nonprofit medical services corporation” or “nonprofit hospital service corporation”

or “nonprofit podiatry/medical service corporation” means any corporation organized pursuant to

chapter 19 or 20 of title 27 for the purpose of establishing, maintaining, and operating a nonprofit

medical hospital.

     (h)(j) “Peer-review board” means any committee of a state or local podiatry association or

society, or a committee of any licensed healthcare facility, or the podiatry staff of the committee,

or any committee of a podiatric care foundation or health maintenance organization, or any staff

committee or consultant of a hospital, medical, or podiatric service corporation, the function of

which, is to evaluate and improve the quality of podiatric care rendered by providers of podiatric

care service or to determine that podiatric care services rendered were professionally indicated or

were performed in compliance with the applicable standard of care or that the cost for podiatric

care rendered was considered reasonable by the providers of professional podiatric care services in

the area and shall include a committee functioning as a utilization review committee under the

provisions of the Health Insurance for the Aged Act (Medicare) or as a professional standards

review organization or statewide professional standards review council under the provisions of P.L.

92-603, 42 U.S.C. § 1301 et seq. (professional standards review organizations), or a similar

committee or a committee of similar purpose, to evaluate or review the diagnosis or treatment of

the performance or rendition of podiatric services that are performed under public podiatric

programs of either state or federal design.

     (i)(k) “Person” means any individual, partnership, firm, corporation, association, trust or

estate, state or political subdivision or instrumentality of a state.

     (j)(l) “Podiatrist” means a person with a license to practice podiatric medicine and surgery

in this state under the provisions of this chapter.

     (k)(m) “Podiatrist,” a person licensed as described in this chapter, shall be considered a

physician and surgeon of the foot and ankle. For the purposes of reimbursement by and for

subscriber benefits/participation agreements with health maintenance organizations, nonprofit

medical-service corporations, for-profit medical service corporations, and third-party insurers, it is

unlawful to discriminate against podiatrists.

     (l)(n) “Practice of podiatry.” Any person is practicing podiatry within the meaning of this

chapter who uses or permits to be used, directly or indirectly, for profit or otherwise, for their own

self or for any other person, in connection with their own name, the word “podiatrist” or “podiatric

physician and surgeon,” or the title DPM, or any other words, letters, titles, or descriptive matter,

personal or not, that directly or indirectly implies the practice of podiatry, or who owns, leases,

maintains, or operates a podiatry business in any office or other room or rooms where podiatry

operations are performed, or directly or indirectly is manager, proprietor, or conductor of the

business; or who directly or indirectly informs the public in any language, orally, in writing, or by

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drawings, demonstrations, specimens, signs, or pictures that he or she can perform or will attempt

to perform foot operations of any kind; or who undertakes, by any means or method, gratuitously

or for a salary, fee, money, or other reward paid or granted directly or indirectly to himself or herself

or to any other person, to diagnose or profess to diagnose, or to treat or profess to treat, or to

prescribe for or profess to prescribe for any of the lesions, diseases, disorders, or deficiencies of

the pedal extremity. The foot is defined to be the pedal extremity of the human body and its

articulations, and shall include the tendons and muscles of the lower leg only as they are involved

in the condition of the foot. Provided, a certified foot care nurse who is certified by and in good

standing with the Wound Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board, and a certified foot

care specialist who is certified and in good standing with the American Foot Care Nurses

Association, may provide the services described in § 5-29-45, notwithstanding that some of those

services may overlap with the practice of podiatry.

     (m)(o) Wherever in the general or public laws there appear the words chiropody,

chiropodist, and chiropodists, the words podiatry, podiatrist, and podiatrists shall be substituted.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 5-29 of the General Laws entitled "Podiatrists" is hereby amended

by adding thereto the following section:

     5-29-45. Certified foot care nurse.

     (a) A certified foot care nurse (“CFCN”) who is certified and in good standing with the

Wound Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board, or a certified foot care specialist

(“CFCS”) who is certified and in good standing with the American Foot Care Nurses Association,

or both, may provide foot care services as provided in subsection (b) of this section, as a home

service, notwithstanding that some of these services may also meet the definition of “podiatry

services” as defined in this chapter. A CFCN or CFCS engaged in providing foot care services

limited to those services described in subsection (b) of this section, in a home setting, shall not be

deemed to be a home nursing care provider for purpose of §§ 23-17-10 and 23-17-42.

     (b) The services a CFCN or CFCS, as defined in this chapter may provide as a home service

within the State of Rhode Island include the following:

     (1) Routine foot and nail care including nail clipping;

     (2) Reduction of thickened hard nails;

     (3) Callus and corn reduction;

     (4) Foot and skin assessment;

     (5) Light massage to lower legs and feet;

     (6) Distribute foot care education/materials; and

     (7) Make referrals to a licensed physician specialist or podiatrist.

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     (c) The providing of services by a CFCN or a CFCS, pursuant to the provisions of this

section, shall not be deemed to be the practice of podiatry without a license.

     (d) The department of health shall promulgate rules and regulations to implement the

provisions of this section.

     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS -- PODIATRISTS

***

     This act would permit a certified foot care nurse or a certified foot care specialist, to provide

certain at-home foot care, including routine foot and nail care including nail clipping.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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