WHEREAS, certified athletic trainers are medical professionals who specialize in the prevention, assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation of injuries to athletes and others engaged in physical activities; and

WHEREAS, athletic trainers are certified by the National Athletic Trainers Board of Certification, an independent credentialing agency whose certifications are based on standards that provide protection to the public and indicate that the certified athletic trainers have knowledge and skill in six practice domains of athletic training; and

WHEREAS, certified athletic trainers work under the direction of a physician, and are employed in professional and collegiate sports, secondary and intermediate schools, sports medicine clinics, hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, occupational settings, fitness centers, and physicians' offices; and

WHEREAS, because the public has difficulty discerning the difference between certified athletic trainers, personal trainers, and boxing trainers, there is a risk to the public that unqualified non-credentialied persons will represent themselves as "trainers" and mislead the public into believing that they are receiving care from health care professionals; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2005, that the Auditor is respectfully requested to perform a sunrise review regarding the regulation of certified athletic trainers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to submit findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature not later than twenty days before the convening of the Regular Session of 2006; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the Auditor.

Report Title:

Athletic trainers