HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

2570

TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2012

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO LICENSING OF DIETITIANS.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  Section 26H-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Repeal dates for newly enacted professional and vocational regulatory programs.  (a)  Any professional or vocational regulatory program enacted after January 1, 1994, and listed in this section shall be repealed as specified in this section.  The auditor shall perform an evaluation of the program, pursuant to section 26H-5, prior to its repeal date.

     (b)  Chapter 466D (respiratory therapists) shall be repealed on June 30, 2016.

     (c)  Chapter 448B (dietitians) shall be repealed on June 30, 2017."

     SECTION 2.  Section 26H, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "§26H-   The department of commerce and consumer affairs may employ necessary personnel without regard to chapter 76, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to assist with the implementation and continuing functions of this chapter."

     SECTION 3.  Section 26H, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "§26H-__ There is appropriated out of the compliance resolution fund established pursuant to section 26-9(o), Hawaii Revised Statutes, the sum of $50,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2014, to implement the dietitian licensure program.  The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of commerce and consumer affairs for the purposes of this Act."

     SECTION 4.  Section 448B-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Definitions.  As used in this chapter:

     "Association" means the [American Dietetic Association] Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

     "Commission on accreditation" means the Commission on Accreditation/Approval for Dietetics Education.

     "Department" means the department of [health] commerce and consumer affairs.

     "Dietetic practice" means the integration and application of scientific principles of nutrition, biochemistry, physiology, food, behavioral, and social sciences, in managing disease, and achieving and maintaining human health throughout the life cycle.

     "Director" means the director of [health] the department of commerce and consumer affairs.

     "Licensed dietitian" means a person who uses the title of licensed dietitian or dietitian and has been licensed to practice dietetics under this chapter."

     SECTION 5.  Section 448B-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Licensure required.  [No person shall]Except as specifically provided in this chapter, no person shall engage in dietetic practice or purport to be a "licensed dietitian" or use the letters "L.D." in connection with the person's name, or use any words or symbols indicating or tending to indicate that the person is a licensed dietitian without meeting the applicable requirements and holding a license as set forth in this chapter."

     SECTION 6.  Section 448B, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "[448B-__]  Exemptions.  This chapter is not intended to restrict the practice of other licensed or credentialed healthcare practitioners practicing within their own recognized scopes of practice and shall not apply to:

     (1)  A person working within the scope of practice or duties of another licensed profession that overlaps with dietetic practice, provided the person does not purport to be a dietitian;

     (2)  A person enrolled as a student in an accredited dietetic program where the performance of duties that are regulated by this chapter is an integral part of the student's program of study; and

     (3)  A person employed by a federal, state or county government agency as a dietitian, but only in the course of carrying out the duties and responsibilities of government employment."

     SECTION 7.  Section 448B-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "[Licensure requirements In addition to the application requirements provided by section 436B-10, the director shall adopt rules as deemed necessary for the licensure of dietitians to protect public health and safety, and may consider the following as minimum evidence that an applicant is qualified to be licensed:Application for license as a dietitian.  The department shall issue a license under this chapter to an applicant if the applicant provides satisfactory evidence to the department that the applicant meets the requirements for licensure contained in this chapter and rules adopted by the director and if:

          (1)  The applicant received a baccalaureate degree or post-baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university with a major course of study in dietetics, human nutrition, food and nutrition, or food systems management, or academic requirements related thereto, approved by the commission on accreditation, or meets equivalent core requirements for the dietetics option at the University of Hawaii.  In addition to basic dietetic principles of nutrition, human physiology, biochemistry, and behavioral and social sciences, course work shall include at least nine semester credits (or twelve quarter hours) relating to food science and food preparation.  Applicants who have obtained their education outside of the United States and its territories shall have their academic degree validated by an agency authorized to validate foreign academic degrees as being equivalent to a baccalaureate, master's, or doctoral degree conferred by a regionally accredited college or university in the United States.  Validation of a foreign degree shall include a verification statement of completion of the major course of study or related academic requirements, basic dietetic principles, and course work specified in this paragraph;

          (2)  Satisfactorily complete a documented supervised practice experience component in dietetic practice of not less than nine hundred hours approved by the commission on accreditation;

          (3)  Pass the registration examination for dietitians administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration; and

          (4)  Submit a report of any disciplinary action relating to dietetics practice taken against the applicant in another jurisdiction.

          An individual who provides evidence of current registration in the association shall be deemed to have met the educational and supervised practice experience requirements of this section."

     SECTION 8.  Section 448B-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Licensure by endorsement.  The director [shall] may grant, upon application and payment of proper fees, licensure to a person who, at the time of application, holds a valid certification or license as a dietitian issued by another state, territory, or jurisdiction if the requirements for that certification or license are equal to, or greater than, the requirements of this chapter."

     SECTION 9.  Section 448B-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     Renewal of license.  [(a)  Every license issued under this chapter shall be renewed triennially on or before June 30, with the first renewal deadline occurring on June 30, 2003.  Failure to renew a license shall result in a forfeiture of the license.  Licenses that have been so forfeited may be restored within one year of the expiration date upon payment of renewal and penalty fees.  Failure to restore a forfeited license within one year of the date of its expiration shall result in the automatic termination of the license, and relicensure may require the person to apply as a new applicant and satisfy all licensure requirements again.

     (b)  Upon request, the director may grant inactive status to a person licensed under this chapter.Licenses issued pursuant to this chapter shall be valid for three years and shall be renewed upon the payment of a renewal fee within sixty days before the expiration of the license.  Failure to renew a license shall result in forfeiture of that license.  Licenses that have been forfeited may be restored within one year of the forfeiture date upon payment of renewal and restoration fees.  Failure to restore a forfeited license within one year shall result in the automatic termination of the license.  A person whose license has been terminated pursuant to this section shall be required to reapply for a new license as a new applicant."

     SECTION 10.  Section 448B-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Fees; disposition.  [(a)  Application, examination, reexamination, license, renewal, late renewal penalty fees, inactive, and other reasonable and necessary fees relating to administration of this chapter, none of which are refundable, shall be as provided in rules adopted by the director pursuant to chapter 91.

     (b)  Fees assessed shall defray all costs to be incurred by the director to support the operation of the dietitian licensure program.] (a)  Upon issuance of a new license and at each license renewal period, each dietitian shall pay a fee of $100 that shall be deposited into the compliance resolution fund established pursuant to section 26-9(o).

     (b)  Application fees paid pursuant to this chapter shall not be refundable.  Pursuant to section 26-9(1), the director shall establish examination, reexamination, license, renewal, restoration, penalty, and other fees relating to the administration of this chapter by rule.

     (c)  Fees pursuant to this chapter shall be used to defray costs incurred by the department in implementing this chapter.

     SECTION 11.  Section 448B-10, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is repealed.

     SECTION 12.  Section 448B-11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Revocation, suspension, denial, or condition of licenses; fines.  In addition to any other acts or conditions provided by law, the director may refuse to renew, reinstate, or restore, or may deny, revoke, suspend, fine, or condition in any manner any license for any one or more of the following acts or conditions on the part of the applicant or licensed dietitian:

     (1)  Conviction by a court of competent jurisdiction of a crime that the director has determined to be of a nature that renders the person convicted unfit to practice dietetics;

     (2)  Failure to report in writing to the director any disciplinary decision related to dietetic practice issued against the licensed dietitian or the applicant in any jurisdiction within thirty days of the disciplinary decision or within twenty days of licensure;

     (3)  Violation of recognized ethical standards for dietitians as set by the association;

     (4)  Use of fraud, deception, or misrepresentation in obtaining a license;

     (5)  Revocation, suspension, or other disciplinary action by another state, territory, federal agency, or country against the licensed dietitian or applicant for any reason provided under this section; or

     (6)  Other just and sufficient cause that renders a person unfit to practice dietetics.

     (1)  Failure to meet or to maintain the conditions and requirements necessary to qualify for the granting of a license;

     (2)  Engaging in false, fraudulent, or deceptive advertising, or making untruthful or improbable statements in advertising;

     (3)  Engaging in dietetic practice while impaired by alcohol, drugs, physical disability, or mental instability;

     (4)  Procuring a dietitian license through fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit;

     (5)  Aiding and abetting an unlicensed person to directly or indirectly perform activities requiring a dietitian license;

     (6)  Engaging in professional misconduct, incompetence, gross negligence, or manifest incapacity in dietetic practice;

     (7)  Engaging in conduct or a practice contrary to recognized standards of ethics for dietitians as adopted by the association;

     (8)  Violating any condition or limitation imposed on a license to practice as a dietitian by the director;

     (9)  Engaging in dietetic practice in a manner that causes injury to one or more members of the public;

    (10)  Failing to comply with, observe, or adhere to any law in a manner that causes the director to determine that the applicant or holder is unfit to hold a license;

    (11)  Having a license revoked or suspended or other disciplinary action by any state or federal agency for any reason that is provided by the applicable licensing laws or by this section;

    (12)  Having been convicted or pleaded nolo contendere to a crime directly related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of dietetic practice;

    (13)  Failing to report in writing to the director any disciplinary decision issued against the licensee or applicant in another jurisdiction within thirty days of the disciplinary decision;

    (14)  Employing, whether gratuitously or for pay, any person not licensed pursuant to this chapter to perform the functions or duties of a dietitian; or

    (15)  Violating this chapter, chapter 436B, or any rule or order of the director.

     (b)  Any licensee or applicant who violates this section may also be fined not more than $1,000 per violation and each day's violation shall be deemed a separate offense."

     SECTION 13.  Section 448B-12, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "Prohibited acts; penalties.  (a)  No person shall:

     (1)  Use in connection with the person's name any designation tending to imply that the person is a [licensed] dietitian unless the person is duly licensed and authorized under this chapter; or

     (2)  Represent oneself as a licensed dietitian during the time the person's license issued under this chapter is forfeited, inactive, terminated, suspended, or revoked.

     (b)  Any person who violates this section shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 and each day's violation shall be deemed a separate offense.

     SECTION 14.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 15.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

 

BY REQUEST


 


 

Report Title:

Dietitians; Licensing

 

Description:

Consolidates licensing of registered dietitians as healthcare professionals under the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.