TITLE 54

PROFESSIONS, VOCATIONS, AND BUSINESSES

CHAPTER 43

RESPIRATORY CARE PRACTICE ACT

54-4312.  EXEMPTIONS. (1) Nothing in this chapter is to be construed as preventing or restricting the performance of respiratory care or requiring licensure or a permit pursuant to this chapter:

(a)  Of any person authorized in this state under any other law who carries out only those professional duties and functions for which such person has been specifically trained and for which professional designations are conferred;

(b)  Of certified pulmonary function technologists and registered pulmonary function technologists who carry out only those professional duties and functions for which such persons have been specifically trained and for which such professional designations are conferred;

(c)  Of any person employed as a respiratory therapist by the government of the United States or any agency thereof if such person practices or provides respiratory care solely under the direction or control of the organization by which such person is employed;

(d)  Of any person actively pursuing in good faith a full-time supervised course of study leading to a degree or certificate in respiratory care in an American medical association accredited or approved educational program, or the equivalent as determined by the board, where the practice or provision of respiratory care by such person is supervised by a respiratory care practitioner or by a licensed physician;

(e)  Of any person performing respiratory care in the state for purposes of continuing education, consulting, or training, if these services are performed for no more than thirty (30) days in a calendar year in association with a respiratory care practitioner licensed under this chapter or in association with a licensed physician, if:

(i)   The person is licensed as a respiratory care practitioner or the equivalent, as determined by the board, in good standing in another state or the District of Columbia or in a territory of the United States; or

(ii)  The person is a certified respiratory therapist or registered respiratory therapist; or

(f)  Of any person who administers cardiopulmonary resuscitation in an emergency situation.

(2)  A person claiming an exemption under subsection (1)(c) or (1)(e) of this section shall apply for a license or a permit as provided for in this chapter in the event the facts upon which such claim for exemption is based change or cease to exist eliminating the grounds for such claim for exemption. Such application shall be filed with the board as soon as possible after the loss of the claim to exemption but no later than thirty (30) calendar days after the right to the exemption ceases. Such person may practice or perform respiratory care after the loss of such exemption and prior to application for or issuance by the board of a license or permit only under the direct supervision of a respiratory care practitioner or a licensed physician.

(3)  A person claiming exemption under the provisions of subsection (1)(d) of this section shall cease to be eligible for such exemption if such person ceases to actively pursue the required course of study for a period of time in excess of one hundred twenty (120) consecutive calendar days and immediately upon receipt of the degree or certificate for which such person pursued the course of study.

(4)  The burden of proving the existence of facts entitling a person to an exemption under this section shall be upon the person claiming the exemption.

(5)  The provisions of this chapter shall not prohibit hospitals from employing individuals to provide respiratory care services who are exempt from the licensing requirements of this chapter. The provisions of this chapter shall not prohibit any hospital from training qualified personnel to provide respiratory care if the trainee would be exempt under subsection (1)(a) or (1)(d) of this section, provided that said training and respiratory care services are done under the supervision of a licensed physician or a respiratory care practitioner.

History:

[54-4312, added 2021, ch. 21, sec. 2, p. 59.]