Sec. 20-73a. *(See end of section for amended version and effective date.)
Charges against licensee, verification, hearing. Grounds for disciplinary action.
Appeal. The Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists shall have jurisdiction to hear
all charges of conduct that fails to conform to the accepted standards of the practice of
physical therapy brought against any person licensed as a physical therapist and, after
holding a hearing, written notice of which shall be given the person complained of, said
board, if it finds such person to be guilty, may revoke or suspend such person's license
or take any of the actions set forth in section 19a-17. Any proceedings relative to such
action may be begun by the filing of written charges with the Commissioner of Public
Health. The causes for which such action may be taken are as follows: Conviction in a
court of competent jurisdiction, either within or without this state, of any crime in the
practice of his profession; illegal, incompetent or negligent conduct in the practice of
physical therapy or in the supervision of a physical therapist assistant; aiding or abetting
the unlawful practice of physical therapy; treating human ailments by physical therapy
without the oral or written referral by a person licensed in this state or in a bordering
state having licensing requirements meeting the approval of the appropriate examining
board in this state to practice medicine and surgery, podiatry, natureopathy, chiropractic
or dentistry; failure to register with the Department of Public Health as required by law;
fraud or deception in obtaining a license; engaging in fraud or material deception in the
course of professional services or activities; or violation of any provision of this chapter,
or any regulation adopted hereunder. The clerk of any court in this state in which a
person practicing physical therapy has been convicted of any crime as described in this
section shall, immediately after such conviction, transmit a certified copy, in duplicate,
of the information and judgment, without charge, to the Department of Public Health,
containing the name and address of the physical therapist, the crime of which he has been
convicted and the date of conviction. The hearing on such charges shall be conducted in
accordance with the regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Public Health. Any
person aggrieved by a final decision of said board may appeal therefrom as provided
in section 4-183. Such appeal shall have precedence over nonprivileged cases in respect
to order of trial. The Attorney General shall act as attorney in the public interest in
defending against such an appeal. The board may petition the superior court for the
judicial district of Hartford to enforce any action taken pursuant to section 19a-17.
(1959, P.A. 575, S. 7; 1971, P.A. 870, S. 57; P.A. 73-579, S. 4; P.A. 76-436, S. 419, 681; P.A. 77-603, S. 62, 125; 77-614, S. 386, 610; P.A. 78-280, S. 34, 127; P.A. 80-336, S. 4; P.A. 81-473, S. 20, 43; P.A. 88-230, S. 1, 12; P.A. 89-307,
S. 2; P.A. 90-98, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-142, S. 4, 7, 8; 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-220, S. 4-6; 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; P.A. 96-47,
S. 3; P.A. 99-102, S. 25.)
*Note: On and after the later of October 1, 2000, or the date notice is published by
the Commissioner of Public Health in the Connecticut Law Journal indicating that the
licensing of athletic trainers and physical therapist assistants is being implemented by
the commissioner, this section, as amended by section 16 of public act 00-226, is to
read as follows:
"Sec. 20-73a. Disciplinary action. The Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists shall have jurisdiction to hear all charges of conduct that fails to conform to the
accepted standards of the practice of physical therapy brought against any person licensed as a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant and, after holding a hearing,
written notice of which shall be given to the person complained of, the board, if it finds
such person to be guilty, may revoke or suspend such person's license or take any of
the actions set forth in section 19a-17. Any proceedings relative to such action may be
begun by the filing of written charges with the Commissioner of Public Health. The
causes for which such action may be taken are as follows: (1) Conviction in a court of
competent jurisdiction, either within or without this state, of any crime in the practice
of such person's profession; (2) illegal, incompetent or negligent conduct in the practice
of physical therapy or in the supervision of a physical therapist assistant; (3) aiding or
abetting the unlawful practice of physical therapy; (4) treating human ailments by physical therapy without the oral or written referral by a person licensed in this state or in a
bordering state having licensing requirements meeting the approval of the appropriate
examining board in this state to practice medicine and surgery, podiatry, natureopathy,
chiropractic or dentistry; (5) failure to register with the Department of Public Health as
required by law; (6) fraud or deception in obtaining a license; (7) engaging in fraud or
material deception in the course of professional services or activities; or (8) violation
of any provision of this chapter, or any regulation adopted under this chapter. The clerk
of any court in this state in which a person practicing physical therapy has been convicted
of any crime as described in this section shall, immediately after such conviction, transmit a certified copy, in duplicate, of the information and judgment, without charge, to
the Department of Public Health, containing the name and address of the physical therapist or physical therapist assistant, the crime of which the physical therapist or physical
therapist assistant has been convicted and the date of conviction. The hearing on such
charges shall be conducted in accordance with the regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Public Health in accordance with chapter 54. Any person aggrieved by a final
decision of the board may appeal therefrom as provided in section 4-183. Such appeal
shall have precedence over nonprivileged cases in respect to order of trial. The Attorney
General shall act as attorney in the public interest in defending against such an appeal.
The board may petition the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford to enforce
any action taken pursuant to section 19a-17."
(1959, P.A. 575, S. 7; 1971, P.A. 870, S. 57; P.A. 73-579, S. 4; P.A. 76-436, S. 419, 681; P.A. 77-603, S. 62, 125; 77-614, S. 386, 610; P.A. 78-280, S. 34, 127; P.A. 80-336, S. 4; P.A. 81-473, S. 20, 43; P.A. 88-230, S. 1, 12; P.A. 89-307,
S. 2; P.A. 90-98, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-142, S. 4, 7, 8; 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-220, S. 4-6; 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; P.A. 96-47,
S. 3; P.A. 99-102, S. 25; P.A. 00-226, S. 16, 20.)
History: 1971 act replaced superior court with court of common pleas, effective September 1, 1971, except that courts
with cases pending retain jurisdiction unless pending matters deemed transferable; P.A. 73-579 added provisions re filing
of charges, grounds for revocation or suspension of license, information to be transmitted to health department after
therapist's conviction of crime and attorney general's acting as attorney in the public interest; P.A. 76-436 replaced court
of common pleas with superior court and added reference to judicial districts, effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 77-603 replaced
previous appeal provisions with statement that appeals be in accordance with Sec. 4-183 and deleted provision which had
prohibited appeal from acting as supersedeas of finding or order; P.A. 77-614 replaced commissioner and department of
health with commissioner and department of health services, stated that violation of chapter or related regulations is
ground for suspension or revocation of license, stated that hearings to be conducted according to regulations adopted by
commissioner rather than as provided in Sec. 20-45 and deleted provision re appeals' precedence in order of trial, effective
January 1, 1979; P.A. 78-280 restored provision re precedence in order of trial; P.A. 80-336 rephrased grounds for revocation
or suspension of license to allow treating ailments, (formerly "practicing") under direction of practitioners in bordering
states and to include as acceptable practitioners, those who are osteopathic or natureopathic physicians, podiatrists and
chiropractors; P.A. 81-473 amended section to conform grounds for disciplinary action and remedies with those provided
for other health professions during process of sunset review begun in 1980; P.A. 88-230 replaced "judicial district of
Hartford-New Britain" with "judicial district of Hartford", effective September 1, 1991; P.A. 89-307 added reference to
the supervision of a physical therapist assistant; P.A. 90-98 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1,
1991, to September 1, 1993; P.A. 93-142 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1993, to September
1, 1996, effective June 14, 1993; P.A. 93-381 replaced department and commissioner of health services with department
and commissioner of public health and addiction services, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-220 changed the effective date
of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1996, to September 1, 1998, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner
and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective
July 1, 1995; P.A. 96-47 required any decision appealed from to be a "final" decision; P.A. 99-102 deleted obsolete
reference to osteopathy and made technical changes; P.A. 00-226 made technical changes and added references to physical
therapist assistants, effective the later of October 1, 2000, or the date notice is published by the Commissioner of Public
Health in the Connecticut Law Journal indicating that the licensing of athletic trainers and physical therapist assistants is
being implemented by the commissioner.
Sec. 20-73b. Continuing education requirements. (a) Each physical therapist
licensed pursuant to this chapter shall complete a minimum of twenty hours of continuing
education during each registration period. For purposes of this section, registration period means the twelve-month period for which a license has been renewed in accordance
with section 19a-88 and is current and valid. The continuing education shall be in areas
related to the individual's practice.
(b) Each licensee shall obtain a certificate of completion from the provider of continuing education activities for all continuing education hours successfully completed.
Each licensee shall maintain such written documentation for a minimum of three years
following the license renewal date for which the activity satisfies continuing education
requirements. Certificates of completion shall be submitted by the licensee to the Department of Public Health upon the department's request. A licensee who fails to comply
with the continuing education requirements may be subject to disciplinary action pursuant to section 20-73a.
(c) The continuing education requirements shall be waived for licensees applying
for licensure renewal for the first time. The department may, for a licensee who has a
medical disability or illness, grant a waiver of the continuing education requirements
for a specific period of time or may grant the licensee an extension of time in which to
fulfill the requirements.
(P.A. 03-209, S. 5.)
Sec. 20-74. *(See end of section for amended version and effective date.) Construction. No provision of this chapter shall confer any authority to practice medicine
or surgery, nor shall this chapter prohibit the incidental care of the sick by domestic
servants or by persons principally employed as housekeepers or as athletic trainers,
nor prohibit any person from the domestic administration of family remedies or the
furnishing of assistance in the case of emergency. It shall not prohibit persons registered
under the provisions of chapter 372, 373, 375 or 378 from administering care to patients,
nor shall it prohibit the care of the sick with or without compensation or personal profit
in connection with the practice of the religious tenets of any church by adherents thereof,
provided such persons shall not otherwise engage in the practice of physical therapy
within the meaning of this chapter. It shall not prohibit students who are enrolled in
schools or courses of physical therapy or physical therapist assistant programs approved
by the Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists with the consent of the Commissioner
of Public Health from performing such work as is incidental to their respective courses
of study; nor shall it prohibit any physical therapist from another state from doing such
therapist's work or other physical therapy activities as is incidental to the person's course
of study when taking or giving a postgraduate course or other courses of study in this
state approved by said board. It shall not prohibit any person who is a physical therapist
assistant from assisting in the practice of physical therapy under the supervision of a
licensed physical therapist provided such assistance is limited to the treatment of a
person by the employment of the effective properties of physical measures and the use
of therapeutic exercises and rehabilitative procedures, with or without assistive devices,
for the purpose of preventing, correcting or alleviating a physical or mental disability,
and does not include the interpretation of referrals, initial or discharge evaluation or
assessment, or determination or modification of treatment or discharge plans. Any physical therapist who is a graduate from a school approved by said board of examiners with
the consent of the Department of Public Health but not licensed in this state may, with
the approval of said department and upon obtaining a temporary certificate from said
department, practice physical therapy in this state on a temporary basis for a period of six
months, which period may be extended upon request at the discretion of the department,
provided (1) such physical therapist does not claim to be licensed to practice in this
state, and (2) application for licensure by examination, reciprocity or endorsement is
filed with said department within six months after starting such practice. Persons in the
service of the federal government are excluded from the provisions of this chapter. For
the purposes of this section, supervision means the overseeing of or the participation in
the work of a physical therapist assistant by a licensed physical therapist including but
not limited to (1) continuous availability of direct communication between the physical
therapist assistant and a licensed physical therapist; (2) availability of a licensed physical
therapist on a regularly scheduled basis to (A) review the practice of the physical therapist assistant, and (B) support the physical therapist assistant in the performance of his
services; and (3) a predetermined plan for emergency situations, including the designation of an alternate licensed physical therapist in the absence of the regular licensed
physical therapist.
(1949 Rev., S. 4408; 1953, S. 2212d; 1959, P.A. 575, S. 6; P.A. 73-579, S. 5; P.A. 80-336, S. 5; P.A. 81-473, S. 21,
43; P.A. 88-362, S. 10; P.A. 89-307, S. 3; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; P.A. 96-174, S. 2, 3; P.A. 99-102, S. 26.)
*Note: On and after the later of October 1, 2000, or the date notice is published by
the Commissioner of Public Health in the Connecticut Law Journal indicating that the
licensing of athletic trainers and physical therapist assistants is being implemented by
the commissioner, this section, as amended by section 17 of public act 00-226, is to
read as follows:
"Sec. 20-74. Construction. Administration by commissioner. (a) No provision
of this chapter shall confer any authority to practice medicine or surgery, nor shall
this chapter prohibit the incidental care of the sick by domestic servants or by persons
principally employed as housekeepers or as athletic trainers, nor prohibit any person
from the domestic administration of family remedies or the furnishing of assistance in
the case of emergency. It shall not prohibit persons registered under the provisions of
chapter 372, 373, 375 or 378 from administering care to patients, nor shall it prohibit
the care of the sick with or without compensation or personal profit in connection with
the practice of the religious tenets of any church by adherents thereof, provided such
persons shall not otherwise engage in the practice of physical therapy or assist in the
practice of physical therapy within the meaning of this chapter. It shall not prohibit
students who are enrolled in schools or courses of physical therapy or physical therapist
assistant programs approved by the Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists with
the consent of the Commissioner of Public Health from performing such work as is
incidental to their respective courses of study; nor shall it prohibit any physical therapist
from another state from doing such therapist's work or other physical therapy activities
as is incidental to the person's course of study when taking or giving a postgraduate
course or other courses of study in this state approved by said board. Any physical
therapist who is a graduate from a school approved by the board with the consent of the
Department of Public Health but not licensed in this state may, with the approval of the
department and upon obtaining a temporary certificate from the department, practice
physical therapy in this state on a temporary basis for a period of six months, which
period may be extended upon request at the discretion of the department, provided (1)
such physical therapist does not claim to be licensed to practice in this state, and (2)
application for licensure by examination, reciprocity or endorsement is filed with the
department within six months after starting such practice. Persons in the service of the
federal government are excluded from the provisions of this chapter.
(b) The Commissioner of Public Health shall administer the provisions of this chapter with respect to the licensing of physical therapist assistants within available appropriations."
(1949 Rev., S. 4408; 1953, S. 2212d; 1959, P.A. 575, S. 6; P.A. 73-579, S. 5; P.A. 80-336, S. 5; P.A. 81-473, S. 21,
43; P.A. 88-362, S. 10; P.A. 89-307, S. 3; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; P.A. 96-174, S. 2, 3; P.A. 99-102, S. 26; P.A. 00-226, S. 17, 20.)
History: 1959 act added provisions re athletic trainers and the use of physical therapy under a physician's supervision,
added requirement for temporary certificate, extending period from three to six months, added Subdivs. (b) and (c) and
changed technical language; P.A. 73-579 removed provision that chapter does not prohibit graduates from practicing
"pending the results of the first examination for certification schedule by the board following their graduation" and deleted
Subdiv. (c) re temporary certificates for graduates of approved foreign schools; P.A. 80-336 stated that chapter does not
prohibit therapist from another state from performing "other physical therapy activities" and from practicing etc., when
"giving" as well as taking postgraduate "or other courses" thus broadening scope of provision; P.A. 81-473 amended
section to require consent of commissioner to board approval of schools or courses, to eliminate requirement of supervision
by physician, to refer to licensure instead of registration, to provide for application to department instead of board and to
provide for issuance of temporary certificates by department instead of board commencing July 1, 1981; P.A. 88-362 added
the exception for students enrolled in physical therapist assistant programs licensed by the Connecticut board of governors
for higher education; P.A. 89-307 added the language on physical therapist assistants and the definition of supervision;
P.A. 93-381 replaced commissioner of health services with commissioner of public health and addiction services, effective
July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 96-174 deleted reference to physical therapist assistant
programs licensed by Board of Governors of Higher Education, effective May 31, 1996; P.A. 99-102 deleted obsolete
reference to Ch. 371 and made technical changes; P.A. 00-226 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a), added "or
assist in the practice of physical therapy", deleted provisions re assistance in practice by physical therapist assistant and
definition of supervision, made technical changes and added new Subsec. (b) re administration by the commissioner,
effective the later of October 1, 2000, or the date notice is published by the Commissioner of Public Health in the Connecticut
Law Journal indicating that the licensing of athletic trainers and physical therapist assistants is being implemented by the
commissioner.