On January 1, 2014, AB 1000 went into effect. The Direct Access bill provided, among other things, authorization for a patient to directly access physical therapy services up to 45 days or 12 visits before requiring a physician to approve the plan of care for the patient. The physical therapy Read more…
The Veterinary Medical Board (VMB) has proposed a regulatory action to adopt a new section that they believe will better protect animal patients and California consumers. The proposed regulation will allow licensed physical therapists and registered veterinarian technicians to perform animal rehabilitation under the direct supervision of a veterinarian. Currently, Read more…
After defending hundreds of health care licensing investigations and disciplinary actions from Boards within the Department of Consumer Affairs over the years, certain things have become very apparent. First, a licensing Board or Department of Consumer Affairs (“DCA”) investigator is not contacting you for praise or accolades – there has Read more…
When AB 1000 went into effect in January 2014, it was actually the combination of two bills: (1) AB 1000 for direct consumer access to physical therapy, and (2) AB 1003, sponsored by the California Medical Association, to permit professional medical corporations to employ physical therapists. Since 2010, the California Physical Read more…
(This article will appear in the California Physical Therapy Association's March 2015 Newsletter, PT Interventions.) Reporting abuse sounds like a simple and straightforward process. But due to the personal nature of the physical therapist-patient relationship, it can be difficult. Because such reporting is mandated by California law, this article examines Read more…
On October 7, 2013, Governor Brown signed AB 1000 (Consumer Direct Access to Physical Therapist Services: Professional Corporations) into law which is also known informally as the “direct access law.” Effective January 1, 2014, patients may directly seek physical therapist treatment under provisions of the new law. The debate about Read more…
The longstanding purpose of license discipline laws is to protect the public from incompetent practitioners. Although the standards differ somewhat from agency to agency, almost every licensing agency has laws that allow it to take disciplinary action against a licensee when their conduct falls below what is expected of the Read more…
The Physical Therapy Board of California (“Board”) has issued new regulations which became effective July 14, 2011. The regulations address and define “adequate supervision” of physical therapist assistants (“PTA”), requirements for use of physical therapy aides (“PT aides”), and new recordkeeping requirements. Background In 1983, the Board established a regulation Read more…