NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10118
SPONSOR: Canestrari TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the education law, in relation to the
profession of occupational therapy
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: The bill amends Article 156 of Title
VIII of the education law regarding the profession of occupational ther-
apy. The licensing and regulation of the profession was established in
1975.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1 adds a new paragraph (c) to
section 7905 of the education law, to allow an occupational therapy
assistant who has graduated from an accredited occupational therapy
assistant program to receive a limited permit to practice.
Section 2 amends the opening paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 7905
of the education law to allow an occupational therapy assistant with a
limited permit to practice under the direction and supervision of an
occupational therapy assistant who is authorized to practice in the
state, and who is also under the supervision of a licensed occupational
therapist.
Section 3 amends subdivision 4 of section 7906 of the education law to
clarify supervision for occupational therapy assistant students.
Section 4. is a severability clause
Section 5. is the effective date of ninety days.
JUSTIFICATION: The practice of occupational therapy assistant has been
authorized through the exemption section 7906, as well as by standards
developed by the commissioner, including education, examination and
character. These standards now include the requirement that, in order to
practice as an occupational therapy assistant, the individual must pass
an examination approved by the department. This legislation allows that
individual to receive a limited permit to practice while attempting to
pass the licensure exam.
Section 7906 is amended regarding the exemption for students training to
become an occupational therapy assistant to allow an occupational thera-
py assistant to supervise that student, while the occupational therapy
assistant is under the supervision of an occupational therapist. Occupa-
tional therapy assistants have been utilized in the profession as super-
visors of occupational therapy assistant student's education and train-
ing. Occupational therapy assistants provide much needed clinical
supervision in designated sites for the educational programs in the
state. They provide valuable feedback, role-modeling, and instruction to
the student about the practice of an occupational therapy assistant.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Licensure fees collected by the State Education
Department support the regulation of these professionals.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Ninety days after it shall become law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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10118
IN ASSEMBLY
May 7, 2012
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CANESTRARI -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the profession of
occupational therapy
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 7905 of the education law is
2 amended by adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
3 (c) An occupational therapy assistant who has graduated from an
4 accredited occupational therapy assistant curriculum with an associate's
5 degree satisfactory to the board of occupational therapy and in accord-
6 ance with the commissioner's regulations.
7 § 2. The opening paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 7905 of the
8 education law, as amended by chapter 460 of the laws of 2011, is amended
9 to read as follows:
10 A limited permittee shall be authorized to practice occupational ther-
11 apy, or in the case of a limited permit issued pursuant to paragraph (c)
12 of subdivision one of this section, practice under the exemption estab-
13 lished pursuant to subdivision seven of section seventy-nine hundred six
14 of this article, only under the direct supervision of a licensed occupa-
15 tional therapist or a licensed physician and shall practice only in a
16 public, voluntary, or proprietary hospital, health care agency or in a
17 preschool or an elementary or secondary school for the purpose of
18 providing occupational therapy as a related service for a handicapped
19 child.
20 § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 7906 of the education law, as amended by
21 chapter 460 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
22 (4) An occupational therapy assistant student from engaging in clin-
23 ical practice under the [direct] direction and supervision of an occupa-
24 tional therapist or an occupational therapy assistant who has obtained
25 authorization pursuant to subdivision seven of this section, and who is
26 under the supervision of an occupational therapist, as part of an
27 accredited occupational therapy assistant program, as defined by the
28 commissioner and in accordance with the commissioner's regulations.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15620-01-2
A. 10118 2
1 [Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this section, an occupa-
2 tional therapy assistant student shall be permitted to work with an
3 occupational therapy assistant, who has obtained authorization pursuant
4 to subdivision seven of this section, under the direct supervision of an
5 occupational therapist.]
6 § 4. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
7 sion, section or part contained in any part of this act shall be
8 adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such
9 judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof,
10 but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para-
11 graph, subdivision, section or part thereof directly involved in the
12 controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered. It is here-
13 by declared to be the intent of the legislature that this act would have
14 been enacted even if such invalid provisions had not been included here-
15 in.
16 § 5. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
17 have become a law; provided, however, the commissioner of education and
18 the board of regents are authorized, prior to such effective date, to
19 promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the timely
20 implementation of this act.
