US politics O & P Licensure
Morris Gallo
Description
Collection
Title:
US politics O & P Licensure
Creator:
Morris Gallo
Date:
5/13/2008
Text:
Ms. Levis' response to my criticisms of HOB2015 did nothing to alleviate
my concerns nor explain the problems I find in the bill.
To be effective a license law should establish a scope of practice for
the licensee, clearly define the minimum education, training, and
testing standards required for license, provide a Board that has the
capability and understanding to address specific problems, both in
regards to the profession and the patient, provide for discipline of
licensees, and provide a method for dissatisfied patients to file a
grievance. HB2015 fails miserably.
HB2015 does not establish any education or training standards, rather it
vaguely refers to two organizations (NOCA and NCCA) whose only role is
to certify member organizations are conducting their certification exams
properly. Each member credentialing body sets its own education and
training requirements, not NOCA nor NCCA. The bill doesn't even
identify which certifying organization is approved, so one is left to
guess which of the more then 250 NOCA member organizations is implied by
the bill. We can safely presume that at a minimum ABC and BOC are
likely candidates, but there are others organizations who also deal with
both prosthetics and orthotics so one can't be sure. If ABC and BOC are
the hinted at organizations then there are in fact no education or
training requirements for prosthetist or orthotist licensure in PA. ABC
has a well defined education and training requirement for certification,
but BOC's only requirement is the candidate show two years working in an
O&P related field and two years of undefined experience fitting
patients.. Since the lowest common denominator is BOC's lack of
requirements, then HB2015, by common sense deduction, has no education
or training requirements. In effect if the bill passes it will codify
the dysfunctional system now in place.
The bill provides no O&P representation on the Board of Podiatry. The
practice of O&P is significantly different from Podiatry. How will
podiatrists and medical physicians understand and deal with O&P
specific problems. This difference is well illustrated by the
physicians who have been on the Florida O&P Board, they have to be
taught how the O&P profession operates, how our standards of education,
or lack thereof, differ from a medical profession, etc. It take most
physicians on our board at least a year to have a working knowledge of
O&P. Who will be on the PA Podiatry Board to insure O&P practitioners
are well represented?
The two above cited deficiencies, lack of education and training
requirements and representation on the Board, are but only two
philosophical problems with HB2015. In addition I believe there are
numerous contradictory passages, improper uses of grammatical terms, and
numerous unforeseen and unintended results if the bill is passed as it
is today.
I urge each practitioner in PA to carefully read the bill and ask an
attorney to go over and explain the consequences of each passage.
Caveat emptor
Morris Gallo, LPO
my concerns nor explain the problems I find in the bill.
To be effective a license law should establish a scope of practice for
the licensee, clearly define the minimum education, training, and
testing standards required for license, provide a Board that has the
capability and understanding to address specific problems, both in
regards to the profession and the patient, provide for discipline of
licensees, and provide a method for dissatisfied patients to file a
grievance. HB2015 fails miserably.
HB2015 does not establish any education or training standards, rather it
vaguely refers to two organizations (NOCA and NCCA) whose only role is
to certify member organizations are conducting their certification exams
properly. Each member credentialing body sets its own education and
training requirements, not NOCA nor NCCA. The bill doesn't even
identify which certifying organization is approved, so one is left to
guess which of the more then 250 NOCA member organizations is implied by
the bill. We can safely presume that at a minimum ABC and BOC are
likely candidates, but there are others organizations who also deal with
both prosthetics and orthotics so one can't be sure. If ABC and BOC are
the hinted at organizations then there are in fact no education or
training requirements for prosthetist or orthotist licensure in PA. ABC
has a well defined education and training requirement for certification,
but BOC's only requirement is the candidate show two years working in an
O&P related field and two years of undefined experience fitting
patients.. Since the lowest common denominator is BOC's lack of
requirements, then HB2015, by common sense deduction, has no education
or training requirements. In effect if the bill passes it will codify
the dysfunctional system now in place.
The bill provides no O&P representation on the Board of Podiatry. The
practice of O&P is significantly different from Podiatry. How will
podiatrists and medical physicians understand and deal with O&P
specific problems. This difference is well illustrated by the
physicians who have been on the Florida O&P Board, they have to be
taught how the O&P profession operates, how our standards of education,
or lack thereof, differ from a medical profession, etc. It take most
physicians on our board at least a year to have a working knowledge of
O&P. Who will be on the PA Podiatry Board to insure O&P practitioners
are well represented?
The two above cited deficiencies, lack of education and training
requirements and representation on the Board, are but only two
philosophical problems with HB2015. In addition I believe there are
numerous contradictory passages, improper uses of grammatical terms, and
numerous unforeseen and unintended results if the bill is passed as it
is today.
I urge each practitioner in PA to carefully read the bill and ask an
attorney to go over and explain the consequences of each passage.
Caveat emptor
Morris Gallo, LPO
Citation
Morris Gallo, “US politics O & P Licensure,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 1, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/229353.
