Legislature(1999 - 2000)
05/14/1999 08:35 AM House HES
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HOUSE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL
SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE
May 14, 1999
8:35 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Fred Dyson, Co-Chair
Representative John Coghill, Co-Chair
Representative Jim Whitaker
Representative Joe Green
Representative Tom Brice
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Carl Morgan
Representative Allen Kemplen
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 71
"An Act relating to licensure by the State Medical Board."
- MOVED HCS CSSB 71(HES) OUT OF COMMITTEE
(* First public hearing)
PREVIOUS ACTION
BILL: SB 71
SHORT TITLE: PHYSICIAN LICENSURE CHANGES
SPONSOR(S): HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
2/11/99 227 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRAL(S)
2/11/99 227 (S) HES, L&C
4/07/99 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
4/07/99 (S) MINUTE(HES)
4/12/99 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
4/12/99 (S) MINUTE(HES)
4/13/99 899 (S) HES RPT CS 4DP 1NR SAME TITLE
4/13/99 899 (S) DP: MILLER, WILKEN, ELTON, PETE
KELLY;
4/13/99 899 (S) NR: PEARCE
4/27/99 (S) L&C AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 211
4/27/99 (S) HEARD AND HELD
4/28/99 1149 (S) ZERO FISCAL NOTE (DCED)
4/29/99 (S) L&C AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 211
4/29/99 (S) MOVED CS(L&C) OUT OF COMMITTEE
4/29/99 (S) MINUTE(L&C)
4/30/99 1184 (S) L&C RPT CS 2DP 1NR SAME TITLE
4/30/99 1184 (S) DP: MACKIE, TIM KELLY; NR: DONLEY
4/30/99 1184 (S) PREVIOUS ZERO FN (DCED)
5/03/99 (S) RLS AT 12:45 PM FAHRENKAMP 203
5/03/99 (S) MINUTE(RLS)
5/04/99 1222 (S) RLS TO CAL W/CS & 1 OR 5/4 SAME TITLE
5/04/99 1222 (S) PREVIOUS ZERO FN (DCED)
5/04/99 1225 (S) READ THE SECOND TIME
5/04/99 1225 (S) RLS CS ADOPTED UNAN CONSENT
5/04/99 1225 (S) ADVANCED TO THIRD READING UNAN
CONSENT
5/04/99 1225 (S) READ THE THIRD TIME CSSB 71(RLS)
5/04/99 1226 (S) PASSED Y18 N1 E1
5/04/99 1226 (S) MILLER NOTICE OF RECONSIDERATION
5/05/99 1261 (S) HELD ON RECONSIDERATION TO 5/6
5/06/99 1279 (S) RECON TAKEN UP - IN THIRD READING
5/06/99 1279 (S) RETURN TO SECOND FOR AM 1 UNAN
CONSENT
5/06/99 1279 (S) AM NO 1 ADOPTED UNAN CONSENT
5/06/99 1280 (S) AUTOMATICALLY IN THIRD READING
5/06/99 1280 (S) PASSED Y16 N- A4
5/06/99 1281 (S) TRANSMITTED TO (H)
5/07/99 1222 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRAL(S)
5/07/99 1222 (H) HES, L&C
5/11/99 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
5/11/99 (H) <BILL POSTPONED TO 5/13>
5/12/99 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM CAPITOL 17
5/12/99 (H) <BILL POSTPONED TO 5/14>
5/13/99 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
5/13/99 (H) <BILL POSTPONED TO 5/14>
5/14/99 (H) HES AT 8:30 AM CAPITOL 106
WITNESS REGISTER
SHARON CLARK, Legislative Assistant
for Senator Mike Miller
Alaska State Legislature
Capitol Building, Room 119
Juneau, Alaska 99801
Telephone: (907) 465-3762
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented SB 71.
DR. SARAH ISTO, Chair
Alaska State Medical Board
1718 Willow Drive
Juneau, Alaska 99801
Telephone: (907) 586-8992
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 71.
CATHERINE REARDON, Director
Division of Occupational Licensing
Department of Commerce and Economic Development
P.O. Box 110806
Juneau, Alaska 9981
Telephone: (907) 465-2534
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 71.
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 99-57, SIDE A
Number 0001
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON called the House Health, Education and Social
Services Standing Committee meeting to order at 8:35 a.m. Members
present at the call to order were Representatives Dyson, Coghill,
Green and Brice. Representative Whitaker joined the meeting at
8:42 a.m.
SB 71 - PHYSICIAN LICENSURE CHANGES
Number 0032
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON announced the first order of business as
Committee Substitute for Senate Bill No. 71(RLS), "An Act relating
to licensure by the State Medical Board."
Number 0126
SHARON CLARK, Legislative Assistant for Senator Mike Miller, Alaska
State Legislature, came forward to present SB 71. Senate Bill 71
is an act relating to licensure by the State Medical Board. This
bill was requested for introduction by the Senate Health, Education
and Social Services (HES) Committee by the State Medical Board who
fully support the bill. This bill resolves licensure problems for
the board, updates Alaska statutes in relation to other states and
corrects unintended problems within the current law. On behalf of
the Alaska State Medical Board, they would like to convey their
appreciation to House HES committee members for scheduling this
bill, and they would ask their consideration and support of it.
MS. CLARK noted that there is a concern with the final version of
the bill, and a conceptual amendment will be offered. She
indicated that Senator Miller has no problem with it.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked if the State Medical Board was in agreement
with the changes.
MS. CLARK acknowledged this bill was written specifically on the
recommendations of the medical board. Ms. Clark indicated that
they have worked closely with the State Medical Board and the
Division of Occupational Licensing. It was actually Dr. Martha
Cotten and Dr. Sarah Isto who came to Senator Miller and asked him
to sponsor this legislation.
Number 0399
DR. SARAH ISTO, Chair, Alaska State Medical Board, came forward to
testify in support of SB 71. This is basically a housekeeping and
update bill for the medical board. The board has been working on
this for a long time. They have talked with the Alaska State
Medical ASsociation, the Alaska Osteopathic Association, and the
Alaska Family Practice Residency and solicited comments from
licensees and rural hospital administrators. She said she believes
there is broad support for this.
DR. ISTO noted that SB 71 helps accelerate renewals of licenses.
Some licenses can be renewed only if the board meets, and the board
meets quarterly which can be a very awkward situation. This bill
will allow the board to consider felony convictions of unclassified
and Class A felonies that were not committed during the practice of
medicine. She cited an example of someone who had committed murder
at home, not during the practice of medicine, and the statute did
not allow them to consider that part of his application history.
Fortunately his application was deficient in other areas, but that
situation alerted them to a problem that could be of great concern
to them.
DR. ISTO explained that SB 71 requires new applicants who have
recently graduated from U.S. and Canadian medical schools to have
at least two years of postgraduate training. The vast majority of
applicants have three years which is the standard number. There
are no one-year rotating internships anymore. People who have only
one year have started a three-year program and have stopped
prematurely. The board feels that represents an undertraining risk
to the public. Other states are going to this same plan, and some
states require more than two years. The Alaska board wants to
phase it in. Doctors who did a rotating internship in 1980 and
have worked in the state of Washington all this time have all kinds
of history behind them, and they aren't worried about their
competence. It is the new graduate, who quit training early, that
they want to address.
Number 0575
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON told Dr. Isto that he had a member of the
profession call him a few months ago who was concerned that the
board was not doing fingerprint checks to find out if there is a
criminal record. He asked her if that is true.
Number 0596
DR. ISTO answered that is correct. The board requires extensive
documentation from residencies, the National Practitioner Data
Bank, hospitals and other boards. In the course of that,
theoretically, any criminal activity should come up. If the
legislature were interested in that, they should consider nurses
aides, nurses, people who work with people at home who may be
disabled and maybe consider some kind of broad area. The board has
not felt the need of doing fingerprint checks. They investigate so
extensively that the chances of a medical applicant having a secret
are pretty slim. The same extensive documentation would also apply
to foreigners.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked Dr. Isto why they don't do fingerprint
checks.
Number 0679
DR. ISTO answered that it is not in the statute or regulations.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked her what keeps them from putting it into
regulation.
Number 0692
DR. ISTO answered there would probably need to be some kind of a
statute that would deal with licensing of health care professionals
for them to then develop a regulation.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked Dr. Isto if she had seen the amendment.
Number 0739
DR. ISTO said it had been described to her. She noted that SB 29
is also working its way through the process, and it contains
exactly the language of this amendment, and this amendment will
prevent a conflict between the two bills. They support SB 29 as
well.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked her if there was some overlap between the
two bills.
DR. ISTO answered that now both bills delete the requirement for
citizenship which is what the board desires. There are qualified
people who are legally in this country who could be treating
patients, but they aren't citizens.
Number 0826
CATHERINE REARDON, Director, Division of Occupational Licensing,
Department of Commerce and Economic Development, came forward to
testify. She offered their strong support to this legislation and
encouraged the committee to pass SB 71 this year if possible. It
will help the efficiency which helps all of their customers.
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN asked Ms. Reardon if she saw any problem with
Amendment 1.
MS. REARDON answered it is a good idea.
Number 0891
CO-CHAIRMAN COGHILL made a motion to adopt a conceptual amendment
that would on page 2, delete lines 12 and 13, which reads:
(5) be a citizen of the United States or be lawfully
admitted for permanent residence.
CO-CHAIRMAN DYSON asked whether there was any objection. There
being none, Amendment 1 was adopted.
Number 0927
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE made a motion to move HCS CSSB 71, as amended,
out of committee with individual recommendations and zero fiscal
note. There being no objection, HCS CSSB 71(HES) moved from the
House Health, Education and Social Services Standing Committee.
ADJOURNMENT
Number 0962
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Health, Education and Social Services Standing Committee meeting
was adjourned at 8:49 a.m.
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