§ 6742-a. Mandatory continuing education. 1. (a) Each licensed
physical therapist and licensed physical therapist assistant required
under this article to register triennially with the department to
practice in the state shall comply with the provisions of the mandatory
continuing education requirements prescribed in subdivision two of this
section except as set forth in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this
subdivision. Licensed physical therapist and licensed physical therapist
assistants who do not satisfy the mandatory continuing education
requirements shall not practice until they have met such requirements,
and they have been issued a registration certificate, except that a
licensed physical therapist or licensed physical therapist assistant may
practice without having met such requirements if he or she is issued a
conditional registration certificate pursuant to subdivision three of
this section.

(b) Each licensed physical therapist and licensed physical therapist
assistant shall be exempt from the mandatory continuing education
requirement for the triennial registration period during which they are
first licensed. In accordance with the intent of this section,
adjustment to the mandatory continuing education requirement may be
granted by the department for reasons of health certified by an
appropriate health care professional, for extended active duty with the
armed forces of the United States, or for other good cause acceptable to
the department which may prevent compliance.

(c) A licensed physical therapist and licensed physical therapist
assistant not engaged in practice, as determined by the department,
shall be exempt from the mandatory continuing education requirement upon
the filing of a statement with the department declaring such status. Any
licensee who returns to the practice of physical therapy during the
triennial registration period shall notify the department prior to
reentering the profession and shall meet such mandatory education
requirements as shall be prescribed by regulations of the commissioner.

2. During each triennial registration period an applicant for
registration as a licensed physical therapist or licensed physical
therapist assistant shall complete a minimum of thirty-six hours of
acceptable formal continuing education, as specified in subdivision four
of this section. Any licensed physical therapist or licensed physical
therapist assistant whose first registration date following the
effective date of this section occurs less than three years from such
effective date, but on or after January first, two thousand ten, shall
complete continuing education hours on a prorated basis at the rate of
one-half hour per month for the period beginning January first, two
thousand ten up to the first registration date thereafter. A licensee
who has not satisfied the mandatory continuing education requirements
shall not be issued a triennial registration certificate by the
department and shall not practice unless and until a conditional
registration certificate is issued as provided for in subdivision three
of this section. Continuing education hours taken during one triennium
may not be transferred to a subsequent triennium.

3. The department, in its discretion, may issue a conditional
registration to a licensee who fails to meet the continuing education
requirements established in subdivision two of this section but who
agrees to make up any deficiencies and complete any additional education
which the department may require the fee for such a conditional
registration shall be the same as, and in addition to, the fee for the
triennial registration. The duration of such conditional registration
shall be determined by the department but shall not exceed one year. Any
licensee who is notified of the denial of registration for failure to
submit evidence, satisfactory to the department, of required continuing
education and who practices without such registration may be subject to
disciplinary proceedings pursuant to section sixty-five hundred ten of
this title.

4. As used in subdivision two of this section, "acceptable formal
education" shall mean formal courses of learning which contribute to
professional practice in physical therapy and which meet the standards
prescribed by regulations of the commissioner. Such formal courses of
learning shall include, but not be limited to, collegiate level credit
and non-credit courses, professional development programs and technical
sessions offered by national, state and local professional associations
and other organizations acceptable to the department, and any other
organized educational and technical programs acceptable to the
department. The department may, in its discretion and as needed to
contribute to the health and welfare of the public, require the
completion of continuing education courses in specific subjects to
fulfill this mandatory continuing education requirement. Courses must be
taken from a sponsor approved by the department, pursuant to the
regulations of the commissioner.

5. Licensed physical therapist or licensed physical therapist
assistant shall maintain adequate documentation of completion of
acceptable formal continuing education and shall provide such
documentation at the request of the department. Failure to provide such
documentation upon the request of the department shall be an act of
misconduct subject to disciplinary proceedings pursuant to section
sixty-five hundred ten of this title.

6. The mandatory continuing education fee shall be forty-five dollars,
shall be payable on or before the first day of each triennial
registration period, and shall be paid in addition to the triennial
registration fee required by section sixty-seven hundred thirty-four of
this article.