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91_SB1404
LRB9107670ACtmA
1 AN ACT concerning the regulation of audiologists.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection
5 Act is amended by changing Sections 7, 8, and 14 as follows:
6 (225 ILCS 50/7) (from Ch. 111, par. 7407)
7 Sec. 7. Exemptions.
8 (a) The following are exempt from this Act:
9 (1) Licensed physicians. This exemption, however,
10 does not apply to a physician's employee or subcontractor
11 who is not a physician.
12 (2) Persons who only repair or manufacture hearing
13 instruments and their accessories for wholesale.
14 (3) Audiologists licensed under the Illinois
15 Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Practice Act.
16 (b) Audiometers used by persons exempt from this Act to
17 dispense hearing instruments must meet the annual calibration
18 requirements and current standards set by the American
19 National Standards Institute.
20 (Source: P.A. 89-72, eff. 12-31-95.)
21 (225 ILCS 50/8) (from Ch. 111, par. 7408)
22 Sec. 8. Applicant qualifications; examination.
23 (a) In order to protect persons with hearing
24 impairments, the Department shall authorize or shall conduct
25 an appropriate examination for persons who dispense, test,
26 select, recommend, fit, or service hearing instruments. The
27 frequency of holding these examinations shall be determined
28 by the Department by rule. Those who successfully pass such
29 an examination shall be issued a license as a hearing
30 instrument dispenser, which shall be effective for a 2-year
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1 period.
2 (b) Applicants shall be:
3 (1) at least 18 years of age;
4 (2) of good moral character;
5 (3) a high school graduate or the equivalent;
6 (4) free of contagious or infectious disease; and
7 (5) a citizen or person who has the status as a
8 legal alien.
9 Felony convictions of the applicant and findings against
10 the applicant involving matters set forth in Sections 17 and
11 18 shall be considered in determining moral character, but
12 such a conviction or finding shall not make an applicant
13 ineligible to register for examination.
14 (c) Prior to engaging in the practice of fitting,
15 dispensing, or servicing hearing instruments, an applicant
16 shall demonstrate, by means of written and practical
17 examinations, that such person is qualified to practice the
18 testing, selecting, recommending, fitting, selling, or
19 servicing of hearing instruments as defined in this Act. An
20 applicant who fails to obtain a license within 12 months
21 after passing both the written and practical examinations
22 must take and pass those examinations again in order to be
23 eligible to receive a license. An applicant who is a
24 licensed audiologist shall take the practical examination,
25 but is not required to take the written examination to
26 qualify for a license.
27 The Department shall, by rule, determine the conditions
28 under which an individual is examined.
29 (d) Proof of having met the minimum requirements of
30 continuing education as determined by the Board shall be
31 required of all license renewals. Pursuant to rule, the
32 continuing education requirements may, upon petition to the
33 Board, be waived in whole or in part if the hearing
34 instrument dispenser can demonstrate that he or she served in
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1 the Coast Guard or Armed Forces, had an extreme hardship, or
2 obtained his or her license by examination or endorsement
3 within the preceding renewal period.
4 (e) Beginning January 1, 2001, persons applying for an
5 initial license must demonstrate having earned an associate
6 degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution of
7 higher education and meet the other requirements of this
8 Section. In addition, the applicant must demonstrate the
9 successful completion of 12 semester hours or 18 quarter
10 hours of academic undergraduate course work in an accredited
11 institution consisting of 3 semester hours of anatomy and
12 physiology of the speech and hearing mechanism, 3 semester
13 hours of hearing science, 3 semester hours of introduction to
14 audiology, and 3 semester hours of aural rehabilitation, or
15 the quarter hour equivalent. Persons licensed before January
16 1, 2001 who have a valid license on that date may have their
17 license renewed without meeting the requirements of this
18 subsection.
19 (Source: P.A. 89-72, eff. 12-31-95.)
20 (225 ILCS 50/14) (from Ch. 111, par. 7414)
21 Sec. 14. Powers and duties of the Department. The
22 powers and duties of the Department are:
23 (a) To issue licenses and to administer examinations to
24 applicants;
25 (b) To license persons who are qualified to engage in
26 the testing, recommending, fitting, selling, and dispensing
27 of hearing instruments;
28 (c) To provide the equipment and facilities necessary
29 for the examination;
30 (d) To issue and to renew licenses;
31 (e) To suspend or revoke licenses or to take such other
32 disciplinary action as provided in this Act;
33 (f) To consider all recommendations and requests of the
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1 Board and to inform it of all actions of the Department
2 insofar as hearing instrument dispensers are concerned,
3 including any instances where the actions of the Department
4 are contrary to the recommendations of the Board;
5 (g) To promulgate rules necessary to implement this Act;
6 (h) (Blank) To subject the supervisor of a graduate
7 audiology student to such discipline as provided in this Act
8 for any violations made by the graduate audiology student;
9 and
10 (i) To conduct such consumer education programs and
11 awareness programs for persons with a hearing impairment as
12 may be recommended by the Board.
13 (Source: P.A. 89-72, eff. 12-31-95; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)
14 Section 10. The Illinois Speech-Language Pathology and
15 Audiology Practice Act is amended by changing Sections 4 and
16 10 and by adding Section 7.1 as follows:
17 (225 ILCS 110/4) (from Ch. 111, par. 7904)
18 Sec. 4. Powers and duties of the Department. Subject to
19 the provisions of this Act, the Department shall exercise the
20 following functions, powers and duties:
21 (a) Conduct or authorize examinations to ascertain the
22 fitness and qualifications of applicants for license and
23 issue licenses to those who are found to be fit and
24 qualified.
25 (b) Prescribe rules and regulations for a method of
26 examination of candidates.
27 (c) Prescribe rules and regulations defining what shall
28 constitute an approved school, college or department of a
29 university, except that no school, college or department of a
30 university that refuses admittance to applicants solely on
31 account of race, color, creed, sex or national origin shall
32 be approved.
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1 (d) Conduct hearings on proceedings to revoke, suspend,
2 or refusal to issue such licenses.
3 (e) Promulgate rules and regulations required for the
4 administration of this Act.
5 (f) Discipline the supervisor of a graduate audiology
6 student as provided in this Act for any violation made by the
7 graduate audiology student.
8 (Source: P.A. 85-1391.)
9 (225 ILCS 110/7.1 new)
10 Sec.7.1. Graduate audiology students. Full-time graduate
11 students enrolled in a program of audiology in an accredited
12 college or university may engage in the dispensing of hearing
13 instruments as a part of a program of audiology without a
14 license under the supervision of an audiologist licensed
15 under this Act.
16 The supervisor and the supervisor's employer shall be
17 jointly and severally liable for any acts of the student
18 relating to the practice of fitting or dispensing hearing
19 instruments as defined in the rules promulgated under this
20 Act.
21 (225 ILCS 110/11) (from Ch. 111, par. 7911)
22 Sec. 11. Expiration, renewal and restoration of
23 licenses.
24 (a) The expiration date and renewal period for each
25 license issued under this Act shall be set by rule. A
26 speech-language pathologist or audiologist may renew such
27 license during the month preceding the expiration date
28 thereof by paying the required fee.
29 (a-5) All renewal applicants shall provide proof of
30 having met the continuing education requirements set forth in
31 the rules of the Department. At a minimum, the rules shall
32 require a renewal applicant to provide proof of completing at
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1 least 20 hours of continuing education during the 2-year
2 licensing cycle for which he or she is currently licensed. An
3 audiologist who has met the continuing education requirements
4 of the Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection Act during an
5 equivalent licensing cycle under this Act shall be deemed to
6 have met the continuing education requirements of this Act.
7 The Department shall provide by rule for an orderly process
8 for the reinstatement of licenses that have not been renewed
9 for failure to meet the continuing education requirements.
10 The continuing education requirements may be waived in cases
11 of extreme hardship as defined by rule of the Department.
12 The Department shall establish by rule a means for the
13 verification of completion of the continuing education
14 required by this Section. This verification may be
15 accomplished through audits of records maintained by
16 licensees, by requiring the filing of continuing education
17 certificates with the Department, or by other means
18 established by the Department.
19 (b) Inactive status.
20 (1) Any licensee who notifies the Department in
21 writing on forms prescribed by the Department may elect
22 to place his or her license on an inactive status and
23 shall, subject to rules of the Department, be excused
24 from payment of renewal fees until he or she notifies the
25 Department in writing of his or her desire to resume
26 active status.
27 (2) Any licensee requesting restoration from
28 inactive status shall be required to (i) pay the current
29 renewal fee; and (ii) demonstrate that he or she has
30 obtained the equivalent of 20 hours of continuing
31 education if the licensee has been inactive for 5 years
32 or more.
33 (3) Any licensee whose license is in an inactive
34 status shall not practice in the State of Illinois
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1 without first restoring his or her license.
2 (4) Any licensee who shall engage in the practice
3 while the license is lapsed or inactive shall be
4 considered to be practicing without a license which shall
5 be grounds for discipline under Section 16 of this Act.
6 (c) Any speech-language pathologist or audiologist whose
7 license has expired may have his or her license restored at
8 any time within 5 years after the expiration thereof, upon
9 payment of the required fee.
10 (d) Any person whose license has been expired for 5
11 years or more may have his or her license restored by making
12 application to the Department and filing proof acceptable to
13 the Department of his or her fitness to have his or her
14 license restored, including sworn evidence certifying to
15 active lawful practice in another jurisdiction, and by paying
16 the required restoration fee. A person practicing on an
17 expired license is deemed to be practicing without a license.
18 (e) If a person whose license has expired has not
19 maintained active practice in another jurisdiction, the
20 Department shall determine, by an evaluation process
21 established by rule, his or her fitness to resume active
22 status and may require the person to complete a period of
23 evaluated clinical experience, and may require successful
24 completion of an examination.
25 (f) Any person whose license has expired while he or she
26 has been engaged (1) in federal or State service on active
27 duty, or (2) in training or education under the supervision
28 of the United States preliminary to induction into the
29 military service, may have his or her license restored
30 without paying any lapsed renewal or restoration fee, if
31 within 2 years after termination of such service, training or
32 education he or she furnishes the Department with
33 satisfactory proof that he or she has been so engaged and
34 that his or her service, training or education has been so
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1 terminated. (Source: P.A. 90-69, eff. 7-8-97.)
2 (225 ILCS 50/11 rep.)
3 Section 15. The Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection
4 Act is amended by repealing Section 11.
5 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on
6 January 1, 2001.