PHYSICAL THERAPY LICENSURE COMPACT

Mandatory criminal background checks using FBI records and fingerprinting for all licensure applicants, with state and national criminal history reports kept confidential

Employers prohibited from requiring physical therapists to seek compact licensure as a condition of employment, protecting workers from forced interstate practice requirements

Establishment of a Physical Therapy Compact Commission with powers to promulgate binding rules, conduct joint investigations across states, and enforce compliance through legal action

Remote states can remove compact privileges for specific periods, impose fines, or take disciplinary actions to protect public health and safety

Contingent repeal provision allowing automatic withdrawal from compact if commission rules change scope of practice or unprofessional conduct definitions inconsistently with state law

New comprehensive definitions for key terms including 'compact privilege,' 'home state,' 'adverse action,' and 'continuing competence' to standardize interstate practice terminology

Physical therapists must maintain a valid unencumbered home state license and meet jurisprudence requirements in remote states to exercise compact privileges

New sections requiring the physical therapy board to post compact commission bylaws, rules, and minutes on public websites within 30 days of commission actions

Compact becomes effective when enacted in the tenth member state, with subsequent states subject to rules existing on their adoption date