Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-8. Additional authorities invested in party state nurse licensing boards
Notwithstanding any other powers, party state nurse licensing boards shall have the authority to:
(1) If otherwise permitted by state law, recover from the affected nurse the costs of investigations and disposition of cases resulting from any adverse action taken against that nurse;
(2) Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations which require the attendance and testimony of witnesses, and the production of evidence. Subpoenas issued by a nurse licensing board in a party state for the attendance and testimony of witnesses, and/or the production of evidence from another party state, shall be enforced in the latter state by any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the practice and procedure of that court applicable to subpoenas issued in proceedings pending before it. The issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses, mileage and other fees required by the service statutes of the state where the witnesses and/or evidence are located.
(3) Issue cease and desist orders to limit or revoke a nurse’s authority to practice in their state;
(4) Promulgate uniform rules and regulations as provided for in § 5-34.3-10(c).
History of Section.
P.L. 2007, ch. 50, § 2; P.L. 2007, ch. 62, § 2.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-8
- Adverse action: means a home or remote state action. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Alternative program: means a voluntary, nondisciplinary monitoring program approved by a nurse licensing board. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Coordinated licensure information system: means an integrated process for collecting, storing, and sharing information on nurse licensure and enforcement activities related to nurse licensure laws, which is administered by a nonprofit organization composed of and controlled by state nurse licensing boards. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Encumbrance: means a revocation or suspension of, or any limitation placed on, the full and unrestricted practice of nursing imposed by a licensing board. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Home state: means the party state which is the nurse's primary state of residence. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Licensing board: means a party state's regulatory body responsible for issuing nurse licenses. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Multistate licensure: means a license to practice as a registered nurse (RN) or a licensed practical nurse/vocational nurse (LPN/VN) issued by a home state licensing board, that authorizes the licensed nurse to practice in all party states under a multistate licensure privilege. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Multistate licensure privilege: means current, official authority from a remote state permitting the practice of nursing as either a registered nurse or a licensed practical/vocational nurse in such party state. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Nurse: means a registered nurse or licensed practical/vocational nurse, as those terms are defined by each party's state practice laws. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Party state: means any state that has adopted this compact. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Remote state: means a party state, other than the home state, where the patient is located at the time nursing care is provided, or, in the case of the practice of nursing not involving a patient, in such party state where the recipient of nursing practice is located. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- State: means a state, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-34.3-4
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
§ 5-34.3-8. Additional authorities invested in party state nurse licensing boards. [Effective January 1, 2024; Expires January 1, 2027]
(a) Notwithstanding any other powers conferred by state law, party state nurse licensing boards shall have the authority to:
(1) Take adverse action against a nurse’s multistate licensure privilege to practice within that party state.
(i) Only the home state shall have the power to take adverse action against a nurse’s license issued by the home state.
(ii) For purposes of taking adverse action, the home state licensing board shall give the same priority and effect to reported conduct received from a remote state as it would if such conduct had occurred within the home state. In so doing, the home state shall apply its own state laws to determine appropriate action.
(2) Issue cease and desist orders or impose an encumbrance on a nurse’s authority to practice within that party state.
(3) Complete any pending investigations of a nurse who changes primary state of residence during the course of such investigations. The licensing board shall also have the authority to take appropriate action(s) and shall promptly report the conclusions of such investigations to the administrator of the coordinated licensure information system. The administrator of the coordinated licensure information system shall promptly notify the new home state of any such actions.
(4) Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations that require the attendance and testimony of witnesses, as well as, the production of evidence. Subpoenas issued by a licensing board in a party state for the attendance and testimony of witnesses or the production of evidence from another party state shall be enforced in the latter state by any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the practice and procedure of that court applicable to subpoenas issued in proceedings pending before it. The issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses, mileage, and other fees required by the service statutes of the state in which the witnesses or evidence are located.
(5) Obtain and submit, for each nurse licensure applicant, fingerprint or other biometric-based information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for criminal background checks, receive the results of the Federal Bureau of Investigation record search on criminal background checks, and use the results in making licensure decisions.
(6) If otherwise permitted by state law, recover from the affected nurse the costs of investigations and disposition of cases resulting from any adverse action taken against that nurse.
(7) Take adverse action based on the factual findings of the remote state, provided that the licensing board follows its own procedures for taking such adverse action.
(b) If adverse action is taken by the home state against a nurse’s multistate license, the nurse’s multistate licensure privilege to practice in all other party states shall be deactivated until all encumbrances have been removed from the multistate license. All home state disciplinary orders that impose adverse action against a nurse’s multistate license shall include a statement that the nurse’s multistate licensure privilege is deactivated in all party states during the pendency of the order.
(c) Nothing in this compact shall override a party state’s decision that participation in an alternative program may be used in lieu of adverse action. The home state licensing board shall deactivate the multistate licensure privilege under the multistate license of any nurse for the duration of the nurse’s participation in an alternative program.
History of Section.
P.L. 2007, ch. 50, § 2; P.L. 2007, ch. 62, § 2; P.L. 2023, ch. 338, § 1, effective January 1, 2024; P.L. 2023, ch. 397, § 1, effective January 1, 2024.