CLEAR

Colorado: Interpreters for the Deaf

Interpreters for the Deaf, a 2006 sunrise report of The Colorado Office of Policy, Research and Regulatory Reform, points out that the Americans With Disabilities (ADA) Act mandates using qualified interpreters in places of public accommodation. Colorado does regulate interpreters for the deaf in both legal and educational (K-12) settings. The Colorado Association for the Deaf, which submitted the sunrise application, provided examples of harm from the use of unregulated interpreters in other settings.  Despite this, the report concludes that "the harm that has been identified through research as well as an analysis of the submissions of harm by interested stakeholders cannot be definitively attributed to interpreters, regardless of their competency levels. As a result, regulation is not justified."

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Ontario: regulating traditional Chinese medicine

Recent legislation regulating traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) provides for:
- a self-governing regulatory college, the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and  Acupucturists of Ontario;
- a scope of practice; and
- restriction of practice to members of the new college, members of certain other regulated health professions and to persons who perform acupuncture within a health facility.

The Canadian Society of Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture is fighting the bill. "You don't let laymen stick needles in people and call it acupuncture," said one practitioner.

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TCM marks the first new profession regulated in Ontario since 1991.

Public Citizen's 2006 report: medical board disciplinary data

Public Citizen has released its annual report on medical and osteopathic board Web site disciplinary information. According to the report, New Jersey ranks first and North Dakota ranks last in content and user-friendliness of doctor disciplinary information available on medical board Web sites.

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England: expert witness may be disciplined

The Court of Appeal has held that a pediatrician who misunderstood statistics he used as an expert witness in a muder trial is liable for professional discipline.

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Hawai'i: genetic counselors not public threat

Arguing that the state bill creates a certification, rather than a licensing program, the Hawai'i state auditor recommends against enacting a statute to regulate genetic counselors. Three other states have declined to regulate genetic counselors, while four states have enacted enabling legislation to regulate the profession.

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Illinois: nursing center opens

Intended to build an adequate supply of trained nurses for the state's needs, Governor Blagojevich's envisioned Center for Nursing has opened within the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR).
Press release

Center's Web site