A bill

 

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ENACTING THE "LICENSED PERFUSIONIST PRACTICE ACT" BY ADDING ARTICLE 12 TO CHAPTER 47, TITLE 40 SO AS TO ESTABLISH THE PERFUSIONISTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE UNDER THE BOARD OF MEDICAL EXAMINERS, TO PROVIDE FOR THE LICENSURE AND REGULATION OF PERFUSIONISTS, TO ESTABLISH THE RESPECTIVE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE BOARD AND THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, AND TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS, AMONG OTHER THINGS.

 

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

 

SECTION 1.  This act may be cited as the "Licensed Perfusionist Practice Act."

 

SECTION 2.  Chapter 47, Title 40 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

 

Article 12

 

Licensed Perfusionist Practice Act

 

    Section 40-47-1900.  The General Assembly finds and declares that the public interest requires the regulation of the practice of perfusion and the establishment of licensure standards for perfusionists and that the health and welfare of the residents of this State will be protected by identifying to the public those individuals who are qualified and legally authorized to practice perfusion.

 

    Section 40-47-1910.  As used in this article:

       (1) "Board" means the State Board of Medical Examiners.

       (2) "Committee" means the Perfusionists Advisory Committee established pursuant to Section 40-47-1930.

       (3) "Extracorporeal circulation" means the diversion of a patient's blood through a heart-lung machine or a similar device that assumes the functions of the patient's heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, or other organs.

       (4) "Perfusion" means the functions necessary for the support, treatment, measurement, or supplementation of the cardiovascular, circulatory, or respiratory system or other organs, or a combination of those activities, and to ensure the safe management of physiologic functions by monitoring and analyzing the parameters of the systems under an order and under the supervision of a licensed physician, including:

           (a) the use of extracorporeal circulation, long-term cardiopulmonary support techniques, including extracorporeal carbon-dioxide removal and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and associated therapeutic and diagnostic technologies;

           (b) counterpulsation, ventricular assistance, autotransfusion, blood conservation techniques, myocardial and organ preservation, extracorporeal life support, and isolated limb perfusion;

           (c) the use of techniques involving blood management, advanced life support, and other related functions;

           (d) the administration of:

               (i) pharmacological and therapeutic agents;

               (ii) blood products or anesthetic agents through the extracorporeal circuit or through an intravenous line as ordered by a physician;

           (e) the conducting and use of:

               (i) anticoagulation monitoring and analysis;

               (ii) physiologic monitoring and analysis;

               (iii) blood gas and chemistry monitoring and analysis;

               (iv) hematologic monitoring and analysis;

               (v) hypothermia;

               (vi) hyperthermia;

               (vii) hemoconcentration and hemodilution;

               (viii) hemodialysis; and

           (f) the observation of signs and symptoms related to perfusion services, the determination of whether the signs and symptoms exhibit abnormal characteristics, and the implementation of appropriate reporting, perfusion protocols, or changes in or the initiation of emergency procedures.

       (5) "Perfusionist" means a person who is licensed to practice perfusion pursuant to this article.

 

    Section 40-47-1920.  (A) A person may not engage or offer to engage in perfusion for compensation or use the title or represent or imply that the person has the title of "licensed perfusionist" or "provisional licensed perfusionist" or use the letters "LP" or "PLP" and may not use any facsimile of these titles in any manner to indicate or imply that the person is a licensed perfusionist or provisional licensed perfusionist unless the person holds an appropriate license issued under this article.

    (B) A person may not use the title or represent or imply that the person has the title of "certified clinical perfusionist" or use the letter "CCP" and may not use any facsimile of those titles in any manner to indicate or imply that the person is a certified clinical perfusionist by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion unless the person holds a certificate as a certified clinical perfusionist issued by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion.

    (C) A person who knowingly or intentionally violates subsection (A) or (B) is guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction, must be fined five hundred dollars or imprisoned up to one year, or both.

 

    Section 40-47-1930.  (A) There is created under the State Board of Medical Examiners, the Perfusionists Advisory Committee which must consist of six members who are residents of this State. Five of the members must be licensed perfusionists except for the members of the committee first appointed, who must be licensed as soon after their appointment as possible. These five members must have been actively engaged in the practice of perfusion in this State for at least two years immediately preceding their appointment. The remaining member must be a physician licensed in accordance with Article 1.

    (B) The board shall appoint the committee members who shall serve staggered terms. Each member must be appointed for a term of six years. Except that of the members first appointed, two shall serve terms of six years, two shall serve terms of four years, and two shall serve terms of two years. A vacancy in the membership of the committee must be filled in the manner provided by the original appointment for the unexpired portion of the term. No member of the committee may serve more than two successive terms, excluding any unexpired term to which he has been appointed.

    (C) A license holder eligible for appointment as a licensed perfusionist committee member must have been licensed under this article for at least two years before appointment to the committee.

 

    Section 40-47-1940.  (A) No later than thirty days after the appointment of its members, the committee shall meet to adopt bylaws and elect from among its perfusionist members a chairperson who shall hold office according to rules adopted by the committee.

    (B) The committee shall meet at least twice a year and may hold additional meetings as necessary to discharge its duties.

    (C) A majority of the committee membership constitutes a quorum.

    (D) Committee members must be compensated for their services at the usual rate for mileage, subsistence, and per diem as provided by law for members of state boards, committees, and commissions and may be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in connection with and because of their work as members of the committee.

 

    Section 40-47-1950.  (A) The committee, under the authority of the board, shall recommend to the board the promulgation of regulations establishing the criteria for licensure as a perfusionist and the standards of professional conduct for licensees.

    (B) The committee, under the authority of the board, shall assist the board in carrying out the provisions of this article regarding the qualifications, examination, registration, regulation, and licensure of perfusionists.

    (C) Under the authority of the board the committee shall:

       (1) establish a code of ethics;

       (2) establish the qualifications and fitness of applicants for licenses, renewal of licenses, and reciprocal licenses and a process for reviewing these applications;

       (3) establish the revocation, suspension, or denial of a license, probate a license suspension, or reprimand a license holder for a violation of this article, the code of ethics, or a regulation of the board;

       (4) establish the categories of fees and the amount of fees that may be imposed in connection with a license;

       (5) establish continuing professional education requirements for licensed perfusionists and provisional licensed perfusionists under this article, the standards of which must be at least as stringent as the didactic requirements established by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion or its successor agency and which must include:

           (a) the minimum amount of continuing education required to renew a license under this article;

           (b) a process to evaluate and approve continuing education courses;

           (c) identification of factors for the competent performance by a licensee of the licensee's professional duties; and

           (d) a procedure to assess a licensee's participation in continuing education programs;

       (6) prepare a registry of licensed perfusionists and provisional licensed perfusionists including their place of business, place of residence, and the date and number of their license and make this information available to the public, license holders, and appropriate state agencies; and

       (7) assist in such other matters dealing with perfusion as the board may direct.

 

    Section 40-47-1960.  (A) The board, after notice of and opportunity for a hearing, may remove any member of the committee if a member:

       (1) does not have at the time of appointment the qualifications required for appointment;

       (2) does not maintain during service the qualifications required for appointment;

       (3) violates a prohibition established by this article;

       (4) cannot discharge the member's term for a substantial part of the term for which the member is appointed because of illness or disability; or

       (5) is absent from more than half of the regularly scheduled meetings that the member is eligible to attend during a calendar year unless the absence is excused by majority vote of the committee.

    (B) The validity of an action of the committee is not affected by the fact that it is taken when grounds for removal of a member exist.

 

    Section 40-47-1970.  (A) An applicant for a perfusionist license must submit a sworn application in the form and manner prescribed by the committee and accompanied by an application fee established by the board in regulation.

    (B) To qualify for the licensing examination, the applicant must have successfully completed a perfusion education program approved by the committee and the board. In approving perfusion education, the committee shall approve only a program that was approved by the Committee on Allied Health Education and Accreditation of the American Medical Association before June 2024 or that has educational standards that are at least as stringent as those established by the Accreditation Committee for Perfusion Education and approved by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs or its successor.

 

    Section 40-47-1980.  (A) The committee, under the authority of the board, shall establish the examination and process to be used to judge the qualifications for granting a perfusion license.

    (B) To qualify for a license, an applicant must pass a competency examination which must be prepared or approved by the committee and administered to qualified applicants at least once each calendar year.

    (C) An examination prescribed by the committee may be or may include the complete certification examinations given by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion or its successor agency or by a state testing service in lieu of an examination prepared by the board. The committee may have the examination validated by an independent testing professional.

    (D) No later than forty-five days after the date on which a licensing examination is administered under this article, the approved testing service or board shall notify each examinee of the results of the examination.

    (E) If requested in writing by a person who fails the licensing examination, the approved testing service or board shall furnish the person with an analysis of the person's performance on the examination.

 

    Section 40-47-1990.  (A) A person who meets the licensing qualifications under this article is entitled to receive a license as a licensed perfusionist.

    (B) A licensee shall:

       (1) display the license in an appropriate and public manner; or

       (2) always maintain on file during which the license holder provides services in a healthcare facility a true and correct copy of the license certificate in the appropriate records of the facility; and

       (3) keep the committee informed of any change of address.

 

    Section 40-47-2000.  (A) A license is valid for two years from the date it is issued and may be renewed in accordance with dates prescribed by the committee.

    (B) A person may renew an unexpired license by submitting proof satisfactory to the committee of compliance with the continuing professional education requirements prescribed by the committee and paying the required renewal fee to the board before the expiration date of the license.

    (C) If a person's license has been expired for no more than ninety days, the person may renew the license by submitting proof satisfactory to the committee of compliance with the continuing professional education requirements prescribed by the committee and paying the required renewal fee to the board.

    (D) If a person's license has been expired for more than ninety days but less than two years, the person may renew the license by submitting proof satisfactory to the committee of compliance with the continuing professional education requirements prescribed by the committee and paying the required renewal fee to the board.

    (E) If a person's license has been expired two years or more, the person may not renew the license. The person may obtain a new license by submitting to reexamination and complying with the current requirements and procedures for obtaining a license.

    (F) The committee may renew without reexamination an expired license of a person who was licensed in this State, moved out of this State, and is currently appropriately licensed or certified and has been in practice out of this State for the two years preceding application and paying the required fee to the board.

    (G) The board shall notify each license holder in writing of the license expiration date thirty days before expiration by notice to the licensee at the licensee's last known address according to the records of the committee.

 

    Section 40-47-2010.  (A) A license as a provisional licensed perfusionist may be issued by the committee to a person who has successfully completed an approved perfusion education program upon filing an application, paying an application fee, and submitting evidence satisfactory to the committee of the successful completion of the education requirement provided for in Section 40-47-1970.

    (B) A provisional licensed perfusionist must always be under the supervision and direction of a licensed perfusionist during which the provisional licensed perfusionist performs perfusion. Rules adopted by the committee governing the supervision and direction may not require the immediate physical presence of the supervising licensed perfusionist.

    (C) A provisional license is valid for one year from the date it is issued and may be extended subject to rule by the committee. The application for extension must be signed by a supervising licensed perfusionist.

    (D) Upon notification by the approved testing service, or the board, that any portion of the licensing examination has been failed, the provisional license must be surrendered to the committee or board.

 

    Section 40-47-2020.  The committee, under the authority of the board, on receipt of an application and application fee, shall waive the examination requirement for an applicant who at the time of application:

    (1) is appropriately licensed or certified by another state, territory, or possession of the United States if the requirements of that state, territory, or possession for the license are the substantial equivalent of the requirements of this article as determined by the committee; or

    (2) holds a current certificate as a certified clinical perfusionist issued by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion, or its successor, before January 1, 2026.

 

    Section 40-47-2030.  This article does not apply to:

    (1) a person licensed by another health professional licensing board if the person:

       (a) does not represent to the public, directly or indirectly, that the person is licensed under this article, and does not use any name, title, or designation indicating that the person is licensed under this article; and

       (b) confines his acts or practices to the scope of practice authorized by the other health professional licensing laws;

    (2) a student enrolled in an accredited perfusion education program if perfusion services performed by the student are:

       (a) an integral part of the student's course of study; and

       (b) performed under the direct supervision and direction of a licensed perfusionist assigned to supervise the student and who is on duty and immediately available in the assigned patient care area;

    (3) the practice of any legally qualified perfusionist employed by the United States government while in the discharge of official duties.

 

    Section 40-47-2040.  Before July 1, 2026, a person may apply to the board and receive a license notwithstanding the requirements of Sections 40-47-1970 and 40-47-1980 if the person was actively engaged in the practice of perfusion consistent with applicable law, and if the person meets one of the following requirements:

    (1) the person has been operating cardiopulmonary bypass systems during cardiac surgical cases in a licensed healthcare facility continuously as the person's primary function since July 1, 2026; or

    (2) the person has had experience operating cardiopulmonary bypass systems during cardiac surgical cases in a licensed healthcare facility as the person's primary function for five out of the past ten years.

 

SECTION 3.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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