Only 3 To Go: Alabama Becomes 47th State to Regulate Respiratory Care Practice

May 21, 2004
Alabama became the 47th U.S. state to regulate the practice of respiratory care this month, as Governor Bob Riley signed the state’s licensure act into law.

The Governor gathered with several members of the Alabama Society for Respiratory Care (ASRC) for a ceremonial signing on May 19, marking the end of an intense, four-month period in which respiratory therapists all over the state rallied to the cause and urged legislators to pass the legislation.

“The Alabama Society set their sights on gaining licensure, and by heavens, nothing was going to deter them,” says AARC Director of State Government Affairs Cheryl West, who assisted the ASRC in their successful bid. “And they did it in one session of the legislature, taking only four months—remarkable! Every respiratory therapist in Alabama should be congratulated.”

Licensure in Alabama has a long history, says ASRC Legislative Co-chair Ronda Hood. “The first bill was introduced in the Alabama State Legislature in the early part of the 1980s.” The ASRC continued to support legislation throughout the years, but with little success. “In the summer of 2003, the ASRC Board of Directors decided to again seek licensure.”

Specifically, the ASRC was concerned that Alabama was becoming a haven for unlicensed practitioners, due in large part to licensure laws in surrounding states. Evidence was also mounting that qualified RTs were leaving Alabama to practice in states with formal standards for the profession, exacerbating the problem even further.

ASRC representatives convinced legislators that the health and safety of Alabamians would be in increasing jeopardy without a state law regulating the practice of respiratory care.

The resulting campaign, spearheaded by Hood, her Legislative Committee Co-Chair David Howard, ASRC President Ron Stansell, ASRC Executive Director Fred Hill, and Legislative Committee member and Past President Bill Pruitt, among others, involved a grassroots effort to build up the ASRC membership base and educate all parties—including state hospital, nursing, and medical associations—about the need to ensure patient safety through the regulation of respiratory care practice.

Pruitt also gives a lot of credit to the legislators who sponsored the bill. “Our bill sponsors really helped light the fire. Representative Dr. Jim McClendon spent over two hours one afternoon last summer at his home, talking with us about the process and the plans needed to bring a bill through the legislature.” The other sponsor, Senator Roger Bedford, was just as encouraging, continues Pruitt, “giving us rock-solid optimism every time we talked with him.”

The result is a licensure law Pruitt says will assure patients in Alabama “that the RTs caring for them are competent, knowledgeable, and staying current with the field of respiratory therapy.”

With the addition of Alabama to the list of states with formal regulation of respiratory care practice (45 states have licensure; Illinois has certification, and Minnesota has a registration law), only three states are left without any form of legal credentialing for respiratory care. If everything goes according plan, in a few weeks West says that number will be dwindled down to just two. She reports Vermont will soon be sending it’s licensure act to the governor’s desk for signing.

The ASRC recognizes these individuals for spearheading the campaign—and salutes all the RTs in Alabama who supported the legislation and helped make it happen.

Legislative Committee Co-Chairs:
Ronda Hood, RRT, CPFT
David Howard, CRT, NPS

Legislative Committee Members:
Ron Stansell, BS, RRT —ASRC President
Bill Pruitt, MBA, RRT, CPFT, AE-C—ASRC Past President
Paul Taylor, DHSc, RRT—ASRC President Elect
Wesley Granger, PhD, RRT
Leigh Ann Dolan, RRT
Fred Hill, MA, RRT
Kay Hildensperger, RRT, NPS
Darren Flott, RRT
Jonathan Waugh, PhD, RRT, RPFT

Bill Sponsors:
Senator Roger Bedford
Representative Dr. Jim McClendon

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