MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2000 Regular Session

To: Public Health and Welfare

By: Senator(s) Huggins (By Request)

AN ACT TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 73-65-1 THROUGH 73-65-17, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH IS THE PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPISTS CERTIFICATION LAW; TO AMEND SECTION 73-65-19, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXTEND THE AUTOMATIC REPEALER ON THE PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPISTS CERTIFICATION LAW; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 73-65-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-1. As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) "Board" means the State Board of Health;

(b) "Certified professional art therapist" means a person who has completed a master's or doctoral degree program in art therapy, or an equivalent course of study, from an accredited educational institution and who is certified by the board, or who received registration from the American Art Therapy Association (ATR) before 1980;

(c) "Certificate holder" means a certified professional art therapist certified under the provisions of this chapter;

(d) "Accredited institution" means a university or college accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency of institutions of higher education, or an institution or clinical program approved by the American Art Therapy Association, Inc.

SECTION 2. Section 73-65-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-3. (1) There is created the Professional Art Therapists Advisory Council. The purpose of the council is to advise the State Board of Health on matters relating to the administration and interpretation of the provisions of this chapter. The council shall consist of three (3) members who are professional art therapists certified pursuant to Section 73-65-7 and who have engaged in art therapy practice for at least five (5) years and two (2) members shall be family members of consumers of art therapy services. All council members shall be citizens of the United States and residents of Mississippi. The initial council members who are not family members of consumers shall meet requirements for certification and be certified within one (1) year after July 1, 1998. Beginning July 1, 1999, each council member who is not a family member of a consumer shall be certified as an art therapist before appointment and shall be actively engaged in the practicing or teaching of art therapy. The initial council members shall be appointed by the board for the following terms: one (1) member shall be appointed for a term of one (1) year; one (1) member shall be appointed for a term of two (2) years; two (2) members shall be appointed for terms of three (3) years; and one (1) member shall be appointed for a term of four (4) years. After the expiration of the initial terms, all subsequent members of the council shall be appointed by the board for terms of four (4) years.

(2) Members of the council shall receive no compensation or per diem for their service on the council, but may receive reimbursement for travel expenses incurred in attending council meetings, as provided in Section 25-3-41.

(3) The council shall elect annually from its membership a chairman and any other officers as necessary to carry out its duties. The council shall meet at least two (2) times each year. Additional meetings may be called by the chairman, upon the written request of at least two (2) members of the council. Three (3) council members shall constitute a quorum of the council.

SECTION 3. Section 73-65-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-5. The board shall:

(a) Promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter;

(b) Require that all applicants register for, take and pass the national board certification exam as administered by the Art Therapy Credentials Board of the American Art Therapy Association;

(c) Establish the application deadline for and score required to pass the examination;

(d) Process applications and conduct and review the required examinations;

(e) Issue certificates to applicants who meet the requirements of Sections 73-65-7 through 73-65-13;

(f) Deny, suspend, or revoke a certificate to practice art therapy;

(g) Censure, reprimand, or place a certificate holder or applicant on probation for a period not to exceed one (1) year;

(h) Maintain a current register of certificate holders as a matter of public record;

(i) Establish criteria for continuing education;

(j) Establish procedures for receiving, investigating, and resolving complaints against certificate holders;

(k) Approve the level of supervision and experience required for persons seeking certification;

(l) Assess fees for the issuance and renewal of certificates to cover expenses of the board in administering this chapter;

(m) Implement an impaired professional art therapist treatment program; and

(n) Adopt a code of ethics as established by the American Art Therapy Association.

SECTION 4. Section 73-65-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-7. (1) The board shall issue a certificate as a certified professional art therapist to any person who files a completed application, accompanied by the required fees, and who submits satisfactory evidence that the applicant is at least twenty-one (21) years of age, demonstrates professional competency by satisfactorily passing the required examination, is a registered art therapist as defined by the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc., is a certified art therapist as defined by the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc., and has:

(a) Received a master's degree or doctoral degree in art therapy that includes six hundred (600) hours of supervised internship experience from an accredited institution and has completed an additional one thousand (1,000) client contact hours of postgraduate experience under appropriate supervision; or

(b) Received a master's degree or doctoral degree in a related field, has a minimum of twenty-one (21) semester hours of sequential course work in the history, theory, and practice of art therapy, has completed seven hundred (700) hours of supervised internship experience from an accredited institution, and has completed an additional two thousand (2,000) client contact hours of postgraduate experience under appropriate supervision.

(2) The board may approve on a case-by-case basis applicants who have a master's degree or a doctoral degree from nonaccredited institutions.

(3) If an applicant has met all of the requirements for certification except satisfactorily passing the required examination, the applicant shall be scheduled to take the next examination following the approval of the examination.

(4) An applicant for certification as a professional art therapist may be certified without examination if the applicant files a completed application within one (1) year of July 1, 1998, accompanied by the required fees, and if the board determines that the applicant meets all other requirements for certification as a professional art therapist.

(5) The board may issue a certificate to an applicant without examination if the person possesses a valid regulatory document issued by the appropriate examining board under the laws of any other state or territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any foreign nation that in the judgment of the board has requirements substantially equivalent to or exceeding the requirements in this section.

(6) The board may issue provisional certification as a professional art therapist to any person who has completed the educational requirements in subsection (1)(a) or (1)(b) of this section and is fulfilling the client contact hours requirement, but has not taken the examination or received registration from the American Art Therapy Association (ATR).

(7) The board may set criteria for continuing education and supervisory experience.

SECTION 5. Section 73-65-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-9. (1) Each certificate holder shall renew the certificate to practice art therapy biennially by submitting a renewal application on a form provided by the board, paying a certificate renewal fee, and producing evidence of completion of relevant professional continuing education experience satisfactory to the board, not to exceed forty (40) hours per renewal cycle.

(2) A ninety-day grace period shall be allowed for each certificate holder after the certification period, during which time the certificate may be renewed upon payment of the renewal fee, the late fee, and compliance with all renewal requirements.

(3) Any certificate granted by the board shall be automatically suspended if the holder fails to apply for the certificate renewal pursuant to this section within a period of three (3) months after the renewal deadline; however, any suspended certificate may be restored by the board upon payment of a reinstatement fee not to exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) in addition to any unpaid renewal or late fees. Failure to renew a certificate within three (3) months from the date of suspension as provided in this section shall cause the certificate to be automatically revoked. Reinstatement of a revoked certificate shall require the certificate holder to reapply and meet all current standards for certification.

(4) A person certified under the provisions of Section 73-65-7 who intends to retire as a certified professional art therapist shall notify the board in writing before the expiration of his current certification. If, within a period of five (5) years from the year of retirement, the certificate holder wishes to resume practice as a certified professional art therapist, he shall notify the board in writing, and upon giving proof of completing the required continuing education and the payment of an amount equivalent to elapsed renewal fees, the certificate shall be restored in full effect.

SECTION 6. Section 73-65-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-11. The board shall set the amount of the fees required to be paid by applicants for certification and certificate holders including, but not limited to, the following:

(a) For an application for initial certification, the fee shall be nonrefundable and shall not exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00);

(b) The renewal fee shall not exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00);

(c) For a duplicate or replacement certificate, the fee shall not exceed Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00);

(d) For failure to renew a certificate within the allotted grace period pursuant to Section 73-65-9, the fee shall not exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00); and

(e) Other reasonable fees for administrative services.

SECTION 7. Section 73-65-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-13. (1) The board may deny any application, or suspend or revoke any certificate held or applied for under the provisions of Section 73-65-7 if the person:

(a) Is found guilty of fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation in procuring or attempting to procure a certificate to practice art therapy;

(b) Is adjudicated mentally incompetent;

(c) Is found guilty of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude;

(d) Is found guilty of unprofessional or unethical conduct in this or any other jurisdiction;

(e) Has been using any controlled substance or alcoholic beverage to an extent or in a manner dangerous to the person, any other person, or the public, or to an extent that the use impairs the ability to perform as a certified professional art therapist;

(f) Has violated any provision of this chapter; or

(g) Willfully or negligently divulges a professional confidence.

(2) A certified copy of the record of conviction shall be conclusive evidence of the conviction.

(3) Disciplinary proceedings may be initiated upon the receipt by the board of a sworn complaint by any person, including members of the board.

SECTION 8. Section 73-65-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-15. (1) The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to persons licensed, certified, or registered under any other provisions of Mississippi law, including, but not limited to, physicians, social workers, psychologists, and nurses, or students within accredited training programs of these professions. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to "activities professionals" at licensed nursing facilities. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit, interfere with, or restrict the practice, descriptions of services, or manner in which these persons hold themselves out to the public.

(2) No person shall use the title "certified professional art therapist" or hold himself out as having this status, unless he is certified as such by the board.

SECTION 9. Section 73-65-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-65-17. Any person who violates the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or sentenced to three (3) months in the county jail, or both, for each violation.

SECTION 10. Section 73-65-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

73-65-19. Sections 73-65-1 through 73-65-17 shall stand repealed on July 1, 2003.

SECTION 11. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after June 30, 2000.