(1) The board may
take disciplinary action in accordance with sections 12-20-404 and 12-285-122
against a person who has:
(a) Committed any act that does not meet generally accepted standards of
physical therapy practice or failed to perform an act necessary to meet generally
accepted standards of physical therapy practice;
(b) Engaged in a sexual act with a patient while a patient-physical therapist
relationship exists. For the purposes of this subsection (1)(b):
(I) Patient-physical therapist relationship means that period of time
beginning with the initial evaluation through the termination of treatment.
(II) Sexual act means sexual contact, sexual intrusion, or sexual
penetration as defined in section 18-3-401.
(c) Failed to refer a patient to the appropriate licensed health-care
professional when the services required by the patient are beyond the level of
competence of the physical therapist or beyond the scope of physical therapy
practice;
(d) Abandoned a patient by any means, including failure to provide a referral
to another physical therapist or to another appropriate health-care professional
when the referral was necessary to meet generally accepted standards of physical
therapy care;
(e) Failed to provide adequate or proper supervision when utilizing certified
physical therapist assistants, unlicensed persons, or persons with a provisional
license in a physical therapy practice;
(f) Failed to make essential entries on patient records or falsified or made
incorrect entries of an essential nature on patient records;
(g) Engaged in any of the following activities and practices: Ordering or
performance, without clinical justification, of demonstrably unnecessary laboratory
tests or studies; the administration, without clinical justification, of treatment that
is demonstrably unnecessary; or ordering or performing, without clinical
justification, any service, X ray, or treatment that is contrary to recognized
standards of the practice of physical therapy as interpreted by the board;
(h) (I) Committed abuse of health insurance as set forth in section 18-13-119
(3); or
(II) Advertised through newspapers, magazines, circulars, direct mail,
directories, radio, television, or otherwise that the licensee will perform any act
prohibited by section 18-13-119 (3);
(i) Committed a fraudulent insurance act, as defined in section 10-1-128;
(j) Offered, given, or received commissions, rebates, or other forms of
remuneration for the referral of clients; except that a licensee may pay an
independent advertising or marketing agent compensation for advertising or
marketing services rendered by an agent on the licensee's behalf, including
compensation for referrals of clients identified through the services on a per-client
basis;
(k) Falsified information in any application or attempted to obtain or obtained
a license by fraud, deception, or misrepresentation;
(l) Engaged in the habitual or excessive use or abuse of alcohol, a habit-forming drug, or a controlled substance as defined in section 18-18-102 (5);
(m) (I) Failed to notify the board, as required by section 12-30-108 (1), of a
physical illness, physical condition, or behavioral, mental health, or substance use
disorder that impacts the licensee's ability to perform physical therapy with
reasonable skill and safety to patients;
(II) Failed to act within the limitations created by a physical illness, physical
condition, or behavioral, mental health, or substance use disorder that renders the
licensee unable to perform physical therapy with reasonable skill and safety to the
patient; or
(III) Failed to comply with the limitations agreed to under a confidential
agreement entered pursuant to sections 12-30-108 and 12-285-125;
(n) Refused to submit to a physical or mental examination when so ordered
by the board pursuant to section 12-285-124;
(o) Failed to notify the board in writing of the entry of a final judgment by a
court of competent jurisdiction against the licensee for malpractice of physical
therapy or a settlement by the licensee in response to charges or allegations of
malpractice of physical therapy, which notice must be given within ninety days after
the entry of judgment or settlement and, in the case of a judgment, must contain
the name of the court, the case number, and the names of all parties to the action;
(p) Violated or aided or abetted a violation of this article 285, an applicable
provision of article 20 or 30 of this title 12, a rule adopted under this article 285, or
a lawful order of the board;
(q) Been convicted of, pled guilty, or pled nolo contendere to any crime
related to the licensee's practice of physical therapy or a felony or committed an
act specified in section 12-285-128. A certified copy of the judgment of a court of
competent jurisdiction of the conviction or plea is conclusive evidence of the
conviction or plea. In considering the disciplinary action, the board is governed by
sections 12-20-202 (5) and 24-5-101.
(r) Fraudulently obtained, furnished, or sold any physical therapy diploma,
certificate, license, renewal of license, or record, or aided or abetted any such act;
(s) Advertised, represented, or held himself or herself out, in any manner, as
a physical therapist or practiced physical therapy without a license or unless
otherwise authorized under this article 285;
(t) Used in connection with the person's name any designation tending to
imply that the person is a physical therapist without being licensed under this
article 285;
(u) Practiced physical therapy during the time the person's license was
inactive, expired, suspended, or revoked;
(v) Failed to maintain the insurance required by section 12-285-118 or a rule
promulgated thereunder;
(w) Failed to respond in an honest, materially responsive, and timely manner
to a complaint issued under this article 285;
(x) Failed to know the contents of this part 1 and any rules promulgated
under this part 1;
(y) Failed to either:
(I) Confirm that a patient is under the care of a physician or other health-care
professional for the underlying medical condition when providing general wound
care within the scope of the physical therapist's practice; or
(II) Refer the patient to a physician or other appropriate health-care
professional for the treatment of the underlying medical condition when providing
general wound care within the scope of the physical therapist's practice; or
(z) Failed to report an adverse action, the surrender of a license, or other
discipline taken in another jurisdiction.