§ 5206 — Powers and duties

The Board of Examiners of Nursing Home Administrators shall have authority to:

(1) Formulate rules and regulations, with appropriate notice to those affected; all rules and regulations shall be promulgated in accordance with the procedures specified in the Administrative Procedures Act [Chapter 101 of Title 29] of this State. Each rule or regulation shall implement or clarify a specific section of this chapter;

(2) Designate the application form to be used by all applicants and process all applications;

(3) Designate a written national examination, prepared by either a recognized national professional association or by a recognized legitimate national testing service and approved by the Division of Professional Regulation. The examination shall be prepared for testing on a national basis, and not specifically prepared at the request of the Board for its individual use. The examination shall be taken by all persons applying for licensure and graded by a national testing service. Applicants who qualify for licensure by reciprocity shall have achieved a passing score on all parts of the designated national examination or a comparable, alternative national or, if a national examination was not available at the time of the applicant’s original licensure, regional examination;

(4) Establish minimum education, training, and experience requirements for licensure as nursing home administrators;

(5) Evaluate the credentials of all persons applying for a license as a nursing home administrator in this State, in order to determine whether such persons meet the qualifications for licensing set forth in this chapter;

(6) Conduct a criminal history background check on all applicants for registration and licensure, including temporary licensure and licensure by reciprocity;

(7) Grant licenses to, and renew licenses of, all persons who meet the qualifications for licensure;

(8) Register applicants as nursing home administrators-in-training;

(9) Issue temporary licenses pursuant to § 5211 of this title;

(10) Establish by rule and regulation continuing education standards required for license renewal;

(11) Evaluate certified records to determine whether an applicant for licensure, who previously has been licensed, certified, or registered in another jurisdiction as a nursing home administrator, has engaged in any act or offense that would be grounds for disciplinary action under this chapter and whether there are disciplinary proceedings or unresolved complaints pending against such applicant for such acts or offenses;

(12) Refer all complaints from licensees and the public concerning licensed nursing home administrators, practices of the Board, or of the profession to the Division of Professional Regulation for investigation pursuant to § 8735 of Title 29; and assign a member of the Board to assist the Division in an advisory capacity with the investigation of the technical aspects of the complaint;

(13) Conduct hearings and issue orders in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act, Chapter 101 of Title 29;

(14) Promulgate regulations specifically identifying those crimes which are substantially related to the practice of nursing home administration; and

(15) When it has been determined after a hearing that penalties or sanctions should be imposed, to designate and impose the appropriate sanction or penalty after time for appeal has lapsed.

Legislative History

64 Del. Laws, c. 159, § 2 ; 76 Del. Laws, c. 89, § 1