AB 1501 passage recognized by Podiatric Medical Board; changes take effect Jan. 1

Board legislative staff reviewed AB 1501 and related regulatory housekeeping during the Nov. 7 meeting, highlighting several licensing and policy changes that became law and will be effective Jan. 1.

Kathleen Cooper summarized AB 1501, saying it contains "five big things" for the board’s sunset outcomes. She said the law establishes authority for the title "podiatric surgeon" for DPMs, allows a DPM in good standing from another state to submit an application even if examination scores are more than 10 years old (so they may not need to retake the test), includes a policy statement that DPMs should not be treated as ancillary providers for benefits or insurance purposes, and raises the renewal fee to improve the board’s fund condition.

Cooper also described upcoming regulatory updates to modernize language (for example updating gendered pronouns and aligning regulations with recently changed continuing medical education requirements) and confirmed that affected regulations will follow the statutory changes. She encouraged board members to ask questions about AB 1501 and noted these changes were the result of the board’s sunset process.

Board members congratulated staff on the successful legislative outcome and had no further questions; staff said they will proceed with regulatory changes to implement the new statutory provisions and will post required regulatory materials and timelines for member review.

Next steps: staff will publish regulatory updates related to AB 1501 and continue outreach to affected stakeholders ahead of the Jan. 1 effective date.