The Board of Chiropractic Examiners' Continuing Education Committee voted Friday, Dec. 13, 2024, to recommend that the full board adopt a regulation requiring all licensed chiropractors to maintain basic life support (BLS) certification as a condition of active licensure and directed staff to finalize regulatory text for board consideration.

Committee members and staff framed the proposal as a public‑safety measure. Executive Officer Kristen Walker said the chief justification for a BLS requirement is ‘‘the public safety protections that are enhanced by making sure that licensees have that education and training.’’ Staff presented three options: an ongoing maintenance requirement, a one‑time deadline model for existing licensees, or not moving forward.

Members debated how to express competency requirements and how often recertification should be required. Doctor Pamela Daniels and others pointed to research on skill decay and said BLS requires regular practice; Daniels recommended recertification at least every two years. The committee also discussed the adviser-level certification, which allows a provider to instruct others in CPR but not physically perform it, and whether patients should be notified if a practitioner holds only an adviser certificate. Walker said staff could not locate evidence of a causal link between routine chiropractic care and cardiac or respiratory emergencies, and therefore additional justification would be required before imposing a patient-notification requirement for adviser certificates.

The committee voted by roll call to recommend the measure to the board; recorded votes were ‘‘Yes’’ from Doctor Lawrence Adams, Doctor Pamela Daniels and Mister Rafael Sweet. The motion directs staff to finalize the regulatory language and present the proposal to the full board at the next meeting.

Walker told the committee staff will refine certification language (for example, clarifying whether a knowledge check or written component is required alongside a skills assessment) and will align the proposal with recognized certifying bodies before sending it to the board. The committee did not adopt final language on patient notification for adviser certificates and asked staff to return with further justification and clarified text.

Next steps: staff will prepare final regulatory text reflecting committee input and present it to the Board of Chiropractic Examiners for consideration at an upcoming meeting.