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Kansas optometry board discusses HB 22-23 credentialing, fees and CE enforcement ahead of rulemaking
Summary
Board members discussed steps to implement HB 22-23 implementation: a temporary regulation to allow a credentialing fee (KAR 65-43) is submitted, Acela system timelines were shared, and members debated continuing-education enforcement, late fees, and a flowchart for consistent staff decisions.
The Kansas State Board of Optometry spent a major portion of its meeting discussing implementation steps for the scope expansion enacted by HB 22-23, including credentialing, fees and continuing-education (CE) enforcement.
Executive officer Kelly McTee told the board that a temporary regulation (KAR 65-43) was drafted to allow the board to charge a credentialing fee and that the credentialing application would be posted once the temporary rule clears administrative steps. “We’ve submitted a temporary regulation for 65-43, which just, allows us to charge a fee for the credentialing process,” McTee said. She also reported the board’s IT vendor planned testing in November with a projected ACELA system go-live in February for the updated credentialing workflow.
Legal counsel Tim Raesstrom and multiple board members debated how to make CE enforcement consistent with statute. The board noted statutory constraints (an annual CE requirement with a $500 late fee referenced in current practice) and described several outcomes used in recent audits: warning letters, disciplinary referrals, and, in limited circumstances, fines. Raesstrom summarized that the statute defines minimums but leaves types and waivers to board regulation: “The statute sets a floor, but then it gives the board the ability to determine total number. The statute says what it says.”
Members advocated for clearer, staff-executable procedures and a decision flowchart so the executive director can apply fees or move a licensee to inactive status consistently. One practical proposal in the meeting was for staff to send targeted reminders ahead of renewals and to allow the executive director to assess late fees without referring every minor case to the board for adjudication.
The board also discussed long-term continuing-education requirements for credentialed clinicians (for example, requiring a modest number of maintenance hours each year or a minimum number of procedures per year to preserve credentialing). South Dakota’s practice was cited as a comparison — requiring a 32-hour initial course for credentialing — but members deferred final policy choices and directed staff and counsel to draft regulatory language and internal procedures for the board’s future consideration.
No final rulemaking decisions were made at the meeting; the board set follow-up tasks, asked staff to prepare notices and flowcharts, and planned further rule drafting and board discussion in coming months.
