Pamela DiPasquale-Lehnerz, President of the Occupational Therapy Association of Colorado, testified before the committee. Ms. DiPasquale-Lehnerz testified that the General Assembly intended to reauthorize licensing of occupational therapists and that not publishing HB 20-1230 will cause confusion and cause issues with licenses up for renewal in December 2020.
Karen McGovern, Deputy Division Director, Division of Professions and Occupations, DORA, stated that she was available for technical questions.
Representative Snyder and Ms. DiPasquale-Lehnerz discussed whether occupational therapists have invested and are practicing in telehealth.
Representative Weissman and Ms. McGovern discussed what publishing versus not publishing the bill means for DORA's regulation of occupational therapists.
Representative Soper and Ms. McGovern discussed how DORA could deal with a situation like this if they knew the legislature was going to fix the issue.
Senator Gardner and Ms. McGovern discussed the issues with licensing in this situation.
Senator Holbert asked whether the Governor can resolve the issues with an executive order due to the unique circumstances of COVID-19, which caused the effective date issue.