A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to change the method by which certain members on the north carolina board of nursing are elected or appointed, to make technical changes to the nursing practice Act, and to require that health care facilities verify the licensure status of applicants seeking employment as nurses.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 90‑171.21 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90‑171.21.  Board of Nursing; composition; selection; vacancies; qualifications; term of office; compensation.
(a)	The Board shall consist of 15 members. Nine members shall be registered nurses. Three members shall be licensed practical nurses. Three members shall be representatives of the public.
(b)	Selection. – The North Carolina Board of Nursing shall conduct an election each year to fill vacancies of nurse members of the Board scheduled to occur during the next year. Nominations of candidates for election of registered nurse members shall be made by written petition signed by not less than 10 registered nurses eligible to vote in the election. Nominations of candidates for election of licensed practical nurse members shall be made by written petition signed by not less than 10 licensed practical nurses eligible to vote in the election. Every licensed registered nurse holding an active license shall be eligible to vote in the election of registered nurse board members. Every licensed practical nurse holding an active license shall be eligible to vote in the election of licensed practical nurse board members. The list of nominations shall be filed with the Board after January 1 of the year in which the election is to be held and no later than midnight of the first day of April of such year. Before preparing ballots, the Board shall notify each person who has been duly nominated of  the person's nomination and request permission to enter  the person's name on the ballot. A member of the Board who is nominated  for reelection and who does not withdraw  the member's name from the ballot is disqualified to participate in conducting the election. Elected members shall begin their term of office on January 1 of the year following their election.
Nominations of persons to serve as public members of the Board may be made to the Governor or the General Assembly by any citizen or group within the State. The Governor shall appoint one public member to the Board, and the General Assembly shall appoint two public members to the Board. Of the public members appointed by the General Assembly, one shall be appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and one shall be appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Board members shall be commissioned by the Governor upon their election or appointment.
(c)	Vacancies. – All unexpired terms of Board members appointed by the General Assembly shall be filled within 45 days after the term is vacated. The Governor shall fill all other unexpired terms on the Board within 30 days after the term is vacated. For vacancies of registered nurse or licensed practical nurse members, the Governor shall appoint the person who received the next highest number of votes to those elected members at the most recent election for board members.  Appointees shall serve the remainder of the unexpired term and until their successors have been duly elected or appointed and qualified.
(d)	Qualifications. – Of the nine registered nurse members on the Board, two shall be nurse administrators, one employed by a hospital or a hospital system and one employed by any other type of nursing care delivery system, both of whom shall be accountable for the administration of nursing services and not directly involved in patient care; one shall be an individual who meets the requirements to practice as a certified registered nurse anesthetist, a certified nurse midwife, a clinical nurse specialist, or a nurse practitioner; two shall be staff nurses, defined as individuals who are primarily involved in direct patient care regardless of practice setting; one shall be an at-large registered nurse who meets the requirements of sub-subdivisions (1)a. and b. of this subsection, but is not currently an educator in a program leading to licensure or any other degree-granting program; and three shall be nurse educators. Of the three nurse educators, one shall be a practical nurse educator, one shall be an associate degree or diploma nurse educator, and one shall be a baccalaureate or higher degree nurse educator. All nurse educators shall meet the minimum education requirement as established by the Board's education program standards for nurse faculty. Candidates eligible for election to the Board as nurse educators are not eligible for election as the at-large member.
(1)	Except for the at-large member, every registered nurse member shall meet the following criteria:
a.	Hold a current, unencumbered license to practice as a registered nurse in North Carolina.
a1.	Be a resident of North Carolina.
b.	Have a minimum of five years of experience as a registered nurse.
c.	Have been engaged continuously in a position that meets the criteria for the specified Board position for at least three years immediately preceding election.
d.	Show evidence that the employer of  the registered nurse is aware that the nurse intends to serve on the Board.
(2)	 Every licensed practical nurse  member shall meet the following criteria:
a.	Hold a current, unencumbered license to practice as a licensed practical nurse in North Carolina.
a1.	Be a resident of North Carolina.
	
c.	Have a minimum of five years of experience as a licensed practical nurse.
d.	Have been engaged continuously in the position of a licensed practical nurse for at least three years immediately preceding election.
e.	Show evidence that the employer of the licensed practical nurse is aware that the nurse intends to serve on the Board.
(3)	A public member shall not be a  provider of health services, employed in the health services field, or hold a vested interest at any level in the provision of health services as defined by the North Carolina Board of Ethics. No public member or person in the public member's immediate family as defined by G.S. 90-405(8) shall be currently employed as a licensed nurse or been previously employed as a licensed nurse.
(4)	The nurse practitioner, nurse anesthetist, nurse midwife, or clinical nurse specialist member shall be recognized by the Board as a registered nurse who meets the following criteria:
a.	Has graduated from or completed a graduate level advanced practice nursing education program accredited by a national accrediting body.
b.	Maintains current certification or recertification from a national credentialing body approved by the Board or meets other requirements established by rules adopted by the Board.
c.	Practices in a manner consistent with rules adopted by the Board and other applicable law.
(e)	Term. – Members of the Board shall serve four-year staggered terms. No member shall serve more than two consecutive four-year terms or eight consecutive years after January 1, 2005.
(f)	Removal. – The Board may remove any of its members for neglect of duty, incompetence, or unprofessional conduct. A member subject to disciplinary proceedings shall be disqualified from Board business until the charges are resolved.
(g)	Reimbursement. – Board members are entitled to receive compensation and reimbursement as authorized by G.S. 93B‑5."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 90‑171.22 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90‑171.22.  Officers.
The officers of the Board shall be a  chair,  a  vice-chair, and any other officers  the Board  considers necessary. All officers shall be elected annually by the Board for terms of one year and shall serve until their successors have been elected and qualified."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 90‑171.23(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	Duties, powers. The Board is empowered to:
…
(8)	Establish standards to be met by the students, and to pertain to faculty, curricula, facilities, resources, and administration for any nursing program as provided in G.S. 90‑171.38.
(9)	Review all nursing programs at least every eight years or more often as considered necessary by the Board or program director.
…."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 90‑171.38(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	A nursing program may be operated under the authority of a general hospital, or an approved post‑secondary educational institution. The Board shall establish, revise, or repeal standards for nursing programs. These standards shall specify program requirements, curricula, faculty, students, facilities, resources, administration, and describe the approval process. Any institution desiring to establish a nursing program shall apply to the Board and submit satisfactory evidence that it will meet the standards established by the Board. Those standards shall be designed to ensure that graduates of those programs have the education necessary to safely and competently practice nursing."
SECTION 5.  G.S. 90‑171.40 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90‑171.40.  Ongoing approval.
The Board shall review all nursing programs in the State at least every eight years or more often as  considered necessary.  If the Board determines that any approved nursing program does not meet or maintain the standards required by the Board, the Board shall give written notice  specifying the deficiencies  to the institution responsible for the program. The Board shall withdraw approval from a program  that fails to correct deficiencies within a reasonable time. The Board shall publish annually a list of nursing programs in this State showing their approval status."
SECTION 6.  Article 9A of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 90-171.43A.  Mandatory employer verification of licensure status.
(a)	Before hiring a registered nurse or a licensed practical nurse in North Carolina, a health care facility shall verify that the applicant has a current, valid license to practice nursing pursuant to G.S. 90-171.43.
(b)	For purposes of this section, 'health care facility' means:
(1)	Facilities described in G.S. 131E-256(b).
(2)	Public health departments, physicians' offices, ambulatory care facilities, and rural health clinics."
SECTION 7.  Members serving on the Board of Nursing on the effective date of this act shall continue to serve until December 31, 2004. To establish staggered terms for the appointments of public members made pursuant to G.S. 90‑171.21(b), as enacted in Section 1 of this act, the Governor shall appoint one member for a four‑year term, the General Assembly, upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, shall appoint one member for a three‑year term, and the General Assembly, upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, shall appoint one member for a two‑year term.
To stagger terms for members elected to the Board, the Board shall conduct an election in 2004 pursuant to G.S. 90‑171.21(b) to elect members as follows:
(1)	A registered nurse administrator employed by a hospital or hospital system, an at‑large registered nurse, and a licensed practical nurse, each to serve for a one‑year term.
(2)	A staff registered nurse, a registered nurse who is an associate degree or diploma nurse educator, and a licensed practical nurse, each to serve for a two‑year term.
(3)	A registered nurse who is a baccalaureate or higher degree nurse educator, a registered nurse administrator employed by a nursing care delivery system other than a hospital system, and a licensed practical nurse, each to serve for a three‑year term.
(4)	A staff registered nurse, a registered nurse who is a practical nurse educator, and either a certified registered nurse anesthetist, a certified nurse midwife, a clinical nurse specialist, or a nurse practitioner, each to serve for a four-year term.
All members appointed and elected to the Board pursuant to this section shall begin serving their terms on January 1, 2005. After staggered terms have been established, all subsequent appointments and elections to the Board shall be for four‑year terms.
SECTION 8.  This act is effective when it becomes law.