(a) As used in this section:

(1) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Public Health;

(2) “Contact hour” means a minimum of fifty minutes of continuing education activity;

(3) “Department” means the Department of Public Health;

(4) “Licensee” means any person who receives a license from the department pursuant to this chapter; and

(5) “Registration period” means the one-year period for which a license renewed in accordance with § 19a-88 is current and valid.

(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, for registration periods beginning on and after January 1, 2019, a licensee applying for license renewal shall earn a minimum of ten hours of continuing education within the preceding registration period. Such continuing education shall (1) be directly related to respiratory therapy; (2) reflect the professional needs of the licensee in order to meet the health care needs of the public; and (3) include a minimum of at least five hours of real-time education with opportunities for live interaction, including, but not limited to, in-person conferences or real-time webinars. Qualifying continuing education activities include, but are not limited to, courses, including on-line courses, offered or approved by the American Association for Respiratory Care, regionally accredited institutions of higher education, or a state or local health department.

(c) Each licensee applying for license renewal pursuant to § 19a-88 shall sign a statement attesting that he or she has maintained credentialing as a respiratory therapist, issued by the National Board for Respiratory Care, or has satisfied the continuing education requirements of subsection (b) of this section on a form prescribed by the department. Each licensee shall retain credentialing records, or records of attendance or certificates of completion that demonstrate compliance with the continuing education requirements of said subsection (b) for a minimum of five years following the year in which the licensee was recredentialed or in which the continuing education activities were completed and shall submit such records to the department for inspection not later than forty-five days after a request by the department for such records.

(d) A licensee applying for the first time for license renewal pursuant to § 19a-88 is exempt from the continuing education requirements of this section.

(e) In individual cases involving medical disability or illness, the commissioner may, in the commissioner’s discretion, grant a waiver of the continuing education requirements or an extension of time within which to fulfill the continuing education requirements of this section to any licensee, provided the licensee submits to the department an application for waiver or extension of time on a form prescribed by the department, along with a certification by a licensed physician, a licensed physician assistant or a licensed advanced practice registered nurse of the disability or illness and such other documentation as may be required by the commissioner. The commissioner may grant a waiver or extension for a period not to exceed one registration period, except that the commissioner may grant additional waivers or extensions if the medical disability or illness upon which a waiver or extension is granted continues beyond the period of the waiver or extension and the licensee applies for an additional waiver or extension.

(f) Any licensee whose license has become void pursuant to § 19a-88 and who applies to the department for reinstatement of such license pursuant to § 19a-14 shall submit evidence documenting successful completion of ten contact hours of qualifying continuing education within the one-year period immediately preceding application for reinstatement.