In addition to the requirements in §§ 36-10-27 and 36-10-35.1, an applicant for licensure shall submit to the State Board of Physical Therapy a full set of the applicant’s fingerprints in a form and manner prescribed by the board. The board shall deliver the fingerprints to the Division of Criminal Investigation to conduct a state and federal criminal background check by the division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The applicant shall sign a release of information to the board and pay any fees for the background check, including fingerprinting.

Upon completion of the background check, the division shall deliver to the board the applicant’s criminal background information. The board shall consider this information in determining whether to issue a license to the applicant. The board may not issue a license to the applicant before receiving this information.

The board may not disseminate an applicant’s criminal background information to any person outside the board.

The board may require any licensee who is the subject of a disciplinary investigation by the board to submit to a state and federal criminal background check.

The board may deny the issuance of a license or suspend or revoke a license for failure to submit to or cooperate with a criminal background check.

Source: SL 2020, ch 157, § 2; SL 2023, ch 136, § 12.