Professional licensing helps ensure that practitioners who provide critical services possess the necessary skills. But it can also act as a barrier to entry, especially when applied to professions that involve minimal health or safety risks. It is therefore critical that agencies ensure that licensing requirements are no more burdensome than necessary. This week’s Highlights features two agencies that have tailored their professional licensing requirements.

 

The Department of Health Professions extends licensure by endorsement to four new professions.

Every state has some sort of professional licensing scheme. And though not every profession is licensed in every state, many are licensed in all 50 states.

As a general matter, if someone is considered competent to practice in his or her home state, he or she should be able to work in the other 49. The process of “licensure by endorsement” allows professionals working in one state to obtain automatic licensing in another state without having to re-take an exam.

The General Assembly recently extended licensure by endorsement to occupational therapists (see Action 6833), polysomnographic technologists (see Action 6835), behavioral analysts (see Action 6832), and genetic counselors (see Action 6834), and the Department of Health Professions has adopted regulations carrying out this change. This will provide greater mobility for these professionals and increase the supply of qualified practitioners in Virginia.

 

The Board for Barbers and Cosmetology creates a new licensing pathway for ear-piercers.

Piercing and other forms of “body art” have risen in popularity in recent years. As the variety of piercings has increased, piercing professionals have required lengthy training to ensure that they are capable of meeting market demand while providing body-piercing services safely.

But in the vast majority of cases, people are looking only for the most traditional and simplest type of piercing, an ear piercing. Currently, an individual that wishes to practice just piercing of the ear using a needle must complete 1,500 hours of body-piercing apprenticeship training, which includes training on piercing for all of the body. Given this reality, the General Assembly passed a law that provides a more streamlined set of training requirements for professionals who are interested only in piercing the ear using a needle. The Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation has now adopted a regulation implementing a new ear-only license that requires only 500 hours of apprenticeship training (see Action 6793).

This change creates a more efficient marketplace. It should ensure that parents looking for an inexpensive place to get their daughters’ ears pierced will enjoy an array of safe options. And it will ensure that individuals looking for more avant-garde offerings won’t miss out either.