Support the OT Compact
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Contact your Legislators about the Licensure Compact
Iowa House Human Resources Committee January 12, 2022
Iowa State Capitol
1007 E. Grand Ave.
Des Moines, IA 50319
Dear Representative,
On behalf of the Iowa Occupational Therapy Association (IOTA), we thank you for your support last session ofSenate File 463, the Iowa Occupational Therapy Compact legislation. This bill came over from the Senate unanimously and then passed the House Human Resources Committee unanimously as well. However, time didn’t allow it to get to the Governor’s desk for her signature last session. We look forward to working with you to move this bill forward as it is an important piece of legislation that will improve the access of OT services across the state of Iowa, especially to those living in rural areas.
Occupational therapy services are provided in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, schools, nursing homes, and home health settings, to individuals of all ages and capabilities. OTs are extensively trained to address physical, psychological, and cognitive aspects of a patient’s well-being. Overall, they evaluate an individual’s abilities and environments, create customized goals and intervention, recommend equipment, and deliver training for adaptation, and provide guidance and education for family members and caregivers. These functions of OT services reduce long-term costs to our health care system. OT services have been identified as the only hospital spending category to reduce readmissions.
The interstate licensing compact would:
- Allow licensed occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants to practice across state lines (e.g., telehealth);
- Improve consumer access to occupational therapy;
- Enhance mobility of occupational therapy practitioners (e.g., spouses of relocating military families, staff of travel therapy companies);
- Improve continuity of care;
- Address competition issues raised by the Federal Trade Commission and others; and
- Enhance the exchange of licensure, investigatory, and disciplinary information between member states.
IOTA asks for your continued support of SF 463 in hopes of passing it through the Iowa House during the 2022 Session. Your support of this bill will go a long way to ensure better accessibility to occupational therapy services across the state and reduce hospital readmissions.
We look forward to working with you this session! Please contact our lobbying team if you have any questions. Threase Harms and her team can be reached at threase@advocayiowa.com or by phone at 515.975.5299. We wish you a productive session!
Sincerely,
Steve Bowen, IOTA President
(402) 889.0816 steveotd13@gmail.com
Denise Behrends, IOTA Legislative Chair
(515) 699.5999 ext. 24204 Denise.Behrends@va.gov