PETITION FILED TO REQUIRE CHANGE IN ASSISTED LIVING ADMINISTRATOR LICENSURE

VCAL (6/18/2008)

A petition has been filed to eliminate the requirement for a national examination for licensure of assisted living facility administrators and to replace it with a state examination.  The public comment period will begin June 23, 2008 and end on July 23, 2008. The request will be published in the Virginia Register on June 23, 2008 and distributed to interested parties on the public participation list maintained by the Board.  The Board of Long Term Care Administrators will consider the request and any comments received at its next meeting on October 28, 2008.  Click here for details on the petition.

Regulations became effective on January 2, 2008 permitting current and new administrators who meet certain qualifications and receive a passing score on the NAB national exam to become licensed.  The standards give all administrators in the state until January 2, 2009 to become licensed if they meet eligibility criteria and pass the national examination.  By that date only licensed individuals will be allowed to serve as an administrator of an assisted living facility.  If a facility is licensed for “residential only” by the Department of Social Services the administrator is not required to be licensed.

The decision to require a national examination was thoroughly scrutinized by the Board and careful and deliberate consideration was given to whether to require a state and or a national examination.  After extensive discussion and public input, the Board determined that the NAB examination was the most effective and reasonable means to test ALF administrators.  Developing a state-specific exam is anticipated to be costly and necessitate revisions as regulations or state laws are amended.