(1) If the director has reasonable cause to believe that a registrant is unable to practice with reasonable skill and safety, the director may require the registrant to take a mental or physical examination by a health care provider designated by the director. If the registrant refuses to undergo a mental or physical examination, unless due to circumstances beyond the registrant's control, the director may suspend the registrant's registration until the results of the examination are known and the director has made a determination of the registrant's fitness to practice. The director shall proceed with an order for examination and determination in a timely manner.
The director shall include in an order issued under subsection (1) of this section thebasis of the director's reasonable cause to believe that the registrant is unable to practice with reasonable skill and safety. For the purposes of a disciplinary proceeding authorized by this article 250, the registrant is deemed to waive all objections to the admissibility of the examining health care provider's testimony or examination reports on the ground that the testimony and reports are privileged communications.
The registrant may submit to the director testimony or examination reports from ahealth care provider chosen by the registrant pertaining to the condition that the director alleges may preclude the registrant from practicing with reasonable skill and safety. The director may consider testimony and examination reports submitted by the registrant in conjunction with, but not in lieu of, testimony and examination reports of the health care provider designated by the director.
A person shall not use the results of any mental or physical examination ordered bythe director as evidence in any proceeding other than one before the director. The examination results are not public records and are not available to the public.
Source: L. 2019: Entire title R&RE with relocations, (HB 19-1172), ch. 136, p. 1317, § 1, effective October 1.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 12-37.3-117 as it existed prior to 2019.