Washington DC Sleep Society

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Timeline of Legislative Action

 

  • In the late summer of 2008 the DC City Council's Committee on Health introduced a bill (B17-801 "The Health Occupations and Revision Act of 1985") was introduced to the DC City Council by the chairman at the request of the Mayor.  B17-801 was subsequently referred to the city Council's Committee on Health.  The bill as written, would have given the authority to regulate licensure for the field of Polysomnography to the DC Respiratory Care Board. 

 

  • Initial steps leading to the organization of the DC Sleep Society organizing committee were taken as a response to this legislation in August of 2008.  DCSS began working immediately along with the American Association of Sleep Technologists to educate the City Council health committee on the Field of Polysomnography.  DCSS submitted letters of concern regarding the bill as well as a letter citing recommended changes to the language in the bill that could potentially be restrictive to the practice of Polysomnography. 

 

  • In December of 2008, DCSS learned that due to controversy surrounding the bill, an alternate hearing would be scheduled in 2009 regarding the licensure of Sleep Technologists. B17-801 as it was originally written, included many different allied health professions, and was subsequently split into separate bills. 

 

  •  In late January of 2009, we were pleased to find out that the bill was in fact re-written, and that the new draft of the bill written by the Committee on Health would place the oversight of the field of Polysomnography under the Board of Medicine as we had requested.  Bill (B18-33) can be seen in its entirety here . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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    On March 3rd, The Washington, DC City Council unanimously approved Bill 18-33. 

 

  • On April 13th, 2009 the Bill to be sent to Mayor Adrian Fenty's office for approval.

 

  • On May 5th, 2009, DCSS learned that the Act has been signed by DC Mayor Adrian Fenty. After the Mayor has approved the legislation, the bill became an Act. Unique to DC, an approved Act of the Council must be sent to the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate for a period of 30 days before becoming effective as law. Upon the expiration of the 30-day congressional review period (completed July 7th, 2009), the Act finally became law.   

 

  • DC Government informed DCSS that the new law would be effective July 20th, 2009.  The new law will regulate polysomnography under the Board of Medicine, and will create an Advisory Committee on Polysomnography, comprised of Physicians and Sleep Technologists who are residents of the District of Columbia, to develop guidelines regulating the practice.

 

  • In September of 2009, the office of DC Mayor Adrian Fentynamed DCSS Board Members Phillip T.B. Cameron, RPSGT, & Jonathan Prince, CRT, RPSGT to the DC Board of Medicine Advisory Committee on Polysomnography as outlined in B18-33.