NAC641C.300. Requirements for maintenance or renewal of license or certificate; grounds for disciplinary action.

     1. To maintain his or her licensure or certification, as appropriate, a counselor must earn at least 40 hours of continuing education during the 2-year period of licensure or certification, including, without limitation:

     (a) At least 3 hours of continuing education that pertain to ethics; and

     (b) At least 3 hours of continuing education that pertain to the standards of confidentiality required pursuant to NAC 641C.425 and, if applicable, the standards of confidentiality set forth in 42 C.F.R. Part 2 and the related provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 set forth in 45 C.F.R. Part 160.

     2. To maintain and renew his or her certification as a certified intern, the certified intern must attend:

     (a) At least 15 hours of training during his or her first 6 months of certification, including, without limitation:

          (1) At least 6 hours of training during the first 3 months of certification that pertain to ethics; and

          (2) At least 6 hours of training during the first 3 months of certification that pertain to the standards of confidentiality required pursuant to NAC 641C.425 and, if applicable, the standards of confidentiality set forth in the provisions of 42 C.F.R. Part 2 and the related provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 set forth in 45 C.F.R. Part 160;

     (b) At least 10 hours of training during his or her second 6 months of certification; and

     (c) At least 20 hours of training during each subsequent year of certification.

     3. A counselor or certified intern shall submit to the Board a certificate of completion of any hours of continuing education or training completed by the counselor or certified intern pursuant to subsection 1 or 2.

     4. If a certified intern attends any hours of training to satisfy the hours of training required pursuant to subsection 2, the certified intern may not apply the same hours of training toward:

     (a) A degree at an accredited college or university necessary to qualify for initial licensure or certification as a counselor; or

     (b) For persons applying to be licensed or certified alcohol and drug abuse counselors or licensed clinical alcohol and drug abuse counselors, a degree or semester or quarter hours as identified in NAC 641C.205.

     5. A counselor who takes a program of continuing education which presents the same material that the counselor took during the previous 2-year period will not get credit for taking the subsequent program of continuing education.

     6. To maintain his or her certificate as a supervisor of certified interns, a licensed alcohol and drug abuse counselor, a licensed clinical alcohol and drug abuse counselor or a certified problem gambling counselor must attend at least 10 hours of continuing education that pertain to counseling, supervision, ethics and Nevada law during the 2-year period of certification. These hours may be included in the hours required to maintain his or her license or certificate as a counselor pursuant to subsection 1.

     7. A supervisor of certified interns may earn 1 hour of continuing education for each certified intern whom he or she supervises, for up to not more than five interns supervised at any time. Not more than 10 hours of continuing education may be earned for supervising certified interns during any one year. The hours earned pursuant to this subsection may not be used to satisfy the requirements to renew a certificate as a supervisor of certified interns pursuant to subsection 6.

     8. A certified or licensed counselor may obtain 1 hour of continuing education for publishing an article in a peer-reviewed publication in the area of alcohol, drug or gambling counseling and, upon approval by the Board, for writing and submitting an article for the newsletter published by the Board. Not more than 5 hours of continuing education may be earned pursuant to this subsection during the 2-year period of licensure or certification.

     9. A certified or licensed counselor may obtain 1 hour of continuing education each time he or she participates as an examiner for an oral examination given pursuant to NRS 641C.290 for up to 5 hours of continuing education during a 2-year period of licensure or certification.

     10. A counselor is subject to disciplinary action by the Board if the counselor:

     (a) Fails to provide to the Board information regarding his or her participation in a program of continuing education within 30 days after receiving a request from the Board; or

     (b) Submits to the Board false or inaccurate information regarding his or her participation in a program of continuing education.

     (Added to NAC by Bd. of Exam’rs for Alcohol & Drug Abuse Counselors by R097-00, eff. 8-9-2000; A by R126-01, 1-28-2002; A by Bd. of Exam’rs for Alcohol, Drug & Gambling Counselors by R157-03, 12-16-2003; R072-07, 12-4-2007; R185-07, 12-17-2008)