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AN ACT relating to military healthcare personnel. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
ď˘SECTION 1. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 164 IS CREATED TO 3
READ AS FOLLOWS: 4
(1) As used in this section: 5
(a) "Military healthcare personnel" means an individual who has received 6
formal training and practical experience in healthcare disciplines during 7
his or her military service. including providing emergency medical care, 8
preventive healthcare, and specialized medical services; and 9
(b) "Professional licensure board" has the same meaning as in KRS 211.332. 10
(2) (a) The Kentucky Community and Technical College System shall develop 11
academic career pathways and integrated academic bridge programs for 12
military healthcare personnel that are designed to enable current and 13
former military healthcare personnel to achieve reduced time-to-credential 14
outcomes. These pathways and integrated academic bridge programs shall 15
integrate military academic and experiential learning to accelerate the 16
transition from military to civilian healthcare credentialing based on 17
developed military-to-civilian occupational crosswalks for, at a minimum, 18
the following occupations: 19
1. Infantryman; 20
2. Hospital Corpsman; 21
3. Biomedical Equipment Specialist; 22
4. Orthopedic Specialist; 23
5. Practical Nursing Specialist; 24
6. Operating Room Specialist; 25
7. Dental Specialist; 26
8. Physical Therapy Specialist; 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 221
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9. Patient Administration Specialist; 1
10. Optical Laboratory Specialist; 2
11. Medical Logistics Specialist; 3
12. Medical Laboratory Specialist; 4
13. Occupational Therapist Specialist; 5
14. Nutrition Care Specialist; 6
15. Cardiovascular Specialist; 7
16. Radiology Specialist; 8
17. Pharmacy Specialist; 9
18. Veterinarian Food Inspection Specialist; 10
19. Preventive Medicine Specialist; 11
20. Animal Care Specialist; 12
21. Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) Specialist; 13
22. Respiratory Specialist; 14
23. Combat Medic Specialist; 15
24. Behavioral Health Specialist; 16
25. Eye Specialist; 17
26. Independent Duty Medical Technician; and 18
27. Aerospace Medical Technician. 19
(b) The Kentucky Community and Technical College System military 20
healthcare personnel academic career pathways and integrated academic 21
bridge programs shall be fully compatible with the Department of Defense 22
SkillBridge program. 23
(c) The Kentucky Community and Technical College System shall review 24
military healthcare personnel related healthcare programs in relationship to 25
realistic earning potential and employability of the institution graduates and 26
submit a written report to the Legislative Research Commission for referral 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 221
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to the Interim Joint Committee on Veterans, Military Affairs, and Public 1
Protection no later than September 1 of each year. The report shall include: 2
1. The minimum number of months or years required to complete the 3
healthcare program and the average number of months or years 4
military healthcare personnel graduates of each healthcare program 5
were enrolled; 6
2. The graduation rate of each healthcare program and the military 7
healthcare personnel graduation rate; 8
3. The employment rate of military healthcare personnel graduates of 9
each healthcare program within twelve (12) months of graduation; 10
and 11
4. A summary of all new actions taken by the institution during the 12
reporting year to increase military healthcare personnel participation 13
and to reduce transitional barriers to healthcare professionals. 14
(3) The Kentucky Community and Technical College System, in collaboration with 15
the United States Department of Labor, Kentucky veterans' organizations, the 16
Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs, the Kentucky Department of Military 17
Affairs, and any other public or private entities, including state-based entities 18
transitioning military personnel to Kentucky-based employment, shall use 19
healthcare and military recruiters, as well as other dedicated resources, to 20
advocate, facilitate, and promote the recruitment and enrollment of military 21
healthcare personnel into military healthcare academic and career pathways. 22
(4) Each professional licensure board shall collaborate with the Kentucky 23
Community and Technical College System to integrate the academic career 24
pathways and integrated academic bridge programs for military healthcare 25
personnel into their licensure requirements. 26