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83rd OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2025 Regular Session
House Bill 3960
Sponsored by Representative TRAN
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject
to consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor’s brief statement of the essential features of the
measure as introduced.The statement includes a measure digest written in compliance with applicable readability
standards.
Digest: The Act says that OHA and some other boards can say that CEs on suicide prevention
can count as cultural competency CEs. (Flesch Readability Score: 61.4).
Allows the Oregon Health Authority to approve as cultural competency continuing education
opportunities relating to suicide prevention. Requires that approved cultural competency continuing
education opportunities enable health care professionals to effectively care for patients who are
members or veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States.
Allows certain health professional regulatory boards to count continuing education relating to
suicide prevention and lethal means counseling toward a licensee’s requirement to complete cultural
competency continuing education.
Takes effect on the 91st day following adjournment sine die.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to continuing education for health care providers; creating new provisions; amending ORS
413.450 and 676.850; and prescribing an effective date.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 413.450 is amended to read:
413.450. (1) The Oregon Health Authority shall approve continuing education opportunities re-
lating to cultural competency, which may include opportunities relating to suicide prevention .
(2) The authority shall develop a list of continuing education opportunities relating to cultural
competency, which may include opportunities relating to suicide prevention and make the list
available to each board, as defined in ORS 676.850.
(3) The continuing education opportunities may include, but need not be limited to:
(a) Courses delivered either in person or electronically;
(b) Experiential learning such as cultural or linguistic immersion;
(c) Service learning; or
(d) Specially designed cultural experiences.
(4) The continuing education opportunities must teach attitudes, knowledge and skills that ena-
ble a health care professional to care effectively for patients from diverse cultures, groups and
communities, [including but not limited to:] including patients who are members of the Armed
Forces of the United States or veterans, as defined in ORS 408.225. The attitudes, knowledge
and skills taught under this subsection must include, but are not limited to:
(a) Applying linguistic skills to communicate effectively with patients from diverse cultures,
groups and communities, including patients who are members of the Armed Forces of the
United States or veterans, as defined in ORS 408.225;
(b) Using cultural information to establish therapeutic relationships; and
(c) Eliciting, understanding and applying cultural and ethnic data in the process of clinical care.
(5) The authority may accept gifts, grants or contributions from any public or private source for
NOTE:Matter in boldfaced type in an amended section is new; matter [italic and bracketed] is existing law to be omitted.
New sections are in boldfaced type.
LC 4808 HB3960
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the purpose of carrying out this section. Moneys received by the authority under this subsection
shall be deposited into the Oregon Health Authority Fund established by ORS 413.101.
(6) The authority may contract with or award grant funding to a public or private entity to
develop the list of or offer approved continuing education opportunities relating to cultural compe-
tency. The authority is not subject to the requirements of ORS chapters 279A, 279B and 279C with
respect to contracts entered into under this subsection.
SECTION 2. ORS 676.850 is amended to read:
676.850. (1) As used in this section, “board” means the:
(a) State Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology;
(b) State Board of Chiropractic Examiners;
(c) State Board of Licensed Social Workers;
(d) Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists;
(e) Oregon Board of Dentistry;
(f) Board of Licensed Dietitians;
(g) State Board of Massage Therapists;
(h) Oregon Board of Naturopathic Medicine;
(i) Oregon State Board of Nursing;
(j) Long Term Care Administrators Board;
(k) Oregon Board of Optometry;
(L) State Board of Pharmacy;
(m) Oregon Medical Board;
(n) Occupational Therapy Licensing Board;
(o) Oregon Board of Physical Therapy;
(p) Oregon Board of Psychology;
(q) Board of Medical Imaging;
(r) State Board of Direct Entry Midwifery;
(s) State Board of Denture Technology;
(t) Respiratory Therapist and Polysomnographic Technologist Licensing Board;
(u) Home Care Commission;
(v) Oregon Health Authority, to the extent that the authority licenses emergency medical ser-
vice providers; and
(w) Health Licensing Office, to the extent that the office licenses lactation consultants.
(2)(a)(A) A board shall adopt rules to require a person authorized to practice the profession
regulated by the board to complete cultural competency continuing education, which may include
continuing education relating to lethal means counseling and suicide prevention . Completion
of the continuing education described in this subsection shall be a condition of renewal of an au-
thorization to practice the profession regulated by the board every other time that the person’s au-
thorization is subject to renewal.
(B) Continuing education relating to lethal means counseling must include the assess-
ment of whether a patient is at an elevated risk for suicide and has access to lethal means,
and working with the patient and the patient’s family and support system to limit the
patient’s access to the lethal means until the patient is no longer at an elevated risk for
suicide.
(b) Cultural competency continuing education courses may be taken in addition to or, if a board
determines that the cultural competency continuing education fulfills existing continuing education
[2] HB3960
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requirements, instead of any other continuing education requirement imposed by the board.
(c) A board shall consider the availability of the continuing education described in this sub-
section when adopting rules regarding the required number of credits of continuing education.
(d) A board shall encourage, but may not require, the completion of continuing education ap-
proved by the Oregon Health Authority under ORS 413.450. A board shall accept as meeting the
requirements of this subsection continuing education that meets the skills requirements established
by the authority by rule.
(3) The requirements of subsection (2) of this section do not apply to a person authorized to
practice a profession regulated by a board if the person is:
(a) Retired and not practicing the profession in any state;
(b) Not practicing the profession in this state; or
(c) Residing in this state but not practicing the profession in any state.
SECTION 3. The amendments to ORS 413.450 and 676.850 apply to individuals who apply
for initial licensure or renewal of a license issued by a board as defined in ORS 676.850 on
or after the operative date specified in section 4 of this 2025 Act.
SECTION 4.(1) The amendments to ORS 413.450 and 676.850 by sections 1 and 2 of this
2025 Act become operative on January 1, 2026.
(2) The Oregon Health Authority and a board as defined in ORS 676.850 may take any
action before the operative date specified in subsection (1) of this section that is necessary
to enable the authority and the boards to exercise, on and after the operative date specified
in subsection (1) of this section, all of the duties, functions and powers conferred on the
authority and the boards by the amendments to ORS 413.450 and 676.850 by sections 1 and 2
of this 2025 Act.
SECTION 5. This 2025 Act takes effect on the 91st day after the date on which the 2025
regular session of the Eighty-third Legislative Assembly adjourns sine die.
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