(1) (a) Repealed.

(a.5) The executive director or chief medical officer shall regulate the acts emergency medical service providers are authorized to perform subject to the medical direction of a licensed physician. The executive director or chief medical officer, after considering the advice and recommendations of the advisory council, shall adopt and revise rules, as necessary, regarding the regulation of emergency medical service providers and their duties and functions.

(b) The department shall certify emergency medical service providers. The board shall adopt rules for the certification of emergency medical service providers. The rules must include the following:

(I) A statement that a certificate is valid for a period of three years after the date of issuance;

(II) A statement that the certificate shall be renewable at its expiration upon the certificate holder's satisfactory completion of the training requirements established pursuant to subsection (2) of this section;

(III) Provisions governing the use of results of national and state criminal history record checks by the department to determine the action to take on a certification application pursuant to subsection (4) of this section. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 24-5-101, C.R.S., these provisions shall allow the department to consider whether the applicant has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude and the pertinent circumstances connected with the conviction and to make a determination whether any such conviction disqualifies the applicant from certification.

(IV) Disciplinary sanctions, which shall include provisions for the denial, revocation, and suspension of certificates and the suspension and probation of certificate holders; and

(V) An appeals process pursuant to sections 24-4-104 and 24-4-105, C.R.S., that is applicable to department decisions in connection with certifications and sanctions.

(c)

(I) The department may issue a provisional certification to an applicant for certification as an emergency medical service provider who requests issuance of a provisional certification and who pays any fee authorized under rules adopted by the board. A provisional certification is valid for not more than ninety days.

(II) The department shall not issue a provisional certification unless the applicant satisfies the requirements for certification in accordance with this section and rules adopted by the board under this subsection (1). If the department finds that an emergency medical service provider that has received a provisional certification has violated any requirements for certification, the department may impose disciplinary sanctions under subparagraph (IV) of paragraph (b) of this subsection (1).

(III) The department may issue a provisional certification to an applicant whose fingerprint-based criminal history record check has not yet been completed. The department shall require the applicant to submit a name-based criminal history record check prior to issuing a provisional certification.

(IV) The board shall adopt rules as necessary to implement this paragraph (c), including rules establishing a fee to be charged to applicants seeking a provisional certification. Any fee collected for a provisional certification shall be deposited in the emergency medical services account created in section 25-3.5-603.

(d)

(I) The department shall exempt certified emergency medical service providers who have been called to federally funded active duty for more than one hundred twenty days to serve in a war, emergency, or contingency from the payment of certification fees and from continuing education or professional competency requirements of this article for a renewal date during the service or the six months after the completion of service.

(II) Upon presentation of satisfactory evidence by an applicant for renewal of certification, the department may accept continuing medical education, training, or service completed by an individual as a member of the armed forces or reserves of the United States, the National Guard of any state, the military reserves of any state, or the naval militia of any state toward the qualifications to renew the individual's certification.

(III) (A) A veteran, active military service member, or member of the National Guard and reserves separating from an active duty tour or the spouse of a veteran or member may apply for certification under this article while stationed or residing within this state. The veteran, member, or spouse is exempt from the initial certification requirements in this article, except for those in subsection (4) of this section, if the veteran, member, or spouse holds a current, valid, and unrestricted certification from the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) at or above the level of state certification being sought.

(B) The department shall expedite the processing of a certification application submitted by a veteran, active military service member, or member of the National Guard and reserves separating from an active duty tour or the spouse of a veteran or member.

(IV) The board shall promulgate rules to implement this paragraph (d), including the criteria and evidence for acceptable continuing medical education and training or service.

(2) The council shall advise the department and the board in establishing the training requirements for certificate renewal. Such training requirements shall consist of not more than fifty classroom hours and not less than thirty-six classroom hours.

(3) Repealed.

(4) (a) The department may, with reasonable cause, acquire a fingerprint-based criminal history record check from the Colorado bureau of investigation to investigate the holder of or applicant for an emergency medical service provider certificate. The department may acquire a name-based criminal history record check for a certificate holder or an applicant who has twice submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check and whose fingerprints are unclassifiable.

(b)

(I) Any government entity that employs a person as or allows a person to volunteer as an emergency medical service provider in a position requiring direct contact with patients shall require all volunteer and employed emergency medical service providers, who have lived in the state for three years or less at the time of the initial certification or certification renewal, to submit to a federal bureau of investigation fingerprint-based national criminal history record check to determine eligibility for employment. Each emergency medical service provider required to submit to a federal bureau of investigation fingerprint-based national criminal history record check shall obtain a complete set of fingerprints taken by a local law enforcement agency, another entity designated by the department, or any third party approved by the Colorado bureau of investigation. If an approved third party takes the person's fingerprints, the fingerprints may be electronically captured using Colorado bureau of investigation-approved livescan equipment. Third-party vendors shall not keep the person's information for more than thirty days unless requested to do so by the person. The approved third party or government entity shall transmit the fingerprints to the Colorado bureau of investigation, which shall in turn forward them to the federal bureau of investigation for a national criminal history record check. The department or other authorized government entity is the authorized agency to receive and disseminate information regarding the result of a national criminal history record check. Each entity handling the national criminal history record check shall comply with Pub.L. 92-544, as amended. Each government entity acting as the authorized recipient of the result of a national criminal history record check shall forward the result of the initial national criminal history record check and any subsequent notification of activity on the record to the department to determine the individual's eligibility for initial certification or certification renewal.

(II) Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (b), the government entity may acquire a name-based criminal history record check for an individual who has twice submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check and whose fingerprints are unclassifiable.

(c) (I) (A) A government entity or private, not-for-profit, or for-profit organization that employs a person or allows a person to volunteer as an emergency medical service provider in a position requiring direct contact with patients shall require all volunteer and employed emergency medical service providers, who have lived in the state for more than three years at the time of initial certification or certification renewal, to submit to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check by the Colorado bureau of investigation to determine eligibility for employment. The organization shall forward the result of the criminal history record check and any subsequent notification of activity on the record to the department to determine eligibility for initial certification or certification renewal.

(B) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-subparagraph (A) of this subparagraph (I), the government entity or private, not-for-profit, or for-profit organization may acquire a name-based criminal history record check for an individual who has twice submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check and whose fingerprints are unclassifiable.

(II) Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (c), if a person submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check at the time of initial certification or certification renewal, the person shall not be required to submit to a subsequent fingerprint-based criminal history record check.

(d)

(I) If an applicant for initial certification or certification renewal is not employed at the time of application, the department shall require the applicant to submit to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check by the Colorado bureau of investigation as defined in rule by the board of health, if the applicant has lived in the state for more than three years; except that the department may acquire a state name-based criminal history record check for an applicant who has twice submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check and whose fingerprints are unclassifiable.

(II) Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (d), if a person submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check at the time of initial certification or certification renewal, the person shall not be required to submit to a subsequent fingerprint-based criminal history record check.

(e) If the applicant is not employed or is employed by a nongovernmental entity at the time of application and has lived in the state for three years or less, the department shall require the applicant to submit to a federal bureau of investigation fingerprint-based national criminal history record check; except that the department may acquire a national name-based criminal history record check for an applicant who has twice submitted to a fingerprint-based criminal history record check and whose fingerprints are unclassifiable. The department shall be the authorized agency to receive and disseminate information regarding the result of any national criminal history record check. Any such national criminal history record check shall be handled in accordance with Pub.L. 92-544, as amended.

(4.5) (a) As used in this subsection (4.5), unless the context otherwise requires:

(I) "Cat" means a small, domesticated feline animal that is kept as a pet. "Cat" does not include a nondomesticated wild animal.

(II) "Dog" means any canine animal owned for domestic, companionship, service, therapeutic, or assistance purposes.

(III) "Emergency medical service provider" means an emergency medical service provider that is certified or licensed by the department of public health and environment, created under section 25-1-102.

(IV) "Employer" means an entity or organization that employs or enlists the services of an emergency medical service provider, regardless of whether the provider is paid or is a volunteer. The employer may be a public, private, for-profit, or nonprofit organization or entity; or a special district.

(V) "Preveterinary emergency care" means the immediate medical stabilization of a dog or cat by an emergency medical service provider, in an emergency to which the emergency medical service provider is responding, through means including oxygen, fluids, medications, or bandaging, with the intent of enabling the dog or cat to be treated by a veterinarian. "Preveterinary emergency care" does not include care provided in response to an emergency call made solely for the purpose of tending to an injured dog or cat, unless a person's life could be in danger attempting to save the life of a dog or cat.

(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an emergency medical service provider may provide preveterinary emergency care to dogs and cats to the extent the provider has received commensurate training and is authorized by the employer to provide the care. Requirements governing the circumstances under which emergency medical service providers may provide preveterinary emergency care to dogs and cats may be specified in the employer's policies governing the provision of care.

(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, nothing in this subsection (4.5) imposes upon an emergency medical service provider any obligation to provide care to a dog or cat, or to provide care to a dog or cat before a person.

(5) For the purposes of this article, unless the context otherwise requires, "medical direction" includes, but is not limited to, the following:

(a) Approval of the medical components of treatment protocols and appropriate prearrival instructions;

(b) Routine review of program performance and maintenance of active involvement in quality improvement activities, including access to dispatch tapes as necessary for the evaluation of procedures;

(c) Authority to recommend appropriate changes to protocols for the improvement of patient care; and

(d) Provide oversight for the ongoing education, training, and quality assurance for providers of emergency care.