Tag Archives: APRN

2019 RN APRN License Renewal

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The renewal window for registered nurse (“RN”) and advanced practice registered nurse (“APRN”) licenses issued by the Ohio Board of Nursing (“Board”) begins Monday, July 1, 2019, and ends on Thursday, October 31, 2019.  Renewal is completed online using the Ohio eLicense system.

Prepare for Renewal Now

  • Update your email address. Beginning in mid-June, the Board will send renewal notifications to your email address on record with the Board.  You will not receive a renewal notice by U.S. mail.  To update your email address, call the Ohio eLicense Service Center at (855) 405-5514.
  • Use an appropriate web browser. The Ohio eLicense website works best if you use Google Chrome as your web browser.  You can also use Mozilla Firefox or Microsoft Internet Explorer (Version 11).
  • Expired or forgotten passwords. If you have not used the Ohio eLicense system in the past 12 months, your password has expired.  If your password has expired or you have forgotten your password, visit the Ohio eLicense system website and click the “Forgot Password?” link to reset your password.
  • Additional information may be required. The renewal application includes, but is not limited to, questions concerning criminal, licensure, mental health matters, and alcohol/drugs matters.  All information provided in the renewal application is required to be true and accurate.  Depending on the response given to certain questions in the renewal application, uploading an explanation and Certified copies of certain specific documents may also be required.  If you are required to provide any additional documentation as part of your renewal application, the documents must be uploaded through the online system.  No hard copies of documents will be accepted.

The Renewal Process

  • Renewal Fees. The renewal fee for RNs is $65.00 and the renewal fee for APRNs is $135.00.
  • Must pay by credit or debit. Renewal fees must be paid online at the time of renewal using either a Master Card, VISA, or Discover credit or debit card.
  • Continuing education (“CE”). You must complete your CE requirements by October 31, 2019 to maintain licensure.  You do not have to provide documentation of completed CE, but you do have to attest that you have complied with the CE requirements required by the Board.
  • Renew as soon as possible. Incomplete applications or failure to pay renewal fee will cause your application to be rejected by the Board.  Waiting until a deadline and realizing you do not have all of the information needed to complete the application may prevent you from renewing timely.
  • Late fees. If you do not complete your application and pay the appropriate renewal fee by September 15, 2019, you must pay a late fee.  For those licensees filing late, the total cost for RNs is $115.00 ($65.00 renewal fee plus $50.00 late fee) and the total cost for APRNs is $135.00 ($135.00 renewal fee plus $50.00 late fee).

If you do not file a complete renewal application and/or pay the required fee by October 31, 2019, your license will lapse.  A registered nurse or advanced practice registered nurse in Ohio whose license has lapsed is not authorized to work as a nurse until their nursing license is reinstated by the Board.  It is a disciplinable offense to engage in the practice of nursing on a lapsed nursing license.

In certain cases, the renewal application may be forwarded to the Board’s Compliance Unit for review and a Board investigator may contact the nurse to obtain additional information.  In other cases, a Consent Agreement may be offered to the nurse to resolve a disciplinable offense instead of preceding to an administrative hearing.

If you do not understand a question in your renewal application, or do not know what additional information to upload with your renewal application, it is recommended to obtain experienced legal counsel to assist you before submitting your renewal application, speaking with any Board investigator, or signing a Consent Agreement.

As always, if you have questions about this post or the Ohio Board of Nursing, contact Beth Collis (Beth.Collis@dinsmore.com) at (614) 628-6945 or Todd Collis (Todd.Collis@dinsmore.com) at (614) 628-6962.

TYPICALLY, A CONSENT AGREEMENT WHICH HAS BEEN SIGNED BY A NURSE AND THE OHIO BOARD OF NURSING IS FINAL AND GENERALLY WILL NOT BE MODIFIED

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In our private practice of representing nurses before the Ohio Board of Nursing, we are often contacted by nurses who have entered into a Consent Agreement with the Nursing Board and who want to change the terms after the Consent Agreement has already been approved by the nurse and the Nursing Board.  Typically, however, a Consent Agreement which has been approved by the nurse and the Nursing Board is final and will not be renegotiated.

A Consent Agreement is a legally binding contract that a nurse may enter into with the Nursing Board to resolve a pending disciplinary matter.  For example, in some instances, a nurse will agree in the Consent Agreement to allow their license to be placed on suspension or on probation, and to be subject to various conditions, such as random drug screens or completion of CEUs in addition to CEUs required for license renewal.  The time to propose and negotiate changes to the Consent Agreement is before the Consent Agreement has been signed by the nurse and the Nursing Board.

While certain provisions in the Consent Agreement are considered by the Nursing Board to be non-negotiable, there are certain sections of the Consent Agreement which may be negotiated.  For example, information pertaining to completed treatment for impairment or other relevant evidence in support of the nurse’s defense may be negotiated to be included in the Consent Agreement.  Additionally, there are certain instances where the Board will negotiate the duration of a suspension or probation based on the evidence in the matter.

We are also contacted by nurses who have violated their Consent Agreement and want to attempt to negotiate more favorable or different terms with the Nursing Board.  Although there is a “standard” provision in most Consent Agreements permitting modification of the Consent Agreement upon the written agreement of the nurse and the Board, it is our general experience that the Nursing Board does not re-negotiate Consent Agreements.  For example, if a nurse is required to pay a $500 fine within 6 months of the Consent Agreement taking effect and the nurse fails to do so, it is our general experience that the Nursing Board will not agree to modify the terms of the Consent Agreement to require the nurse to pay a $250 fine instead. Similarly, if a nurse is required to submit to random drug screens for 1 year and tests positive for drugs – even on 1 screen – the Board will not modify the Consent Agreement to eliminate the random drug screening requirement.

Additionally, failure of a nurse to comply with the terms of the Consent Agreement generally results in the Nursing Board suspending the nurse’s license based on a violation of the Consent Agreement.  If the Board suspends the nurse’s license based on the nurse’s failure to comply with the terms of the Consent Agreement, the earliest the nurse could have their license reinstated would be at the Board meeting subsequent to the suspension, and, in certain instances, it can take longer.  In this regard, please note that the Nursing Board meets every other month.

Prior to entering into a Consent Agreement with the Nursing Board, it is important that you fully understand and agree to all terms and conditions of the Consent Agreement.  After the Consent Agreement is signed by the nurse and by the Nursing Board, the Consent Agreement is a legally binding contract between the nurse and the Nursing Board which is, generally, considered by the Nursing Board to be final and not subject to modification.

As always, if you have any questions about this post or about the Ohio Board of Nursing in general, please feel free to contact one of the attorneys at the Collis Law Group LLC at 614-486-3909 or email me at beth@collislaw.com.