FILED ON: 7/30/2012

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2396

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the Year Two Thousand Twelve

_______________

An Act relative to the registration of podiatrists.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

Chapter 112 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 13, as appearing in the 2010 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 13.  Podiatry, as used in this chapter, shall mean the diagnosis and treatment of the structures of the human foot and ankle by medical, mechanical, surgical, manipulative and electrical means, including, but not limited to, the treatment of the local manifestation of systemic conditions as they present in the foot and ankle, partial amputation of the foot and tendon surgery in the foot and ankle, including the achilles tendon.   The practice of podiatry shall not include the administration of a general anesthetic or amputation of the entire foot.  Ankle surgery involving bone shall (i) include, but not exceed,  portions of the fibula and tibia that directly relate to the ankle; (ii) be performed in a hospital or surgical center; (iii) require credentialing by the hospital or surgical center; and (iv) require either (1) board certification approved by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery,   (2) board certification as considered appropriate by the board of registration in podiatry,  (3) supervision of a podiatric physician who is board certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery who has ankle privileges, until competency is established to achieve credentialing by the hospital or surgical center or (4) supervision of a board certified allopathic or osteopathic physician who has ankle privileges, until competency is established to achieve credentialing by the hospital or surgical center.

This section and sections 14 to 22, inclusive, shall not apply to surgeons of the United States army, navy or the United States Public Health Service, nor to physicians registered in the commonwealth.  The term physician and surgeon when used in sections 12B, 12G, 23N and 80B shall include a podiatrist acting within the limitations imposed by this section.