Makes various changes relating to audiology, fitting and dispensing hearing aids and speech-language pathology. (BDR 54-199)
AB 177 makes a broad set of updates to Nevada’s laws governing audiology, hearing aid dispensing, and speech-language pathology. The bill creates a new license for speech-language pathology assistants and defines a supervised-practice framework for assistants, provisional licensees, and students, all of whom may practice only under a supervising speech-language pathologist. It also directs the Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology and Hearing Aid Dispensing Board to adopt regulations for assistant licensure, supervision, and related practice standards.
The bill also revises scope-of-practice rules for audiologists, hearing aid specialists, and speech-language pathologists. It expands audiology and hearing-aid practice to include ordering the use of hearing aids, removes the separate endorsement for dispensing audiologists, and updates hearing-aid sales rules to align with federal law on over-the-counter hearing aids and mail-order/Internet sales. In addition, it narrows an existing exemption for certain Department of Education credential holders, updates licensure pathways and endorsement reciprocity, and makes conforming changes throughout the chapter.
AB 177 amends multiple provisions in Chapter 637B of the Nevada Revised Statutes and one education statute, NRS 391.162. It increases maximum licensing and related fees, authorizes fee waivers, and requires reduced initial fees for certain military members, veterans, surviving spouses, and family members of service members killed in the line of duty. It also changes temporary, provisional, and endorsement licensing rules to recognize licenses from the District of Columbia and U.S. territories, and it repeals provisions tied to provisional military licensing and the dispensing-audiologist endorsement.
The bill further affects school-district employment classifications by requiring certain employees with qualifying education endorsements to be treated the same as licensed speech-language pathologists under collective bargaining agreements, with a delayed application date for existing agreements. Practically, the measure expands regulated practice, clarifies who may work under supervision, and updates the Board’s enforcement authority over unlicensed practice and federal hearing-aid rules.
The bill appears to have received generally strong support. It passed the Assembly 40-2 and the Senate 19-2, indicating broad bipartisan approval with only limited opposition. The overall direction of the measure suggests support for modernizing licensure, expanding workforce pathways, and conforming state law to federal hearing-aid rules.
The main areas of potential contention are the expansion of licensure and supervision requirements, the increase in maximum fees, and the reclassification of certain school-based personnel under collective bargaining agreements. Some stakeholders may view the new assistant license and broader supervised-practice framework as helpful workforce development, while others may be concerned about regulatory burden, professional boundaries, or labor implications in schools. The bill also removes prior restrictions on over-the-counter hearing aids and mail-order sales, which may be welcomed by consumer-access advocates but could be viewed as reducing professional oversight by some licensees.