Proposed Draft Rules / Public Comment / Recently Adopted Rules

Proposed Draft Rules/Public Comment

Questions - contact the executive director, Mary-Beth Baptista at MaryBeth.Baptista@obnm.oregon.gov

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS: REGARDING THE DRAFT ADMINISTRATIVE RULES.

QUESTION: Oregon Revised Statues (ORS) - Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR) and the Divisions of OARs… What does all of that even mean? Why are they “organized" the way they are?

ANSWER: Here's how it works, Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) are passed by the legislature, and are written purposefully broad. Oregon Administrative Rules Chapter 850, passed by the Naturopathic Board, fills in the gaps of the broad statutory language to provide clear and transparent expectations. Each Division of Chapter 850 – regulates a specific area; e.g. licensure rules / CE rules / general practice rules / discipline rules… etc.

PLEASE NOTE: The Board CAN NOT pass rules that go beyond the authority given to the Board in Statute. As you know, the Board changed ORS 685.110 Grounds for discipline; penalties in the 2025-2027 legislative session. The changes to ORS 685.110 added grounds for discipline related engaging in sexual conduct, ethical grounds / honesty in dealings with the Board, and enhanced transparency related to the practice of naturopathic medicine and licensee credentials. These rules DO NOT / CAN NOT impose new or additional grounds for discipline. The proposed rules provide clarity and guidance to the BOARD's CURRENT AUTHORITY UNDER THE ADOPTED STATUTE 685.110.

QUESTION: Why is the Board proposing so many new rules and more discipline rules?

ANSWER: The Board IS NOT proposing a lot of new rules / discipline rules. The Board is MOVING A LOT OF RULES. OAR 850 - Division 50 – Discipline, should only include rules related to discipline. But for years Division 50 has been confusingly loaded with a lot of rules not related to discipline. For clarity and transparency – we took those rules out of Division 50 – Discipline, and appropriately moved them to Division 10 – General Rules. So, all the below draft rules moving to “850-010-XXXX" are ALL the same rules that have been in place for 20+ years but were just in the wrong place. So - NOT NEW RULES – SAME RULES – DIFFERENT PLACE!

QUESTION: It looks like there are so many new discipline rules how do I know what has changed with all the legalese?

ANSWER: AGREED! Even though the Board and I have spent the last 9 years trying to revise the rules using plain language - there is still so much work to do. Almost all the changes in the rules in Division 50 – Discipline, were reorganization and revised language.

Reorganization: We grouped discipline into categories: (1) Practice Violations (2) Ethical Violations (3) Professional Violations (4) Conduct that renders the applicant or licensee unfit to perform the duties of a naturopathic physician.

Revision: We revised language of the rules, so they aren't legal conclusions that are hard to understand. Example: instead of the current language - “negligent treatment" we revised to descriptive / informative language: “Engaging in treatment that deviates from the naturopathic standard of care and creates an unreasonable risk of harm to a patient, whether or not harm occurred."

QUESTION: Do the revised rules lead to more restrictions in our practice and increase risk of discipline if we don't?

ANSWER: NO! The proposed rules provide clarity and guidance to the Board's current authority under the adopted ORS 685.110.

Public Comments on proposed draft rule below

Proposed Draft Rule: 850-050-0010
FILING CAPTION: Clarify and organizing ground for discipline in one rule.