Changing of Professional Development Requirements 

ASHA Professional Development Requirements for the 2020 Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology Certification Standards are now going to require at least one hour in the area of Ethics for certification maintenance, and for at least 2 hours to meet supervision requirements.

Further Clarification About Continuing Education Rules in Maine 

The Executive Council (EC) has gotten several inquiries lately about 2021 continuing education requirements for SLP/A licensure. All speech-language pathologists, audiologists, and hearing aid dealers and fitters in Maine are required by the Maine Board of Speech, Audiology, and Hearing (BSAH) to obtain 10 hours of continuing education activities yearly. This requirement includes at least 6 “live” hours (in person or by distance learning with immediate interaction with the speaker) and no more than 4 “non-live” hours. 

As reported in the October 2021 MSLHA newsletter, the Executive Order signed by Governor Mills, which waived CEU requirements for all Maine professions for 2020, was suspended in June 2021. The EC reached out to the Maine Board of Speech, Audiology, and Hearing to find out whether the “live” portion of the CEU requirement could be changed to “non-live” status or waived for 2021 due to ongoing Covid-19 concerns about live gatherings. The Board replied that the requirement for 10 hours stood as required and also stated that there was no plan to alter the “live” requirement. Therefore, the CEU requirement still stands for license renewal by February 28, 2022. 

One question the EC has received more than once was why the MSLHA EC didn’t change the CEU requirement for 2021. To clarify, the State of Maine Board of Speech, Audiology, and Hearing (BSAH) sets and regulates licensure and continuing education requirements. The MSLHA EC advocates for members but does not set licensure regulations. The Rules of BSAH may be found at the following web address: 

https://www.maine.gov/pfr/professionallicensing/sites/maine.gov.pfr.professionallicensing/files/inline-files/December%2024-2011.pdf 

The BSAH Rules consist of 12 Chapters that define SLP/A/HA licensure and practice as well as continuing education. The specific part of the Rules that covers continuing education requirements may be found in Chapter 8, Sections 3,5, and 6. 

To help members and non-members identify ways to meet licensure requirements, the EC has posted links to several “live” CEU activities on the MSLHA FB page since August 2021. In 2022, MSLHA will be holding their annual convention which will provide an excellent opportunity to get “live” CEU hours for this year.