In this News Brief:
We recently attended the APTA-CSM in Anaheim, where we represented HRRI, PT Compact, and FSBPT at a few booths. We connected with many practitioners, students, and educators and loved having so many productive conversations. Thank you to everyone who stopped by and made the event memorable!
Member jurisdictions should be aware of recent changes to the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) that will impact how they interpret TOEFL scores from candidates educated outside of the United States. The new examination is adaptive, has stronger security, and reports scores that align with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). What is important to know is that the new scores are not compatible with federal (USCIS and HRSA) or FSBPT-recommended minimum standards for English proficiency for physical therapy professionals.
Earlier in 2026, ETS had communicated that the old TOEFL scores would be available through most of 2027. Recently, FSBPT has learned that ETS will only provide total scores on the old scale for TOEFL rather than the subscale scores required to make determinations of English proficiency by either the federal or FSBPT-recommended minimum standards. For jurisdictions using the FSBPT-recommended standard, FSBPT provides the crosswalk recommended by ETS on our website. For jurisdictions using the federal standard, neither HRSA nor USCIS have provided guidance at this time.
Because the new scoring scale doesn’t align perfectly with the old scores (i.e., each new score corresponds to a range of old scores), jurisdictions will have to make a policy decision regarding whether they will accept the possibility of a candidate passing with a slightly lower score or require slightly higher scores of all candidates. We recently hosted a presentation for board administrators on this subject.
We expect new scores to become available the week of January 26, 2026. More information on the transition is available on ETS’s website.
If you need assistance interpreting the new scores, FSBPT is here to help. Please reach out to us.
FSBPT strives to be a deliberative organization and seeks to present new approaches and changes in a purposeful manner before our Leadership Issues Forum (LIF). Providing topics in advance allows the board an opportunity to carefully prepare topics for consideration. Bringing topics to LIF, where our members have plenty of time to engage in thoughtful dialogue, allows us to truly get member input on important topics. A number of topics have been presented at consecutive LIF meetings to make sure they are vetted properly, like the most recent bylaw changes or the disciplinary action guidelines. We welcome your input on future topics for LIF and look forward to hearing from you all!
We are accepting presentation ideas and proposals for 2026 webinars and in-person sessions at the 2026 Annual Education Meeting in Greenville, South Carolina.
If you have a specific idea, please submit a proposal. However, we are also interested in learning about jurisdictions' experiences with regulatory topics and your general ideas on what issues we should examine. We encourage all board members, administrators, and other stakeholders to share topics and ideas with us. You can also watch webinars and meeting sessions on FSBPT's YouTube Channel to learn what we've recently covered.
The web address for the FSBPT Member Portal has changed. If you are getting to the portal through the FSBPT website or recent emails, you should be fine! However, please update any personal bookmarks or saved links to ensure uninterrupted access to the portal. Please reach out if you have any questions or run into any problems.
Each month, we will focus on a different statute section from the Model Practice Act and its accompanying commentary. For 2026, the Model Practice Act Moment will focus on Article 3: Examination and Licensure. Last year, in 2025, we covered one of the twelve sections under Article 4: Regulation of Physical Therapy each month. Learn more by reading the Model Practice Act.
Article 3: Examination and Licensure
3.02 Qualifications for Licensure [and Certification] A. An applicant for a license as a physical therapist shall:
Commentary The detailed procedure and requirements for license application should be outlined in rules rather than statutes. For example, the board shall decide what questions to include in the application form about criminal records, substance abuse or any other conduct that shall constitute grounds for denial of a license. (See Grounds for Denial of a License [and Certificate]; Disciplinary Action, Article 4.04.) Rather than a vague statement about moral character, such questions will provide more specific information to a board about fitness to practice in addition to the qualifications for practice determined through graduation and passing an entry-level exam.
Jurisdictions may choose to require additional exams for licensure. A common example is a jurisprudence exam testing knowledge of a state’s laws and rules. All licensed physical therapists (PTs) and licensed [certified] physical therapist assistants (PTAs) should be familiar with the practice act and rules under which they are allowed to work.
Many jurisdictions have administrative code that applies to applicants and licensees[certificate holders] of many different disciplines. Applicants and licensees [certificate holders] must meet these requirements to become licensed. Additionally, a jurisdiction may pass laws requiring additional coursework and assessment for applicants within that jurisdiction either at time of initial application or upon renewal. The model practice act provides statutory language enabling any and all of the above examples of additional exams.
The FSBPT Board is committed to supporting its member jurisdictions in their mission to protect the public. Join the ranks of states, including Alabama, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, and the Virgin Islands, that have all taken a big step toward both administrative efficiency and protecting the public. They are currently leveraging FSBPT Grants to enhance the ELDD, improve compact privilege implementation, and collect workforce data.
Your state should be next! Learn more about our available grants to help jurisdictions with enhancing your participation in or communication with our Examination, Licensure, and Disciplinary Database (ELDD), improving compact privilege implementation, or collecting workforce data.
FSBPT offers grant funding to support its member jurisdictions in their mission to protect the public. If you are interested in receiving a grant, please send an email to FSBPT's CEO, Susan Newman, summarizing what you would like to have funded and why it is important or how it can improve efficiencies for your board.
We are hosting multiple upcoming webinars within the FSBPT Portal, allowing you to easily access member resources, groups, and events all in one place! Be sure to register for these upcoming webinars:
March 2026 Regulatory Hour: Jennifer Semko
March 17, 4:00 p.m. ET
April 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale Atkinson
April 21, 4:00 p.m. ET
May 2026 Regulatory Hour: Paul Welk
May 12, 4:00 p.m. ET
June 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale Atkinson
June 16, 4:00 p.m. ET
July 2026 Regulatory Hour: Amigo Wade
July 7, 4:00 p.m. ET
August 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale Atkinson
August 18, 4:00 p.m. ET
September 2026 Regulatory Hour: Amigo Wade
September 8, 4:00 p.m. ET
October 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale Atkinson
October 6, 4:00 p.m. ET
November 2026 Regulatory Hour: Jennifer Semko
November 17, 4:00 p.m. ET (Tentative)
December 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale Atkinson
December 15, 4:00 p.m. ET
To register, please log in to the FSBPT Portal, select "Events," and click on the event you'd like to register for.
Regulatory boards are uniquely positioned to lead the collection of healthcare workforce data, and leveraging such data can improve public protection and healthcare planning. This article is based on a presentation at the 2025 Annual Education Meeting by Michelle Sigmund-Gaines, Missy Anthony, Jennifer Garrett, Jason Kaiser, and Nancy Kirsch.
The Basis for Disciplinary Action Definitions and Descriptions is a tool to assist regulatory bodies categorize basis (or bases) for disciplinary action. It includes guidelines and examples to help state licensing authorities understand how to report disciplinary actions they take.
This month, we thank our generous volunteer members for their support of our mission.
FSBPT provides the following links for your education and awareness, but does not endorse the content.
"HHS Tries Crowd-Sourcing Medicaid Fraud Detection," The Editorial Board, The Wall Street Journal, February 13, 2026
"The feds open a website with data that will let the public investigate."
"The Rural Health Transformation Program — An Avenue for Promoting Administrative Policies," Heather Howard, J.D., and Carmel Shachar, J.D., M.P.H., The New England Journal of Medicine, February 7, 2026
"Beyond being a rare federal program focused on stabilizing rural health care services, the Rural Health Transformation Program represents a vehicle for advancing the administration’s health priorities."
"OPINION: It’s not just a doctor shortage: New Mexicans need all the health care worker compacts," Karen Browning, Albuquerque Journal, February 8, 2026
"Patients rely on a whole ecosystem of health professionals to stay healthy and recover from illness and injury. That’s why addressing New Mexico’s health care worker shortage means addressing the shortages of all categories of health care workers, not just doctors, by joining all 10 major interstate compacts for health care workers."
"How Endeavor Health has improved nurse retention," Ron Southwick, Chief Healthcare Executive, January 23, 2026
"The Chicago hospital system has reduced turnover and taken steps to improve well-being. John Tressa, Endeavor’s chief nursing officer, talks with us about those efforts and the dividends."
Approved - 26-02-01 To appoint the following person as a member to the Exam Development Committee-PT secondary to a member’s resignation.
Exam Development Committee-PT Member Kiley Gibbs, PT (MD): February 15, 2026 – December 31, 2028
Approved - 26-02-02 To appoint, reappoint, or extend the following people to the committee listed:
Model Language for Code of Ethics for Physical Therapy Regulatory Boards
Members of the board of directors serve as liaisons to multiple jurisdictions.
Stephen Curley Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia
Craig Miller Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, and Utah
David Relling Hawaii, New Jersey, North Dakota, Puerto Rico, South Dakota, and Virgin Islands
Steven Scherger Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas
Michelle Sigmund-Gaines Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming
Michele Thorman Delaware, District of Columbia, Iowa, Nebraska, Nevada, Virginia, and Wisconsin
Krista Wolfe Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Charles E. Reiter The public member of the board does not serve as a liaison to jurisdictions
FSBPT’s Board of Directors wants members to know staff is available to assist any jurisdiction with writing statutory or regulatory language. When you are crafting new laws or regulations/rules, especially involving FSBPT products such as the NPTE or Coursework Tool, or controversial topics such as dry needling, FSBPT is a resource to remember!
Subject
Point of Contact/Email Address
ADA accommodations
Christine Sousa, ext. 201
Assessment or examination development questions
Lorin Mueller npte@fsbpt.org
Continuing competence
Jeffrey M. Rosa, ext. 239
Credentials review
Jaime Nolan, FCCPT
ELDD- Exam, Licensure and Disciplinary Database participation
eldd@fsbpt.org
Exam registration processing
Foreign educated issues
Leslie Adrian, ext. 233
Immigration
Jamie Nolan, ext. 403
JAM- Jurisprudence Assessment Module
JAM@fsbpt.org
Legislation or Model Practice Act
Meeting arrangements
Paul Delaney, ext. 223
NPDB reports/questions
Angela Burnham, 249
PTC- Physical Therapy Compact
compact@fsbpt.org
PEAT®- Practice Exam & Assessment Tool
peat@fsbpt.org
Reimbursement of expenses and other financial matters
David Sigman, ext. 226
School reports
schoolreports@fsbpt.org
Score transfer & reporting
SCP PET- Supervised Clinical Practice Performance Evaluation Tool
scppet@fsbpt.org
Security issues
Susan Newman security@fsbpt.org
Anything else, including news to share with members
Susan Newman Caitlin Jennings Communications@fsbpt.org
This month’s Inside FSBPT spotlight features Brandon Rogers, Assistant Director of Information Systems. Brandon is responsible for the technological ecosystem that keeps FSBPT running smoothly. The work of the IS team touches every corner of the organization, ensuring our systems are secure, our tools are reliable, and our technology strategy positions us for long-term success. A key part of his work includes investing in people to build strong, sustainable technical expertise across the organization. His dedication ensures that FSBPT’s technological foundation is strong today and equipped for tomorrow — supporting the work of staff, volunteers, and members alike.
Susan L. Newman, CEO