In this News Brief:
The FSBPT Board held the 2026 Leadership Issues Forum in Arlington, Virginia, on July 18-19. This is an annual event to which the Board invites Voting Delegates and Selected Administrators from all jurisdictions, as well as other stakeholders, including committee chairs and representatives from AAPT, ACAPT, APTA, CAPTE, FCCPT, and the PT Compact. The weekend forum gives our leaders an overview of the topics and projects that are currently on the “front burner” for FSBPT and regulatory entities.A total of 123 attendees discussed workforce data collection; the Examination, Licensure, and Disciplinary Database; demonstrating the value of state physical therapy boards; and many other critical and emerging issues. The presentation slides are available to members in the member portal. Please be on the lookout for information on the 2026 Leadership Issues Forum Report in an upcoming edition of the News Brief.
The Academy of Advanced Item Writers consists of NPTE item writers who develop both quality and quantity items as defined in the criteria below.
Please join us in congratulating the following new members of the Academy of Advanced Item Writers. We will honor these award winners at the 2026 Annual Education Meeting.
Please join us in congratulating Kentucky, Louisiana, and West Virginia, our 2026 recipients of the Excellence in Regulation Award. This award is given to jurisdictions that have made significant accomplishments towards increasing public protection for their consumers of physical therapy services. We will honor these award winners at the 2026 Annual Education Meeting.
The Nominating Committee has put forward the following slate of candidates for election during the Annual Education Meeting, October 22–24. Please read the Candidate Statements to learn more about the candidates.The Nominating Committee held a Candidate Forum on July 13 at 7:00 p.m. in conjunction with the 2026 Leadership Issues Forum to introduce 2026 candidates for the Board of Directors and the Nominating Committee. Members can view the forum recording in the FSBPT Community Portal. There will also be a Candidate Forum in the fall during the Annual Education MeetingPlease join FSBPT in thanking the 2026 Nominating Committee Members, Adrienne (Stacy) Price (chair), Bernardine Evans, and Mario Baker for their work this year.
Michelle Sigmund-GainesOregonDirector 2
Jonathan BirdIdahoDirector 3
Krista WolfePennsylvaniaDirector 3
Justin BerryNorth DakotaNominating Committee Member
Susan GileKansasNominating Committee Member
We are accepting presentation ideas and proposals for 2026 webinars.
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 FSBPT Board supports its member jurisdictions in their mission to protect the public. Join the ranks of states, including Alabama, Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, the Virgin Islands, and West Virginia, that have all taken a big step toward both administrative efficiency and protecting the public. They are currently leveraging FSBPT funding to enhance the ELDD, improve compact privilege implementation, and collect workforce data.
Your jurisdiction should be next! Learn more about how our financial assistance program works to help your jurisdiction. Think this won’t work for your jurisdiction? FSBPT has several ways to make our assistance available under your laws and rules.
FSBPT offers funding to support its member jurisdictions in their mission to protect the public. If you are interested in more information, 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:
August 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale AtkinsonAugust 18, 4:00 p.m. ET
September 2026 Regulatory Hour: Amigo WadeSeptember 8, 4:00 p.m. ET
October 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale AtkinsonOctober 6, 4:00 p.m. ET
November 2026 Regulatory Hour: Jennifer SemkoNovember 17, 4:00 p.m. ET (Tentative)
December 2026 Regulatory Hour: Dale AtkinsonDecember 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.
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.
3.06 Changes of Name, Address or Telephone NumberEach licensee [and certificate holder] is responsible for reporting a name change and changes in business and home address, email address and telephone numbers to the board within 30 days.
Commentary
What one patient’s story reveals about AI, trust, and the future of regulation. This article is based on a presentation at the 2025 Annual Education Meeting by Nancy Kirsch, Alan Lee, Charlotte Martin, and Meg O’Connor.
From power differentials to practical “dos and don’ts,” this resource helps licensees navigate therapeutic relationships while establishing and maintaining professional boundaries.
Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants must be aware of their influence and how their inherent power may significantly impact the meaning or intent of a comment, touch, or interaction. This resource explores a foundational concept to help avoid the risk of boundary violations.
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.
"New Jersey Physical Therapist Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for Health Care Fraud Scheme Targeting Amtrak," May 21, 2026, U.S. Attorney's Office
"A New Jersey physical therapist was sentenced today for her role in a health care fraud scheme targeting Amtrak’s health care plan, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer announced."
"ChatGPT's medical advice nearly killed a Florida man, lawsuit against OpenAI claims,"
"A Florida man sued OpenAI on Wednesday, alleging ChatGPT's medical advice discouraged him from seeking treatment for symptoms that preceded a life-threatening pulmonary embolism, nearly costing him his life."
"USMLE to Transition to Limited Testing Dates Each Year Starting in 2028," United States Medical Licensing Examination, June 23, 2026
"The United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE ®) program will reduce the number of Step exam administrations each year beginning in 2028. While together the three Step exams will only be administered over a total of 45 days each year, the USMLE program will expand the number of testing centers and reserve seats exclusively for USMLE examinees at those centers. This exam administration model, which the USMLE program calls Designated Testing Dates, is designed to further strengthen exam security, uphold the integrity of the assessments and support fairness."
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!
Each month, we highlight an FSBPT staff member or volunteer and share how their role supports our mission of protecting the public.Jennifer Aglubat has demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to advancing physical therapy regulation through her volunteer service with both FSBPT and the PT Compact. Currently serving as Chairperson of the Washington Board of Physical Therapy, Jennifer has shared her expertise and leadership across numerous initiatives. She served on the FSBPT Education Committee from 2023 to 2025 and contributed to the PT Compact through service on the Compliance Committee and the Educational Module Development Task Force. Jennifer also brought valuable insight and strategic leadership as a Member-at-Large on the PT Compact Executive Board. Her dedication, collaboration, and commitment to public protection have strengthened the regulatory community and supported the continued success of interstate licensure mobility.We extend our sincere appreciation to Jennifer for her many contributions and continued service.
Susan L. Newman, CEO
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 NewmanCaitlin Jennings Communications@fsbpt.org