The results of the background checks will be used in making employment and licensing decisions. The law does not affect volunteers, though students who receive credit for their work are not considered volunteers. Students who are placed in entities that are subject to this law, such as clinical placements, may be subject to more stringent background checks by their placement site. However, it also is possible that the placement site may request UWM to perform the check. Legal counsel from DHFS says this issue will be worked out between teaching institutions and entities in the upcoming months as the new law is applied, but that legislators feel that teaching institutions placing students should be advising students of the law.
More detail pertaining to situations for students appears below.
Programs covered under the law The caregiver entities listed below are covered under the law. Effective date of the law Background checks must be performed on prospective students in training, employees, and license holders on and after Oct. 1, 1998. For current employees and license holders, background checks must be performed by Oct. 1, 1999. An electronic review of records kept by the DHFS for any substantiated findings of abuse or neglect, and license restrictions or denials. Entities are not required to do separate checks with all of the above-listed entities.