2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 12 - PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS (§§ 12-1-101 — 12-315-310) › HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS (§§ 12-170-101 — 12-315-310) › Article 215 - CHIROPRACTORS (§§ 12-215-101 — 12-215-202) › Part 1 - REGULATION OF CHIROPRACTORS (§§ 12-215-101 — 12-215-130) › Section 12-215-115 - Discipline of licensees - suspension, revocation, denial, and probation - grounds - definitions

(1)
Upon any of the following grounds, the board may take disciplinary or other action as specified in section
12-20-404
or impose conditions on a licensee's license:
(a)
Using fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit in applying for, securing, renewing, or seeking reinstatement of a license or in taking an examination provided for in this article 215;
(b)
An act or omission that constitutes negligent chiropractic practice or fails to meet generally accepted standards of chiropractic practice;
(c)
Conviction of a felony or any crime that would constitute a violation of this article 215. For purposes of this subsection (1), "conviction" includes the acceptance of a guilty plea or a plea of nolo contendere or the imposition of a deferred sentence.
(d)
Habitual or excessive use or abuse by the licensee of alcohol, a controlled substance, as defined in section
18-18-102 (5)
, or a habit-forming drug;
(e)
Repealed.
(f)
Disobedience to a lawful rule or order of the board;
(g)
Persisting in maintaining an unsanitary office or practicing under unsanitary conditions after warning from the board;
(h)
False or misleading advertising;
(i)
Failure to report malpractice judgments or settlements within sixty days;
(j)
Violation of abuse of health insurance pursuant to section
18-13-119
or commission of a fraudulent insurance act, as defined in section
10-1-128
;
(k)
Treating a patient by colonic irrigation or allowing colonic irrigation to be performed at the licensee's premises;
(l)
Practicing with a suspended or expired license;
(m)
Willfully deceiving or attempting to deceive the board or its agents with reference to any matter under investigation by the board;
(n)
Practicing under an assumed name;
(o)
Unethical advertising, as defined in subsection (5) of this section, or advertising through any medium that the licensee will perform an act prohibited by section
18-13-119 (3)
;
(p)
Violating or aiding any person to violate this article 215 or an applicable provision of article 20 or 30 of this title 12;
(q)
Knowingly practicing in the employment of or in association with any person who is practicing in an unlawful or unprofessional manner;
(r)
Offering, giving, or receiving commissions, rebates, or other forms of remuneration for the referral of clients; except that a licensee may compensate an independent advisory or marketing agent for advertising or marketing services, which services may include the referral of patients identified through the services, and a licensee may give an incidental gift to a patient in appreciation for a referral;
(s)
Conducting any enterprise other than the regular practice of chiropractic whereby the holder's license is used as a means of attracting patients or attaining prestige or patronage in the conduct of the enterprise;
(t)
Permitting the practice of chiropractic, the holding out of the practice, or the maintenance of an office for the practice by an unlicensed person in association with himself or herself;
(u)
Engaging in any of the following activities and practices: Willful and repeated ordering or performance, without clinical justification, of demonstrably unnecessary laboratory tests or studies; the administration, without clinical justification, of treatment that is demonstrably unnecessary; the failure to obtain consultations or perform referrals when failing to do so is not consistent with the standard of care for the profession; or ordering or performing, without clinical justification, any service, X ray, or treatment that is contrary to recognized standards of the practice of chiropractic as interpreted by the board;
(v)
Falsifying or making incorrect essential entries or failing to make essential entries on patient records;
(w)
Violating section
8-42-101
(3.6);
(x)
Violating section
12-215-202
or any rule adopted pursuant to that section;
(y)
Failing to report to the board the surrender of a license to, or adverse action taken against a license by, a licensing agency in another state, territory, or country, a governmental agency, a law enforcement agency, or a court for acts or conduct that would constitute grounds for discipline pursuant to this article 215;
(z)
Engaging in a sexual act with a patient during the course of the patient's care or within six months immediately following the termination of the chiropractor's professional relationship with the patient. "Sexual act", as used in this subsection (1)(z), means sexual contact, sexual intrusion, or sexual penetration, as defined in section
18-3-401
.
(aa)
Abandoning a patient by any means, including, but not limited to, failing to provide a referral to another chiropractor or other appropriate health-care practitioner when the referral was necessary to meet generally accepted standards of chiropractic care;
(bb)
Failing to provide adequate or proper supervision when employing unlicensed persons in a chiropractic practice;
(cc)
Failing to:
(I)
Notify the board, as required by section
12-30-108 (1)
, of a physical illness, physical condition, or behavioral health or mental health disorder that makes the chiropractor unable to render chiropractic services with reasonable skill and safety to patients;
(II)
Act within the limitations created by a physical illness, physical condition, or behavioral health or mental health disorder that makes the licensee unable to render chiropractic services with reasonable skill and safety to patients;
(III)
Comply with the limitations agreed to under a confidential agreement;
(dd)
Performing a procedure in the course of patient care that is beyond the chiropractor's training or competence or the scope of authorized chiropractic services under this article 215;
(ee)
Failing to respond to a board-generated complaint letter.
(2)
In addition to any other penalty that may be imposed pursuant to this section, a chiropractor violating any provision of this article 215 or any rule promulgated pursuant to this article 215 may be fined no less than one thousand dollars for a first violation proven by the board, up to three thousand dollars for a second violation proven by the board, and up to five thousand dollars for a third or subsequent violation proven by the board. The board shall establish guidelines for the imposition of the fines.
(3)
Disciplinary action taken against a licensee's ability to practice in another state or country shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this article 215 and shall constitute grounds for discipline if the acts giving rise to the disciplinary action would violate this article 215 if committed in this state.
(4)
The board may send a confidential letter of concern to the licensee under the circumstances specified in section
12-20-404 (5)
.
(5)
For purposes of this section, the term "unethical advertising" includes advertising through any form of media that:
(a)
Contains false or misleading statements;
(b)
Holds out or promises cures or guarantees results; or
(c)
Contains claims that cannot be substantiated by standard laboratory or diagnostic procedures.
(6)
Any doctor of chiropractic proven to be incompetent or negligent may be required to take an examination, given by the board, in the subjects outlined in section
12-215-106
. In addition, the board may order the doctor of chiropractic to take such therapy or courses of training or education as may be needed to correct deficiencies found in the hearing.
(7)
In the event any person holding a license to practice chiropractic in this state is determined to be mentally incompetent or insane by a court of competent jurisdiction and a court enters, pursuant to part 3 or 4 of article
14
of title
15
or section
27-65-110 (4)
or
27-65-127
, an order specifically finding that the mental incompetency or insanity is of such a degree that the person holding a license is incapable of continuing to practice chiropractic, the person's license shall automatically be suspended by the board, and, anything in this article 215 to the contrary notwithstanding, the suspension must continue until the licensee is found by the court to be competent to practice chiropractic.
Amended by 2022 Ch. 451, § 7, eff. 8/10/2022.
Amended by 2020 Ch. 158, § 6, eff. 7/1/2020.
Renumbered from C.R.S. §
12-33-117
and amended by 2019 Ch. 136, § 1, eff. 10/1/2019.
Amended by 2017 Ch. 263, § 49, eff. 5/25/2017.
L. 59: p. 301, § 1. CRS 53: § 23-2-19. C.R.S. 1963: § 23-1-19. L. 73: pp. 402, 518, §§ 1-3, 21. L. 79: (1)(b) and (1)(i) amended, (1)(h), (2)(e), and (3)(a)(IV) repealed, and (1)(j), (4), and (5) added, pp. 492, 495, §§ 11, 18, 12, effective July 1. L. 81: (1)(d) amended, p. 735, § 8, effective July 1. L. 83: IP(1) amended, p. 534, § 2, effective July 1. L. 85: (1)(k) added, p. 682, § 3, effective June 2; (1)(c) and (4)(a) amended, (1)(l) and (2)(l) added, and (2)(h), (3)(a)(V), and (3)(b) repealed, pp. 509, 511, §§ 5, 10, 4, effective July 1. L. 89: (2)(m) to (2)(o) added, p. 671, § 7, effective July 1. L. 91: (2)(p) added and (5) amended, pp. 1782, 1336, §§ 6, 50, effective July 1; (2)(q) added, p. 1616, § 6, effective 1/1/1993. L. 95: IP(1), (1)(a), (1)(b), (1)(c), (1)(e), (1)(j), (1)(k), (1)(l), (2), and (4) amended and (1)(z), (1)(aa), (1)(bb), and (1)(cc) added, p. 1314, § 7, effective July 1. L. 2003: (1)(k) amended, p. 620, § 28, effective July 1; (1)(d), (1)(e), and (1)(w) amended and (1)(dd) and (1)(ee) added, p. 796, § 1, effective August 6. L. 2004: (1)(d) amended, p. 1194, § 34, effective August 4. L. 2006: (2.5) added, p. 791, § 22, effective July 1; (1.5) added, p. 300, § 2, effective August 7. L. 2009: (1)(ff) added and (1.5) amended, (SB 09-167), ch. 366, pp. 1917, 1919, §§ 4, 7, effective June 1. L. 2010: (5) amended, (SB 10 -175), ch. 188, p. 778, § 8, effective April 29. L. 2017: (1)(d) and (1)(e) amended, (SB 17-242), ch. 263, p. 1270, § 49, effective May 25.
This section is similar to former § 12-33-117 as it existed prior to 2019.
2022 Ch. 451, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
For an exception to the provisions of subsection (1)(t), see § 6-18-303 .