2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 25 - PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT (§§ 25-1-101 — 25-59-106) › ADMINISTRATION (§§ 25-1-101 — 25-1.5-701) › Article 1.5 - POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT (§§ 25-1.5-101 — 25-1.5-701) › Part 5 - STATE HEALTH-CARE PROFESSIONAL LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM (§§ 25-1.5-501 — 25-1.5-506) › Section 25-1.5-502 - Definitions

As used in this part 5, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1)
"Advanced practice provider" means an advanced practice registered nurse, as defined in section
12-255-104(1)
, or a physician assistant licensed pursuant to article
240
of title
12
.
(1.2)
"Advisory council" means the Colorado health service corps advisory council created pursuant to section
25-1.5-504
.
(1.3)
"Behavioral health-care provider" means the following providers who provide behavioral health-care services within their scope of practice:
(a)
A licensed addiction counselor;
(b)
A certified addiction counselor;
(c)
A licensed professional counselor;
(d)
A licensed clinical social worker;
(e)
A licensed marriage and family therapist;
(f)
A licensed psychologist;
(g)
A licensed physician assistant with specific training in substance use disorders;
(h)
An advanced practice registered nurse with specific training in substance use disorders, pain management, or psychiatric nursing; or
(i)
A physician with specific board certification or training in addiction medicine, pain management, or psychiatry.
(1.5)
"Behavioral health-care services" means services for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of, and the recovery from, mental health and substance use disorders.
(1.7)
"Candidate for licensure" means a person who:
(a)
Is a candidate for a license as a licensed psychologist, clinical social worker, marriage and family therapist, licensed professional counselor, or addiction counselor;
(b)
Has completed a master's degree or, for a psychologist licensure candidate, has completed a doctoral degree;
(c)
Has not yet completed the supervised experience hours required for licensure pursuant to section
12-245-304(1)(d)
,
12-245-404(2)(c)
,
12-245-504(1)(d)
,
12-245-604(1)(d)
, or
12-245-804(1)(g)
, as applicable; and
(d)
Is or will be providing behavioral health-care services.
(2)
"Colorado health service corps" means the loan repayment program created and operated pursuant to this part 5.
(3)
"Colorado health service corps fund" or "fund" means the Colorado health service corps fund created in section
25-1.5-506
.
(4)
"Federally designated health professional shortage area" means a health professional shortage area as defined in
42 U.S.C. sec. 254e
.
(4.3)
"Geriatric advanced practice provider" means an advanced practice provider who satisfies one of the following:
(a)
Has completed a formal postgraduate geriatrics training program;
(b)
Has completed:
(I)
Formal geriatrics training within the advanced practice provider training program, which includes didactic teaching or training about geriatric syndromes and the importance of physical and cognitive function in the care of older adults; and
(II)
Postgraduate clinical experience with an emphasis on time spent providing geriatric care; or
(c)
Has completed geriatric track clinical experience within the advanced practice provider training program.
(4.5)
"Geriatric care" means health care that is provided to older adults, including care provided in outpatient, post-acute, or home-based settings, that focuses on identifying and managing geriatric syndromes and the importance of the older adult's physical and cognitive functional status. "Geriatric care" does not include hospice-only care.
(5)
"Health-care professional" means a licensed physician, an advanced practice registered nurse registered pursuant to section
12-255-111
, a mental health practitioner, a licensed physician assistant, or any other licensed health-care provider for which the federal government authorizes participation in a federally matched state loan repayment program to encourage health-care professionals to provide services in underserved communities.
(6)
"Health-care professional faculty member" means a person who has an advanced degree in a health-care professional field and is employed in a qualified faculty position.
(6.5)
"Health professional shortage area" means a federally designated health professional shortage area or a state-designated health professional shortage area.
(7)
"National health service corps program" means the program established in
42 U.S.C. sec. 254d
.
(8)
"Nursing faculty member" means a person who has an advanced degree in nursing and is employed in a qualified faculty position.
(8.5)
"Older adult" means an individual who is at least sixty-five years of age.
(9)
"Primary care office" means the primary care office created pursuant to part 4 of this article.
(10)
"Primary health services" means health services regarding family medicine, general practice, general internal medicine, pediatrics, general obstetrics and gynecology, oral health, or mental health that are provided by health-care professionals.
(11)
"Qualified faculty position" means a part-time or full-time teaching position at an educational institution with accredited nursing or health-care professional training programs, which position requires an advanced degree that meets national accreditation standards and is approved by the primary care office.
(12)
"Scholarship program" means the scholarship program for addiction counselors created in section
25-1.5-503.5
.
(13)
"State-designated health professional shortage area" means an area of the state designated by the primary care office, in accordance with state-specific methodologies established by the state board by rule pursuant to section
25-1.5-404(1)(a)
, as experiencing a shortage of health-care professionals, geriatric advanced practice providers, or behavioral health-care providers.
(14)
"Underserved population" means any of the following:
(a)
Individuals eligible for medical assistance under articles
4
to
6
of title
25.5
;
(b)
Individuals who are provided services by a behavioral health-care provider and are either charged fees on a sliding scale based upon income or are served without charge.
Amended by 2021 Ch. 427,§3, eff. 9/7/2021.
Amended by 2019 Ch. 136,§147, eff. 10/1/2019.
Amended by 2018 Ch. 222,§5, eff. 7/1/2018.
Renumbered from 25-20.5-702 and added by 2013 Ch. 150,§1, eff. 8/7/2013.
L. 2013: Entire part added with relocations, (HB 13-1074), ch. 483, p. 483, § 1, effective August 7. L. 2018: (1.3), (1.5), (1.7), (6.5), (12), (13), and (14) added, (SB 18-024), ch. 1412, p. 1412, § 5, effective July 1. L. 2019: (1.7)(c) and (5) amended, (HB 19-1172), ch. 1699, p. 1699, § 147, effective October 1. L. 2021: (1) and (13) amended and (1.2), (4.3), (4.5), and (8.5) added, (SB 21-158), ch. 2828, p. 2828, § 3, effective September 7.
This section is similar to former § 25-20.5-702 as it existed prior to 2013.
2021 Ch. 427, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
For the legislative declaration in SB 18-024, see section 1 of chapter 222, Session Laws of Colorado 2018. For the legislative declaration in SB 21-158, see section 1 of chapter 427, Session Laws of Colorado 2021.