Subject of Possible Rule Making: Naturopathic physician licensure fees; removing the jurisprudence exam fee from the naturopathic physician licensure fees in WAC 246-836-990. The department of health (department), in consultation with the board of naturopathy (board), is considering removing the jurisprudence examination fee from rule to align with the recent changes to the naturopathic licensure requirements.

Reasons Why Rules on this Subject may be Needed and What They Might Accomplish: In February 2025, the board adopted amendments to WAC 246-836-020 and 246-836-040 that remove the jurisprudence exam as a requirement for initial licensure as a naturopathic physician and instead require the exam to maintain licensure. The purpose of the board's amendment was to align current rules with the licensure requirements in RCW 18.130.077 and remove barriers for incoming out-of-state applicants.

Additionally, the board made the decision to transition the exam from a paper format to only offering it in an electronic format, which comes at no cost to individuals who need to take the exam.

To align with the board's recent rule changes, the department is considering the removal of the jurisprudence exam fee from WAC 246-836-990 Naturopathic physician licensing fees and renewal cycle.

Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication by contacting Heather Cantrell, P.O. Box 47850, Olympia, WA 98504-7850, phone 350[360]-236-4637, TTY 711, email HSQAfeerules@doh.wa.gov, website doh.wa.gov, https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/WADOH/subscriber/new.

Additional comments: Rule-making notices will be delivered via the GovDelivery program name list. To receive notices, interested persons may sign up for any or all of the lists. Please go to https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/WADOH/subscriber/new. After signing in, please click open the box labeled "Health Systems Quality Assurance." Next, click open the box labeled "Health Professions" and then click on "Naturopathy." You may also check the box next to one or more of the other professions listed to receive information related to that specific profession.