Missouri Occupational Therapy Practice Act and Regulations
This domain tests the statutory and regulatory skeleton of Missouri occupational therapy: who must be licensed, what the Board may regulate, and how the Practice Act and rules fit together. Expect questions that distinguish Chapter 324, RSMo, from 20 CSR 2200 and that test narrow exemptions.
Statutory and regulatory framework
- The Missouri Occupational Therapy Practice Act is codified in Chapter 324, RSMo (beginning at section 324.700). It creates the Missouri Board of Occupational Therapy within the Division of Professional Registration.
- The Board adopts rules in 20 CSR 2200. Statutes set the broad requirements; rules supply detail on applications, supervision, continuing education, and discipline.
- “Occupational therapy” is the therapeutic use of everyday activities to develop, recover, or maintain function. It includes evaluation, treatment planning, intervention, consultation, and education.
What the exam checks
- Whether a task is OT, OTA-level, or unlicensed assistive work.
- Whether an exemption applies; exemptions are narrow and do not authorize independent practice.
- The Board’s authority to license, investigate, and discipline.
Worked example
A rehabilitation aide applies a hot pack and then leads a patient through exercises. The aide is unlicensed. The hot pack and exercise are components of OT intervention, so the OT cannot delegate them to the aide as independent OT services; they must be provided by a licensed OT or OTA under the OT’s supervision. Transporting the patient or cleaning equipment is administrative and may be delegated. The reasoning: licensure attaches to the service, not to the job title.
Traps
- Applying Medicare or insurance supervision rules as if they were Missouri licensure law.
- Treating NBCOT certification as a Missouri license.
- Assuming the Board can impose criminal punishment; it imposes licensure discipline.