Requirements, Regulation, and Risk: Connecting Physical Therapy Job Requirements, Occupational Licensing Requirements, and Public/Patient Safety
September 2025Occupational licensing is typically viewed either as a necessary mechanism for protecting public health and safety or as an overly restrictive barrier that imposes undue burdens on certain occupations.
Authors
C. Curnow
Y. Cheban-Gore
L. Mason
Executive Summary
Occupational licensing is typically viewed either as a necessary mechanism for protecting public health and safety (Schmitt, 2015) or as an overly restrictive barrier that imposes undue burdens on certain occupations (e.g., Schmitt, 2018; McLaughlin, Mitchell, & Philpot, 2017). Some previous studies assessing the value of licensing requirements have relied primarily on secondary data sources, such as reporting of regulatory violations (e.g., Rozema, 2024), which have been found to be incomplete and unreliable (U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2019; Noble & Pronovost, 2010).
The current study presents a methodology that can serve as a model for the regulatory community and professional associations, providing a primary data-driven, expert-informed process applicable across licensed occupations to examine the relationship between occupational licensing requirements, public/patient safety, and job requirements. This process involves collecting primary data from subject matter experts (SMEs) within the field, which in turn provides evidence to inform the necessity of regulations. The study focuses on the physical therapy (PT) occupation as a case study example.
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