Fingerprint Boston adds mobile fingerprinting for out-of-state licensing

Fingerprint Boston launched a mobile fingerprinting service for medical and pharmaceutical workers who need fingerprints for licenses in other states. The service brings Live Scan equipment and FD-258 cards to workplaces across Greater Boston, southern New Hampshire and Rhode Island, aiming to cut delays and reduce rejected submissions.

Why it matters: - Out-of-state licensing can stall hiring for physicians, pharmacists and other health care staff when boards require specific fingerprint formats. - Fingerprint Boston is trying to move that step out of the applicant’s day and into the workplace, which could save time for employers and reduce rejected prints.

What happened: - Fingerprint Boston announced a mobile fingerprinting service for medical and pharmaceutical executives and staff who need fingerprints for a license in another state. - A certified technician brings an FBI-certified Live Scan scanner and blank FD-258 cards to the workplace. - The technician fingerprints each person in about 10 minutes. - The service starts from Fingerprint Boston’s office at 1215 Main St, Unit 115, Tewksbury, Massachusetts. - The mobile service covers Boston, Cambridge, Waltham, Newton, Andover, Lowell and Worcester, plus southern New Hampshire and Rhode Island.

The details: - Many state boards still require a paper FD-258 card, the FBI standard applicant fingerprint card, from out-of-state applicants. - North Carolina’s medical board tells out-of-state applicants to complete two FD-258 cards at a local law enforcement office or other fingerprinting service and mail them in. - North Carolina warns that poor-quality prints will be rejected. - Texas’ medical board mails a fingerprint card to applicants who cannot be live-scanned. - Texas reports that hard-card submissions take 4 to 6 weeks. - Florida’s Department of Health allows out-of-state health care license applicants to complete hard cards at a local police station or fingerprinting facility and mail them to an approved provider for electronic conversion. - Physicians applying through the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact have 60 days to submit fingerprints to the agency named by their state of principal license. - Fingerprint requirements differ by state. - Not every board accepts a private office’s card. - The Texas Board of Nursing requires law enforcement to take the prints, so Fingerprint Boston reviews each applicant’s instructions before quoting a visit. - The same mobile visit can also cover FD-258 cards for out-of-state employers, FD-1164 cards for the FBI’s mail route, and the FBI Identity History Summary check through an FBI-approved channeler. - The FBI Identity History Summary check costs $170 and is available only to U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents for personal uses such as a visa, work abroad or an apostille. - The FBI Identity History Summary check is not valid for U.S. employment or licensing. - Massachusetts SAFIS prints for schools, child care and many state programs are taken only by IdentoGO.

Between the lines: - Hanson Webb, CEO of Fingerprint Boston, said the real cost of out-of-state licensing is often the time lost finding the right fingerprint format and a provider that knows the board’s rules. - Webb said the mobile model removes that search because the technician arrives with the correct cards and instructions already reviewed. - Webb also said the service is designed to be close to cost neutral for employers because the travel fee can be less than the payroll time workers would spend driving to a fingerprinting site. - The company’s emphasis on quality control suggests it is targeting a common failure point in the licensing process: rejected prints and the delay that follows. - Prints are captured on an FBI-certified Live Scan scanner that scores each impression on screen using NIST Fingerprint Image Quality, or NFIQ. - Weak impressions are re-rolled while the applicant is still present. - Ink cards are checked under magnification before the applicant leaves. - The FBI’s own tip sheet on reducing fingerprint rejects lists low-quality images among the most common reject reasons. - If an agency rejects a set captured by Fingerprint Boston for print quality, the recapture is free.

What’s next: - Employers can request a written quote by calling (978) 424-4629 or using the contact form on the Fingerprint Boston website. - Quotes usually arrive the same day. - Payment is taken online when the appointment is booked. - Fingerprint Boston asks for 2 to 3 weeks of notice during hiring season. - The company says every rate is listed on its fingerprinting prices page. - A visit needs a room with a door, a table, a chair and a power outlet. - Employers send a roster, each person’s requirement and one instruction letter about a week ahead. - Fingerprint Boston confirms the format and routing for each agency in advance. - Anyone who misses the mobile visit can book the Tewksbury office, which operates by appointment Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 5 PM.

The bottom line: - Fingerprint Boston is betting that a mobile, board-specific fingerprinting service can speed up one of the most common bottlenecks in out-of-state health care licensing.