By King H.B. No. 3474
Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the regulation of the fitting and dispensing of hearing
1-3 instruments and the practice of audiology and speech pathology.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 14, Chapter 366, Acts of the 61st
1-6 Legislature, Regular Session, 1969 (Article 4566-1.14, Vernon's
1-7 Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 14. Duty of a license holder. (a) Every person
1-9 engaged in the fitting and dispensing of hearing instruments in
1-10 this state shall display the person's license in a conspicuous
1-11 place in the person's principal office and whenever required,
1-12 exhibit the license to the committee or its authorized
1-13 representatives.
1-14 (b) Every license holder shall deliver to each person
1-15 supplied with a hearing instrument, by the license holder or under
1-16 the license holder's direction, a bill of sale which shall contain
1-17 the license holder's signature, the license holder's license, a
1-18 description of the make and model of the hearing instrument
1-19 furnished and the amount charged for the hearing instrument, and
1-20 whether the hearing instrument is new, used, or rebuilt.
1-21 (c) An individual licensed under this Act shall seek
1-22 personally or through proper referral channels to obtain the
2-1 following minimal information on each prospective candidate for
2-2 amplification:
2-3 (1) pertinent case history;
2-4 (2) otoscopic inspection of the outer ear, including
2-5 canal and drumhead;
2-6 (3) evaluation of hearing acuity utilizing puretone
2-7 techniques via air and bone conduction pathways through a
2-8 calibrated system;
2-9 (4) an aided and unaided speech reception threshold
2-10 and ability to differentiate between the phonemic elements of the
2-11 language through speech audiometry, utilizing a calibrated system
2-12 or other acceptable verification techniques; and
2-13 (5) verification of satisfactory aided instrument
2-14 performance by use of appropriate sound field speech, noise, or
2-15 tone testing, utilizing a calibrated system.
2-16 (d) A licensed hearing instrument fitter and dispenser or
2-17 licensed audiologist shall not sell a hearing instrument to a
2-18 person under 18 years of age unless the prospective user, parent,
2-19 or guardian has presented to the hearing instrument fitter and
2-20 dispenser or audiologist a written statement signed by a licensed
2-21 physician specializing in diseases of the ear that states that the
2-22 patient's hearing loss has been medically evaluated and the patient
2-23 may be considered a candidate for a hearing instrument. The
2-24 evaluation must have taken place within the preceding six months.
2-25 (e) If audiometric testing is not conducted in a stationary
2-26 acoustical enclosure, sound level measurements must be conducted at
2-27 the time of the testing to ensure that ambient noise levels meet
3-1 permissible standards for testing threshold to 20 dB based on the
3-2 most current American National Standards Institute (ANSI) "ears
3-3 covered" octave band criteria for Permissible Ambient Noise Levels
3-4 During Audiometric Testing. A dBA [equivalent] level may be used
3-5 to determine compliance. The committee shall adopt rules necessary
3-6 to enforce the provisions of this subsection.
3-7 SECTION 2. Section 9A, Chapter 381, Acts of the 68th
3-8 Legislature, Regular Session, 1983 (Article 4512j-9A Vernon's Texas
3-9 Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
3-10 Sec. 9A. (a) A person licensed as a speech-language
3-11 pathologist under this Act, may not fit, dispense, or sell hearing
3-12 aids unless the person meets the specific requirements for fitting
3-13 and dispensing hearing aids under this Act or Chapter 366, Acts of
3-14 the 61st Legislature, Regular Session, 1969 (Article 4566-1.01 et
3-15 seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), and its subsequent
3-16 amendments.
3-17 (b) A person who meets the requirements of this Act for
3-18 licensure as an audiologist or audiologist intern who fits and
3-19 dispenses must:
3-20 (1) register with the board the person's intent to fit
3-21 and dispense hearing aids;
3-22 (2) adhere to the profession's code of ethics;
3-23 (3) comply with the federal Food and Drug
3-24 Administration guidelines required for fitting and dispensing
3-25 hearing aids;
3-26 (4) provide a written contract for services in this
3-27 state that contains the name, mailing address, and telephone number
4-1 of the board; and
4-2 (5) follow the guidelines adopted by board rule for a
4-3 30-day trial period on every hearing aid purchased.
4-4 (c) If audiometric testing is not conducted in a stationary
4-5 acoustical enclosure, sound level measurements must be conducted at
4-6 the time of the testing to ensure that ambient noise levels meet
4-7 permissible standards for testing threshold to 20 dB based on the
4-8 most recent American National Standards Institute "ears covered"
4-9 octave band criteria for permissible ambient noise levels during
4-10 audiometric testing. A dBa [equivalent] level may be used to
4-11 determine compliance. The board shall adopt rules necessary to
4-12 enforce this subsection.
4-13 (d) A licensed hearing aid fitter and dispenser or licensed
4-14 audiologist may not sell a hearing aid to a person under 18 years
4-15 of age unless the prospective user, parent, or guardian presents
4-16 the hearing aid fitter and dispenser or audiologist with a written
4-17 statement signed by a licensed physician who specializes in
4-18 diseases of the ear that states that the prospective user's hearing
4-19 loss has been medically evaluated during the six-month period
4-20 preceding the date the statement is presented and that the
4-21 prospective user may be considered a candidate for a hearing
4-22 instrument.
4-23 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
4-24 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
4-25 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
4-26 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
4-27 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-1 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.