By: Madla S.R. No. 908
SENATE RESOLUTION
1-1 BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the State of Texas, 75th
1-2 Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, That Senate Rule 12.03 be
1-3 suspended in part as provided by Senate Rule 12.08 to enable the
1-4 conference committee appointed to resolve the differences on House
1-5 Bill No. 2846 to consider and take action on the following matters:
1-6 (1) Senate Rules 12.03(3) and (4) are suspended to permit
1-7 the committee to add text incorporating a new SECTION in the bill,
1-8 appropriately numbered, to amend Section 3.10, Medical Practice Act
1-9 (Article 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), to read as follows:
1-10 SECTION ____. Section 3.10, Medical Practice Act (Article
1-11 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as amended by Chapters 214
1-12 and 862, Acts of the 73rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1993, is
1-13 amended to read as follows:
1-14 Sec. 3.10. FEES. (a) All annual registration fees collected
1-15 by the board shall be placed in the State Treasury to the credit of
1-16 the medical registration fund. The fees deposited to this special
1-17 fund shall be credited to the appropriations of the board and may
1-18 be spent only as provided by the General Appropriations Act, this
1-19 Act, or other applicable statutes. Money in that fund may be used
1-20 by the board and under its direction in the enforcement of this
1-21 Act, the prohibition of the unlawful practice of medicine, the
1-22 dissemination of information to prevent the violation of the laws,
1-23 and the prosecution of those who violate the laws. All
2-1 distributions from the fund may be made only upon written approval
2-2 of the secretary-treasurer of the board or his designated
2-3 representative, and the comptroller shall upon requisition of the
2-4 board from time to time draw warrants upon the State Treasurer for
2-5 the amounts specified in the requisition.
2-6 (b) The board may not set, charge, collect, receive, or
2-7 deposit any of the following fees in excess of:
2-8 (1) for processing and granting a license by
2-9 reciprocity to a licensee of another state
2-10 .................................. $1,000 [$700]
2-11 (2) for processing an application and
2-12 administration of a partial examination
2-13 for licensure ................. $1,000 [$700]
2-14 (3) for processing an application and
2-15 administration of a complete examination
2-16 for licensure ................. $1,000 [$700]
2-17 (4) for processing an application and issuance of a
2-18 temporary license ......................... $200
2-19 (5) for processing an application and issuance of a
2-20 duplicate license ......................... $200
2-21 (6) for processing an application and issuance of a
2-22 license of reinstatement after a lapse or
2-23 cancellation of a license ........ $1,000 [$700]
2-24 (7) for processing an application and issuance of an
2-25 annual registration of a licensee ......... $200
3-1 (8) for processing and issuance of an institutional
3-2 permit for interns, residents, and others in
3-3 approved medical training programs ........ $200
3-4 (9) for processing an application and issuance of
3-5 an endorsement to other state medical
3-6 boards .................................... $200
3-7 (10) for processing and issuance of a license or
3-8 temporary license to a physician
3-9 assistant ................................. $200
3-10 (11) for processing and issuance of a permit to a
3-11 physician who supervises an
3-12 acupuncturist ............................ $200.
3-13 (c) [(b)] The board may set and collect a sales charge for
3-14 making copies of any paper of record in the office of the board and
3-15 for any printed material published by the board. The charges shall
3-16 be in amounts considered sufficient to reimburse the board for the
3-17 actual expense.
3-18 (d) [(c)] The financial transactions of the board are
3-19 subject to audit by the state auditor in accordance with Chapter
3-20 321, Government Code.
3-21 (e) [(d)] The board shall file annually with the governor
3-22 and the presiding officer of each house of the legislature a
3-23 complete and detailed written report accounting for all funds
3-24 received and disbursed by the board during the preceding fiscal
3-25 year. The annual report must be in the form and reported in the
4-1 time provided by the General Appropriations Act.
4-2 Explanation: This change is necessary to increase certain
4-3 fees assessed by the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners to
4-4 levels that cover the administrative costs of that agency in
4-5 providing the affected services.
4-6 (2) Senate Rules 12.03(3) and (4) are suspended to permit
4-7 the committee to add text incorporating a new SECTION in the bill,
4-8 appropriately numbered, to amend the Medical Practice Act (Article
4-9 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) to add a new Section 5.11 to
4-10 read as follows:
4-11 SECTION _____. Subchapter E, Medical Practice Act (Article
4-12 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended by adding Section
4-13 5.11 to read as follows:
4-14 Sec. 5.11. PHYSICIAN PROFILES. (a) The board shall create
4-15 a profile of each physician licensed under this Act. The profile
4-16 must:
4-17 (1) include the information required by Subsection (b)
4-18 of this section; and
4-19 (2) be compiled in a format that permits the board to
4-20 make the information contained in the profile available to the
4-21 public.
4-22 (b) A profile must contain the following information on each
4-23 physician:
4-24 (1) the name of each medical school attended and the
4-25 dates of graduation;
5-1 (2) a description of any graduate medical education;
5-2 (3) any specialty certification recognized by the
5-3 board and held by the physician;
5-4 (4) the number of years the physician has practiced
5-5 medicine;
5-6 (5) the name of each hospital in which the physician
5-7 has privileges;
5-8 (6) the physician's primary practice location;
5-9 (7) whether the physician provides any language
5-10 translating services, including translating services for a person
5-11 with impairment of hearing, at the physician's primary practice
5-12 location;
5-13 (8) whether the physician participates in the Medicaid
5-14 program;
5-15 (9) a description of any conviction for an offense
5-16 constituting a felony or a serious misdemeanor that reflects
5-17 adversely on the physician's clinical competence to practice
5-18 medicine in an acceptable manner consistent with the public health
5-19 and welfare or affects adversely:
5-20 (A) the physician's ability to practice medicine
5-21 in an acceptable manner consistent with the public health and
5-22 welfare, as determined by board rule, during the 10-year period
5-23 preceding the date of the profile; or
5-24 (B) the safety of the physician's patients;
5-25 (10) a description of any charges reported to the
6-1 board under Section 5.07(a) of this Act during the 10-year period
6-2 preceding the date of the profile to which the physician has
6-3 pleaded no contest or in which sufficient facts of guilt were found
6-4 and the matter was continued by a court of competent jurisdiction;
6-5 (11) a description of any final disciplinary action
6-6 against the physician by the board during the 10-year period
6-7 preceding the date of the profile;
6-8 (12) a description of any final disciplinary action
6-9 against the physician by a medical licensing board of another state
6-10 during the 10-year period preceding the date of the profile;
6-11 (13) a description of any revocation of or involuntary
6-12 restriction of longer than 30 days on the physician's hospital
6-13 privileges, after notice and hearing, imposed by the hospital's
6-14 governing body or other hospital official that was based on
6-15 clinical quality of patient care during the 10-year period
6-16 preceding the date of the profile;
6-17 (14) a description of any resignation from or
6-18 nonrenewal of medical staff membership or restriction on hospital
6-19 privileges of longer than 30 days that was based on clinical
6-20 quality of patient care imposed as a settlement of a pending
6-21 disciplinary proceeding during the 10-year period preceding the
6-22 date of the profile;
6-23 (15) a description of the type of allegation and of
6-24 each review action taken by the board as the result of opening a
6-25 complaint regarding a physician against whom three or more
7-1 malpractice claims were reported under Section 5.05 of this Act in
7-2 a five-year period; and
7-3 (16) whether the physician's patient service areas are
7-4 accessible to disabled persons, as defined by federal law.
7-5 (c) Information required to be included under Subsection (b)
7-6 of this section that is not maintained by the board in the ordinary
7-7 course of the board's duties shall be obtained from a physician at
7-8 the time the physician renews the physician's license. In
7-9 requesting information from the physician, the board shall inform
7-10 the physician that compliance with the request for information is
7-11 mandatory, inform the physician of the date the information will be
7-12 made available to the public, and instruct the physician of the
7-13 requirements under Subsection (f) of this section for the physician
7-14 to obtain a copy of the physician's profile to make corrections.
7-15 (d) This section does not prevent the board from providing
7-16 explanatory information regarding the significance of categories in
7-17 which malpractice settlements are reported.
7-18 (e) A pending malpractice claim, other than a claim
7-19 disclosed under Subsection (b)(15) of this section, may not be
7-20 disclosed to the public by the board. This subsection does not
7-21 prevent the board from investigating and disciplining a physician
7-22 on the basis of a pending medical malpractice claim.
7-23 (f) The board shall provide an individual physician with a
7-24 copy of the physician's profile if the physician requests a copy at
7-25 the time the physician renews the physician's license. If a copy
8-1 is requested by a physician the board shall provide the physician
8-2 one month from the date the copy is provided to the physician to
8-3 correct factual errors in the physician's profile.
8-4 (g) The board shall update the information contained in a
8-5 physician's profile annually. The board shall adopt a form that
8-6 allows a physician to update information contained in a physician's
8-7 profile or to provide additional information to be included in the
8-8 profile. The form shall be made available electronically and on
8-9 the Internet. A physician may update information in the
8-10 physician's profile or provide additional information for the
8-11 profile at any time. The board may assess a fee to be paid by the
8-12 physician to update the physician's profile at a time other than
8-13 the board's annual update and a fee to cover the costs of including
8-14 additional information in the profile not required by the board.
8-15 The board may adopt rules concerning the type and content of
8-16 additional information that may be included in a physician's
8-17 profile.
8-18 (h) The board shall adopt rules as necessary to implement
8-19 this section.
8-20 Explanation: This change is necessary to authorize the Texas
8-21 State Board of Medical Examiners to establish a physician profiling
8-22 system to improve the efficiency of that agency in regulating the
8-23 practice of medicine in this state.
8-24 (3) Senate Rules 12.03(3) and (4) are suspended to permit
8-25 the committee to add text incorporating transitional material in
9-1 the bill to implement the amendment to Section 3.10, Medical
9-2 Practice Act (Article 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), and
9-3 the addition of Section 5.11, Medical Practice Act (Article 4495b,
9-4 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), to read as follows:
9-5 (b) Section 3.10, Medical Practice Act (Article 4495b,
9-6 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as amended by this Act, applies
9-7 only to a fee assessed for a license application, license issuance,
9-8 or license examination occurring on or after the effective date of
9-9 this Act.
9-10 (c) The Texas State Board of Medical Examiners shall adopt
9-11 rules under Section 5.11, Medical Practice Act (Article 4495b,
9-12 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as added by this Act, not later
9-13 than January 1, 1998. The board shall make the initial physician
9-14 profiles required under that section available to the public not
9-15 later than June 1, 1999.
9-16 (d) The Texas State Board of Medical Examiners shall raise
9-17 fees prescribed by the board in an amount not to exceed $15 for
9-18 each fiscal year in the 1998-1999 biennium and not to exceed $10
9-19 for each fiscal year in the 2000-2001 biennium for each physician
9-20 licensed by the board to cover the costs of administering the
9-21 changes in law made by this Act. The board shall reduce any fees
9-22 raised under this subsection not later than the second anniversary
9-23 of the date the initial physician profiles required under Section
9-24 5.11, Medical Practice Act (Article 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil
9-25 Statutes), as added by this Act, are made available to the public
10-1 to the extent the increase in fee amounts was necessary to cover
10-2 the initial costs incurred by the board in establishing a physician
10-3 profile system.
10-4 Explanation: This change is necessary to clarify the
10-5 implementation of the new fee increases and physician profiling
10-6 system adopted under the amendments to the Medical Practice Act
10-7 (Article 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
10-8 ______________________________________
10-9 President of the Senate
10-10 I hereby certify that the above
10-11 Resolution was adopted by the Senate
10-12 on May 28, 1997, by the following
10-13 vote: Yeas 29, Nays 0.
10-14 ______________________________________
10-15 Secretary of the Senate