82R628 JAM-F

By: Huffman S.B. No. 177

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the licensing and regulation of physicians.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 154.051, Occupations Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) The board may not consider or act on a complaint involving care provided more than seven years before the date on which the complaint is filed unless the care was provided to a minor. If the care was provided to a minor, the board may not consider or act on a complaint involving the care after the later of:

(1) the date the minor is 21 years of age; or

(2) the seventh anniversary of the date of the care.

SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 154, Occupations Code, is amended by adding Section 154.0535 to read as follows:

Sec. 154.0535. REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN COMPLAINTS. (a) In this section:

(1) "Anonymous complaint" means a complaint that lacks sufficient information to identify the source or the name of the person who filed the complaint.

(2) "Insurance agent" means a person licensed under Chapter 4054, Insurance Code.

(3) "Insurer" means an insurance company or other entity authorized to engage in the business of insurance under Subtitle C, Title 6, Insurance Code.

(4) "Third-party administrator" means a person required to have a certificate of authority under Chapter 4151, Insurance Code.

(b) The board may not accept anonymous complaints.

(c) Notwithstanding any confidentiality requirements under Chapter 552, Government Code, this subtitle, or rules adopted under this subtitle, a complaint filed with the board by an insurance agent, insurer, or third-party administrator against a physician must include the name and address of the insurance agent, insurer, or third-party administrator filing the complaint. Not later than the 15th day after the date the complaint is filed with the board, the board shall notify the physician who is the subject of the complaint of the name and address of the insurance agent, insurer, or third-party administrator who filed the complaint, unless the notice would jeopardize an investigation.

SECTION 3. Section 154.057(b), Occupations Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) The board shall complete a preliminary investigation of the complaint not later than the 45th [30th] day after the date of receiving the complaint. The board shall first determine whether the physician constitutes a continuing threat to the public welfare. On completion of the preliminary investigation, the board shall determine whether to officially proceed on the complaint. If the board fails to complete the preliminary investigation in the time required by this subsection, the board's official investigation of the complaint is considered to commence on that date.

SECTION 4. Section 155.003(e), Occupations Code, is amended to read as follows:

(e) An applicant is not eligible for a license if:

(1) the applicant:

(A) holds a medical license that is currently restricted for cause or [, canceled for cause,] suspended for cause; [,] or

(B) held a medical license that was surrendered or canceled for cause or revoked by a state, another country [a province of Canada], or a uniformed service of the United States;

(2) an investigation or a proceeding is instituted against the applicant for the restriction, cancellation, suspension, or revocation by another [in a] state or country[, a province of Canada,] or by a uniformed service of the United States; or

(3) a prosecution is pending against the applicant in any state or[,] federal court[,] or [Canadian] court in another country for any offense that under the laws of this state is a felony or a misdemeanor that involves moral turpitude.

SECTION 5. Section 155.101(b), Occupations Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) The board may not grant a provisional license under this section to an applicant who:

(1) has had a medical license suspended or revoked by another state or country [a Canadian province]; or

(2) holds a medical license issued by another state or country [a Canadian province] that is subject to a restriction, disciplinary order, or probationary order.

SECTION 6. Section 155.104(b), Occupations Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) The board may issue a faculty temporary license to practice medicine to a physician as provided by this section. The physician:

(1) must hold a current medical license that is unrestricted and not subject to a disciplinary order or probation in another state or country [a Canadian province] or have completed at least three years of postgraduate residency;

(2) may not:

(A) hold a medical license in another state or country [a Canadian province] that has any restrictions, disciplinary orders, or probation; or

(B) have held a medical license that was surrendered or canceled for cause or revoked by another state or country or by a uniformed service of the United States;

(3) must pass the Texas medical jurisprudence examination; and

(4) must hold a salaried faculty position equivalent to at least the level of assistant professor and be working full-time at one of the following institutions:

(A) The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston;

(B) The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas;

(C) The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston;

(D) The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio;

(E) The University of Texas Health Center at Tyler;

(F) The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center;

(G) Texas A&M University College of Medicine;

(H) the Schools of Medicine at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center;

(I) Baylor College of Medicine;

(J) the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth;

(K) an institutional sponsor of a graduate medical education program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education; or

(L) a nonprofit health corporation certified under Section 162.001 and affiliated with a program described by Paragraph (K).

SECTION 7. Section 164.003, Occupations Code, is amended by amending Subsections (b) and (f) and adding Subsection (i) to read as follows:

(b) Rules adopted under this section must require that:

(1) an informal meeting in compliance with Section 2001.054, Government Code, be scheduled not later than the 180th day after the date the board's official investigation of the complaint is commenced as provided by Section 154.057(b), unless good cause is shown by the board for scheduling the informal meeting after that date;

(2) the board give notice to the license holder of the time and place of the meeting not later than the 45th [30th] day before the date the meeting is held;

(3) the complainant and the license holder be provided an opportunity to be heard;

(4) at least one of the board members or district review committee members participating in the informal meeting as a panelist be a member who represents the public;

(5) the board's legal counsel or a representative of the attorney general be present to advise the board or the board's staff; and

(6) a member of the board's staff be at the meeting to present to the board's representative the facts the staff reasonably believes it could prove by competent evidence or qualified witnesses at a hearing.

(f) The notice required by Subsection (b)(2) must be accompanied by a written statement of the nature of the allegations and the information the board intends to use at the meeting. If the board does not provide the statement or information at that time, the license holder may use that failure as grounds for rescheduling the informal meeting. If the complaint includes an allegation that the license holder has violated the standard of care, the notice must include a copy of the report by the expert physician reviewer. The license holder must provide to the board the license holder's rebuttal at least 15 [five] business days before the date of the meeting in order for the information to be considered at the meeting.

(i) On request by a physician under review, the board shall make a recording of the informal settlement conference proceeding. The recording is a part of the investigative file and may not be released to a third party unless authorized under this subtitle.

SECTION 8. Sections 164.007(a) and (a-1), Occupations Code, are amended to read as follows:

(a) The board by rule shall adopt procedures governing formal disposition of a contested case under Chapter 2001, Government Code. A formal hearing shall be conducted by an administrative law judge employed by the State Office of Administrative Hearings. After receiving the administrative law judge's findings of fact and conclusions of law, the board shall dispose of the contested case by issuing a final order based on the administrative law judge's findings of fact and conclusions of law [determine the charges on the merits].

(a-1) Notwithstanding Section 2001.058(e), Government Code, the [The] board may not change a finding of fact or conclusion of law or vacate or modify an order of the administrative law judge. The board may obtain judicial review of any finding of fact or conclusion of law issued by the administrative law judge as provided by Section 2001.058(f)(5), Government Code. For each case, the board has the sole authority and discretion to determine the appropriate action or sanction, and the administrative law judge may not make any recommendation regarding the appropriate action or sanction [only if the board makes a determination required by Section 2001.058(e), Government Code].

SECTION 9. Sections 154.051, 154.057, and 164.003, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, and Section 154.0535, Occupations Code, as added by this Act, apply only to the investigation of a complaint filed on or after the effective date of this Act. The investigation of a complaint filed before that date is governed by the law in effect on the date the complaint was filed, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 10. Sections 155.003, 155.101, and 155.104, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to an application for a license filed with the Texas Medical Board on or after the effective date of this Act. An application for a license filed before that date is governed by the law in effect on the date the application was filed, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 11. Section 164.007, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to a contested case hearing that is commenced on or after the effective date of this Act. A contested case hearing commenced before that date is governed by the law in effect on the date the hearing commenced, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.