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.