Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2330 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Zerwas H.B. No. 2330
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the right of a dentist to contract for certain services.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Chapter 251, Occupations Code, is amended by
9	9	adding Section 251.0041 to read as follows:
10	10	Sec. 251.0041. IMPROPER INFLUENCE ON PROFESSIONAL
11	11	JUDGMENT. (a) In this section, the term "dentist" includes:
12	12	(1) a dentist licensed by the board;
13	13	(2) a professional corporation wholly owned by one or
14	14	more dentists licensed by the board; and
15	15	(3) a professional entity that provides dental
16	16	services and is owned solely by one or more dentists licensed by the
17	17	board.
18	18	(b) A dentist who enters into any contract or other
19	19	agreement that allows a person other than a dentist one or more of
20	20	the following rights or authorities is presumed to have allowed the
21	21	other person to control, influence, or otherwise interfere with the
22	22	exercise of the dentist's independent professional judgment
23	23	regarding the diagnosis or treatment of a dental disease, disorder,
24	24	or physical condition:
25	25	(1) controlling, owning, or setting any conditions for
26	26	access to or the specific contents of dental records of patients of
27	27	a dentist;
28	28	(2) setting a maximum or other standardized time for
29	29	the performance of specific dental procedures;
30	30	(3) placing any limitation or requirement on
31	31	treatments, referrals, or consultations except those based on the
32	32	professional judgment of the dentist;
33	33	(4) limiting or imposing requirements concerning the
34	34	type or scope of dental treatment, procedures, or services that may
35	35	be recommended, prescribed, directed, or performed, except that a
36	36	dentist may limit the dentist's practice, or the practice of a
37	37	dentist employed by or contracting with the dentist, to certain
38	38	procedures or the treatment of certain dental diseases;
39	39	(5) limiting or imposing requirements concerning the
40	40	supplies, instruments, or equipment deemed reasonably necessary by
41	41	a dentist to provide diagnoses and treatment of the patients of the
42	42	dentist, including a restriction on the use of a dentist's money for
43	43	the purchase of supplies, instruments, or equipment;
44	44	(6) limiting or imposing requirements for the
45	45	professional training deemed necessary by the dentist to properly
46	46	serve the patients of the dentist;
47	47	(7) directing or influencing the selection of specific
48	48	diagnostic examinations and treatments or practices regarding
49	49	patients without due regard to the recommended diagnostic
50	50	examinations and treatment agreed upon by the dentist and the
51	51	patient, except that a dentist having the responsibility for
52	52	training or supervising another dentist may reasonably limit
53	53	treatments or practices as a part of the training or supervision of
54	54	a dentist based upon the training and competency of a dentist to
55	55	perform certain treatments or practices;
56	56	(8) limiting or determining the duties of
57	57	professional, clinical, or other personnel employed to assist a
58	58	dentist in the practice of dentistry;
59	59	(9) establishing professional standards, protocols,
60	60	or practice guidelines which, in the professional judgment of the
61	61	dentist providing dental service to the dentist's patient, conflict
62	62	with generally accepted standards within the dental profession;
63	63	(10) encouraging impermissible referrals from
64	64	unlicensed persons in consideration of a fee;
65	65	(11) placing limitations or conditions upon
66	66	communications that are clinical in nature with the dentist's
67	67	patients;
68	68	(12) precluding or restricting a dentist's ability to
69	69	exercise independent professional judgment over all qualitative
70	70	and quantitative aspects of the delivery of dental care;
71	71	(13) scheduling patients of the dentist in a manner
72	72	that may have the effect of discouraging new patients from coming
73	73	into the dentist's practice or postponing future appointments or
74	74	giving scheduling preference to an individual, class, or group;
75	75	(14) penalizing a dentist for reporting violations of
76	76	a law regulating the practice of dentistry;
77	77	(15) conditioning the payment of fees to a dentist or
78	78	the amount of management fees a dentist must pay on the referral of
79	79	patients to other health care providers specified by a non-dentist;
80	80	or
81	81	(16) interfering with a dentist's decision regarding
82	82	the refund of any payment made by a patient for dental services.
83	83	(c) If a person who is not a dentist enters into any contract
84	84	or other agreement with a dentist that allows the person one or more
85	85	of the following rights or authorities, the person is presumed not
86	86	to have engaged in the practice of dentistry as defined by Section
87	87	251.003 without a license or to have been allowed to control,
88	88	influence, or otherwise interfere with the exercise of the
89	89	dentist's independent professional judgment regarding the
90	90	diagnosis or treatment of any dental disease, disorder, or physical
91	91	condition:
92	92	(1) leases, mortgages, ownership agreements, or other
93	93	arrangements regarding use of space for dental offices based on a
94	94	fee or amount that is reasonably related to the fair market value of
95	95	the office space at the time the lease or other arrangement is
96	96	entered into;
97	97	(2) the purchase, sale, financing, or lease of dental
98	98	equipment, instruments, and supplies as long as the dentist
99	99	maintains the complete care, custody, and control of the dental
100	100	equipment, instruments, and supplies and the lease does not provide
101	101	for a payment or fee based upon a percentage of the revenue received
102	102	by the dentist or the dental practice;
103	103	(3) accounting, bookkeeping, banking, investment, or
104	104	similar financial services, including services related to the
105	105	payment of invoices, obligations, and debts of a dentist;
106	106	(4) the financing, lease, use, or ownership of
107	107	non-dentist business equipment such as telephones, computers,
108	108	software, and general office equipment at reasonable,
109	109	market-related fees;
110	110	(5) services regarding the pledge, collection, or sale
111	111	of accounts receivable from patients;
112	112	(6) billing and collection services;
113	113	(7) advertising and marketing services as long as the
114	114	dentist remains solely responsible for the content of any
115	115	advertising or marketing services and for ensuring that the
116	116	advertising and marketing services conform to all applicable legal
117	117	requirements;
118	118	(8) consulting and advising regarding professional
119	119	development, business practices, and third party payor
120	120	arrangements, and the provision of business and other nonclinical
121	121	services for the day-to-day operation of a dental office which do
122	122	not limit the dentist's ability to use the dentist's independent
123	123	professional judgment regarding the diagnosis or treatment of any
124	124	dental disease, disorder, or physical condition;
125	125	(9) employing or retaining the services of personnel
126	126	working in a dental office, other than the dentist; or
127	127	(10) providing loans, capital, or funding to a
128	128	dentist, including under a secured arrangement.
129	129	(d)(1) The presumption established by Subsection (b) may be
130	130	rebutted by evidence that the contract or agreement did not result
131	131	in a person who is not a dentist controlling, influencing, or
132	132	otherwise interfering with the exercise of the dentist's
133	133	independent professional judgment regarding the diagnosis or
134	134	treatment of any dental disease, disorder, or physical condition.
135	135	(2) The presumption established by Subsection (c) may
136	136	be rebutted by evidence that the contract or agreement actually
137	137	resulted in a person who is not a dentist controlling, influencing,
138	138	or otherwise interfering with the dentist's independent
139	139	professional judgment regarding the diagnosis or treatment of any
140	140	dental disease, disorder, or physical condition. Evidence is not
141	141	admissible to rebut the presumption established by Subsection (c)
142	142	if the evidence relates to:
143	143	(A) the length of the contract or agreement;
144	144	(B) whether an unlicensed person provides all,
145	145	substantially all, or is the exclusive provider of such
146	146	undertakings to a dentist or dental office; or
147	147	(C) subject to the limitations of Subsection
148	148	(b)(5), whether the dentist has authorized an unlicensed person to
149	149	have signature authority over the dentist's accounts.
150	150	(e) This rule does not apply to a person or circumstance
151	151	described by Section 251.004, 260.001, 260.002, 260.003, or
152	152	260.004.
153	153	SECTION 2. Section 254.0011, Occupations Code, is amended
154	154	to read as follows:
155	155	Sec. 254.0011. RULES RELATING TO CONTROL OF DENTAL
156	156	PRACTICE. [(a)] The board may not adopt rules [relating to the
157	157	practice of dentistry as described by Section 251.003(a)(9)] to
158	158	prohibit or otherwise restrict [a dentist from engaging in
159	159	contracts that allow a person who is not a dentist to influence or
160	160	interfere with the exercise of the dentist's independent
161	161	professional judgment.
162	162	[(b) Rules adopted by the board under this subtitle may not
163	163	preclude] a dentist's right to contract with:
164	164	(1) a management service organization; or
165	165	(2) a person for the provision of management services.
166	166	[Rules affecting contracts for provision of management services
167	167	apply the same to dentists contracting with management service
168	168	organizations and to dentists otherwise contracting for management
169	169	services.]
170	170	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.