| |
| |
| |
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to certain duties of the Texas Medical Board in licensing |
|
|
and expert testimony. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 153, Occupations Code, is |
|
|
amended by adding Section 153.016 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 153.016. EXPERT TESTIMONY. A member of the board may |
|
|
not serve as an expert witness in a suit involving a health care |
|
|
liability claim against a physician for injury to or death of a |
|
|
patient. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Section 155.007, Occupations Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Subsections (h), (i), (j), (k), (l), (m), and (n) to read as |
|
|
follows: |
|
|
(h) Not later than January 1 of each year: |
|
|
(1) the executive director shall review the policy and |
|
|
procedures the board uses to issue licenses; and |
|
|
(2) the board shall perform a needs assessment to |
|
|
enable the board to determine the performance goals that the board |
|
|
must meet to reduce any unreasonable delays in the timely |
|
|
completion of the licensing process and to ensure the process is |
|
|
completed in a reasonable number of days. |
|
|
(i) Not later than August 1 of each even-numbered year, the |
|
|
executive director shall issue a report to the governor, the |
|
|
Legislative Budget Board, and the relevant committees of the senate |
|
|
and the house of representatives on the state of the board's |
|
|
licensing process. |
|
|
(j) The report required under Subsection (i) must include a |
|
|
projected yearly budget for board staffing and technology |
|
|
improvements that will allow the board to issue licenses within a |
|
|
reasonable number of days. |
|
|
(k) The board and the executive director shall ensure that |
|
|
any change in licensing policies or procedures is made only to |
|
|
increase the number of licenses issued under this chapter, reduce |
|
|
unreasonable delays in the licensing process, and maintain public |
|
|
safety. |
|
|
(l) The report required under Subsection (i) must include: |
|
|
(1) any specialty certification information collected |
|
|
from applicants, including any information similar to information |
|
|
collected under Section 154.006; |
|
|
(2) the location where each applicant intends to |
|
|
practice; and |
|
|
(3) in aggregate form, data collected since the prior |
|
|
report relating to felony convictions, Class A and Class B |
|
|
misdemeanor convictions, and deferred adjudications for felonies |
|
|
and Class A and Class B misdemeanors. |
|
|
(m) Not later than August 31, 2008, the board shall ensure |
|
|
that the average time to process license applications under this |
|
|
chapter does not exceed 51 days. The board shall include the |
|
|
board's progress toward this performance measure target in the |
|
|
report required under Subsection (i). |
|
|
(n) The board shall make an effort to give priority to an |
|
|
application submitted by an applicant who informs the board that |
|
|
the applicant intends to practice in a medically underserved area |
|
|
of this state. |
|
|
SECTION 3. Section 155.008, Occupations Code, is amended to |
|
|
read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 155.008. CRIMINAL RECORD CHECK. (a) The board may |
|
|
submit to the Department of Public Safety a complete set of |
|
|
fingerprints of each license applicant, and the department shall |
|
|
classify and check the fingerprints against those in the |
|
|
department's fingerprint records. The department shall certify to |
|
|
the board its findings regarding the criminal record of the |
|
|
applicant or the applicant's lack of a criminal record. |
|
|
(b) Each applicant shall submit information to the board |
|
|
detailing any conviction for a felony or a Class A or Class B |
|
|
misdemeanor or a deferred adjudication for a felony or Class A or |
|
|
Class B misdemeanor for a violation relating to: |
|
|
(1) Medicare, Medicaid or insurance fraud; |
|
|
(2) the Texas Controlled Substances Act or |
|
|
intoxication or alcoholic beverage offenses; |
|
|
(3) sexual or assaultive offenses; and |
|
|
(4) tax fraud or evasion. |
|
|
SECTION 4. Section 156.001, Occupations Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Subsection (e) to read as follows: |
|
|
(e) In addition to the information required by Subsection |
|
|
(c), a license holder shall submit to the board with the |
|
|
registration permit renewal application information not reported |
|
|
on a license application or a previous permit renewal application |
|
|
relating to a felony conviction, a conviction for a Class A or Class |
|
|
B misdemeanor, or a deferred adjudication for a felony offense or |
|
|
Class A or Class B misdemeanor offense for: |
|
|
(1) Medicare, Medicaid or insurance fraud; |
|
|
(2) the Texas Controlled Substances Act or |
|
|
intoxication or alcoholic beverage offenses; |
|
|
(3) sexual or assaultive offenses; and |
|
|
(4) tax fraud or evasion. |
|
|
SECTION 5. Section 155.1025(a), Occupations Code, is |
|
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(a) The board shall adopt rules for expediting any |
|
|
application for a license under this subtitle made by a person who |
|
|
[is licensed to practice medicine in another state or country and
|
|
|
who] submits an affidavit with the application stating that: |
|
|
(1) the applicant intends to practice in a rural |
|
|
community[, as determined by the Office of Rural Community
|
|
|
Affairs]; or |
|
|
(2) the applicant[:
|
|
|
[(A)
has requested and is eligible for an
|
|
|
immigration visa waiver as described by Section 12.0127, Health and
|
|
|
Safety Code; and
|
|
|
[(B)] intends to practice medicine in a medically |
|
|
underserved area or health professional shortage area, designated |
|
|
by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, that |
|
|
has a current shortage of physicians. |
|
|
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
|
|
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
|
|
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
|
|
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
|
|
Act takes effect September 1, 2007. |
| |
| |
| |
______________________________ |
______________________________ |
| |
President of the Senate |
Speaker of the House |
| |
| |
|
|
I certify that H.B. No. 1973 was passed by the House on April |
|
|
18, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, 1 present, not |
|
|
voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to |
|
|
H.B. No. 1973 on May 21, 2007, and requested the appointment of a |
|
|
conference committee to consider the differences between the two |
|
|
houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report |
|
|
on H.B. No. 1973 on May 26, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 143, |
|
|
Nays 1, 2 present, not voting. |
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
|
Chief Clerk of the House |
| |
|
|
I certify that H.B. No. 1973 was passed by the Senate, with |
|
|
amendments, on May 17, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays |
|
|
0; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference |
|
|
committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and |
|
|
that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No. |
|
|
1973 on May 26, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0. |
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
|
Secretary of the Senate |
|
|
APPROVED: __________________ |
|
|
Date |
|
|
|
|
|
__________________ |
|
|
Governor |