H. B. 2751
(By Delegates Amores, Fleischauer, Craig and Smirl)
[Introduced March 6, 2001; referred to the
Committee on Government Organization then the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend article three, chapter thirty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by
inserting a new section, designated section ten-b, and to
amend and reenact section thirteen, relating to creation of a
limited license for physicians employed by state medical
schools; removing existing current license waiver for medical
instruction; establishing conditions of eligibility for
limited faculty license; establishing a license fee, and
license term.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article three of chapter thirty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section ten-b,
and that section thirteen of said article be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
§30-3-10b. Limited medical school faculty license.
(a) A limited license for medical school faculty is hereby
created for a physician employed as a member of the medical school
faculty at a state medical school. Upon a physician's employment
as a member of the medical faculty at a state medical school, the
board shall issue, upon application, completion and verification as
true and correct, the information required by this section, a
limited license for the term of employment of the physician at the
state medical school. An applicant for a faculty license for a
medical school must complete an application form supplied by the
Board regarding the applicant's personal, educational, and
professional background.
(b) To be eligible to receive a limited medical school faculty
license, the applicant must provide and certify the following:
(1) evidence of graduation and receipt of the degree of doctor
of medicine or its equivalent from a school of medicine, which is
approved by the liaison committee on medical education or by the
board;
(2) a letter or other written verification from the dean of
the medical school that the physician has received a full-time
appointment as either a lecturer, assistant professor, associate professor or full professor at a state medical school, which states
the qualifications, position, responsibilities, and length of
appointment of the visiting physician for whom the request is made;
(3) two letters of recommendation on the physician's behalf by
two physicians, addressed to the board; and
(4) current reports to be submitted directly to the board from
all states in which the applicant has ever been licensed to
practice medicine indicating the status of the applicant
physician's license and whether or not the license has been
revoked, suspended, surrendered, or placed on probationary
conditions.
(c) The physician must keep all other state licenses in good
standing to be eligible for a faculty license.
(d) The practice of a physician granted a faculty license is
limited to the institution listed on the application and the
confines of the physician's employment as a member of that medical
school faculty.
(e) A non-refundable fee of one hundred fifty dollars is due
at the time of application for a limited medical faculty license.
The limited medical faculty license is issued for a one year
period, and may renewed annually for two more years.
§30-3-13. Unauthorized practice of medicine and surgery or
podiatry; criminal penalties; limitations.
(a) A person shall not engage in the practice of medicine and
surgery or podiatry, hold himself or herself out as qualified to
practice medicine and surgery or podiatry or use any title, word or
abbreviation to indicate to or induce others to believe that he or
she is licensed to practice medicine and surgery or podiatry in
this state unless he or she is actually licensed under the
provisions of this article. A person engaged in the practice of
telemedicine is considered to be engaged in the practice of
medicine within this state and is subject to the licensure
requirements of this article. As used in this section, the term
"practice of telemedicine" means the use of electronic information
and communication technologies to provide health care when distance
separates participants and includes one or both of the following:
(1) The diagnosis of a patient within this state by a physician
located outside this state as a result of the transmission of
individual patient data, specimens or other material by electronic
or other means from within this state to the physician or his or
her agent; or (2) the rendering of treatment to a patient within
this state by a physician located outside this state as a result of
transmission of individual patient data, specimens or other
material by electronic or other means from within this state to the
physician or his or her agent. No person may practice as a physician's assistant, hold himself or herself out as qualified to
practice as a physician's assistant, or use any title, word or
abbreviation to indicate to or induce others to believe that he or
she is licensed to practice as a physician's assistant in this
state unless he or she is actually licensed under the provisions of
this article. Any person who violates the provisions of this
subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be fined not more than ten thousand dollars, or imprisoned in
the county jail not more than twelve months, or both fined and
imprisoned.
(b) The provisions of this section do not apply to:
(1) Persons who are duly licensed health care providers under
other pertinent provisions of this code and are acting within the
scope of their license;
(2) Physicians or podiatrists licensed in other states or
foreign countries who are acting in a consulting capacity with
physicians or podiatrists duly licensed in this state, for a period
of not more than three months:
Provided, That this exemption is
applicable on a one-time only basis;
(3) An individual physician or podiatrist, or physician or
podiatrist, or physician or podiatrist groups, or physicians or
podiatrists at a tertiary care or university hospital outside this state and engaged in the practice of telemedicine who consult or
render second opinions concerning diagnosis or treatment of
patients within this state: (i) In an emergency or without
compensation or expectation of compensation; or (ii) on an
irregular or infrequent basis which occurs less than once a month
or less than twelve times in a calendar year;
(4) Persons holding licenses granted by another state or
foreign country who are commissioned medical officers of, a member
of or employed by the armed forces of the United States, the United
States public health service, the veterans' administration of the
United States, any federal institution or any other federal agency
while engaged in the performance of their official duties;
(5) Any person providing first-aid care in emergency
situations;
(6) The practice of the religious tenets of any recognized
church in the administration of assistance to the sick or suffering
by mental or spiritual means;
(7) Visiting medical faculty engaged in teaching or research
duties at a medical school or institution recognized by the board
and who are in this state for periods of not more than six months:
Provided, That the individuals do not otherwise engage in the
practice of medicine or podiatry outside of the auspices of their sponsoring institutions;
(8) (7) Persons enrolled in a school of medicine approved by
the liaison committee on medical education or by the board, or
persons enrolled in a school of podiatric medicine approved by the
council of podiatry education or by the board, or persons enrolled
in an undergraduate or graduate physician assistant program
approved by the committee on allied health education and
accreditation or its successor on behalf of the American medical
association or by the board, or persons engaged in graduate medical
training in a program approved by the liaison committee on graduate
medical education or the board, or engaged in graduate podiatric
training in a program approved by the council on podiatric medical
education or by the board, who are performing functions in the
course of training including with respect to functions performed by
medical residents or medical students under the supervision of a
licensed physician, ordering and obtaining laboratory tests,
medications and other patient orders by computer or other
electronic means and no other provision of this code to the
contrary may be construed to prohibit or limit medical residents'
or medical students' use of computers or other electronic devices
in this manner;
(9) (8) The fitting, recommending or sale of corrective shoes, arch supports or similar mechanical appliances in commercial
establishments; and
(10) (9) The fitting or sale of a prosthetic or orthotic
device not involving any surgical procedure, in accord with a
prescription of a physician, osteopathic physician, or where
chiropractors or podiatrists are authorized by law to prescribe
such a prosthetic or orthotic device, in accord with a prescription
of a chiropractor or podiatrist, by a practitioner certified in the
provision of custom orthotic and prosthetic devices, respectively,
by a nationally recognized credentialing body for orthotics and
prosthetics that is accredited by the national commission for
certifying agencies (NCCA):
Provided, That the sale of any
prosthetic or orthotic device by a partnership, proprietorship or
corporation which employs such a practitioner or registered
technician who fitted the prosthetic or orthotic device shall not
constitute the unauthorized practice of medicine:
Provided,
however, That the practitioner or registered technician may,
without a prescription, make recommendation solely to a physician
or osteopathic physician or to a chiropractor or podiatrist
otherwise authorized by law to prescribe a particular prosthetic or
orthotic device, regarding any prosthetic or orthotic device to be
used for a patient upon a request for such recommendation.
(c) This section shall not be construed as being in any way a
limitation upon the services of a physician's assistant performed
in accordance with the provisions of this article.
(d) Persons covered under this article may be permitted to
utilize electronic signature or unique electronic identification to
effectively sign materials, transmitted by computer or other
electronic means, upon which signature is required for the purpose
of authorized medical practice. Such signatures are deemed legal
and valid for purposes related to the provision of medical
services. This subsection does not confer any new practice
privilege or right on any persons covered under this article.
Note: The purpose of this bill is to create a limited license for
physicians who are hired to be instructors at state medical schools
that is limited to those activities associated with the employment
of the physician by the medical school.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the
present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be
added.
§30-3-10b is new, therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring
have been omitted.
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