COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 564
(By Senators Tomblin, Mr. President, Minard, Sharpe, Snyder,
Kessler, Weeks, Minear, Guills, Bailey, Hunter, Ross, Dempsey and
Caldwell)
____________
[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary;
reported March 1, 2004.]
____________
A BILL to amend and reenact §30-3-12 of the code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §33-20F-7 of said
code, all relating to permitting a physician who allows his or
her medical license to expire upon retirement to retain the
original wall license issued by the board of medicine;
exempting a physician holding an inactive license from payment
of the assessment required for the physicians' mutual
insurance company; board of medicine and board of osteopathy
to notify physicians of payment of assessment; time for
payment; physician may file for exemption; failure to pay
assessment by the thirtieth day of June, two thousand four;
suspension of license; reinstatement of license upon payment
to the appropriate licensing board; and sunset provision.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §30-3-12 of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that §33-20F-7 of said code be
amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 30. PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS.
ARTICLE 3. WEST VIRGINIA MEDICAL PRACTICE ACT.
§30-3-12. Biennial renewal of license to practice medicine and
surgery or podiatry; continuing education; rules; fee;
inactive license.
(a) A license to practice medicine and surgery or podiatry in
this state is valid for a term of two years and shall be renewed
upon a receipt of a reasonable fee, as set by the board, submission
of an application on forms provided by the board and, beginning
with the biennial renewal application forms completed by licensees
and submitted to the board in one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three, a certification in accordance with rules and
regulations promulgated by the board in accordance with chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code of participation in and successful
completion of a minimum of fifty hours of continuing medical or
podiatric education satisfactory to the board, as appropriate to
the particular license, during the preceding two-year period.
Continuing medical education satisfactory to the board is
continuing medical education designated as Category I by the
American medical association or the academy of family physicians
and continuing podiatric education satisfactory to the board is
continuing podiatric education approved by the council on podiatric
education.
In addition, the Legislature hereby finds and declares that it
is in the public interest to encourage alternate categories of
continuing education satisfactory to the board for physicians and
podiatrists. In order to provide adequate notice of the same to
physicians and podiatrists, no later than the first day of June,
one thousand nine hundred ninety-one, the board shall file rules
under the provisions of section fifteen, article three, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code delineating any alternate categories of
continuing medical or podiatric education which may be considered
satisfactory to the board and any procedures for board approval of
such continuing education.
Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary,
failure to timely submit to the board a certification in accordance
with rules and regulations promulgated by the board in accordance
with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code of successful completion of
a minimum of fifty hours of continuing medical or podiatric
education satisfactory to the board, as appropriate to the
particular license, shall, beginning the first day of July, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-three, result in the automatic
suspension of any license to practice medicine and surgery or
podiatry until such time as the certification in accordance with
rules and regulations promulgated by the board in accordance with
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, with all supporting written
documentation, is submitted to and approved by the board.
Any individual who accepts the privilege of practicing
medicine and surgery or podiatry in this state is required to provide supporting written documentation of the continuing
education represented as received within thirty days of receipt of
a written request to do so by the board. If a licensee fails or
refuses to provide supporting written documentation of the
continuing education represented as received as required in this
section, such failure or refusal to provide supporting written
documentation is prima facie evidence of renewing a license to
practice medicine and surgery or podiatry by fraudulent
misrepresentation.
(b) The board may renew, on an inactive basis, the license of
a physician or podiatrist who is currently licensed to practice
medicine and surgery or podiatry, but is not actually practicing
medicine and surgery or podiatry, in this state. A physician or
podiatrist holding an inactive license shall not practice medicine
and surgery or podiatry in this state. His or her inactive license
may be converted by the board to an active one upon a written
request to the board that accounts for his or her period of
inactivity to the satisfaction of the board:
Provided, That
beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three, such licensee submits written documentation of
participation in and successful completion of a minimum of fifty
hours of continuing medical or podiatric education satisfactory to
the board, as appropriate to the particular license, during each
preceding two-year period. An inactive license may be obtained
upon receipt of a reasonable fee, as set by the board, and
submission of an application on forms provided by the board on a biennial basis.
(c) When a physician or podiatrist allows a license to expire
because the physician or podiatrist is permanently retiring from
the practice of medicine, the board shall permit the physician or
podiatrist to retain the original wall license he or she was issued
by the board.
CHAPTER 33. INSURANCE.
ARTICLE 20F. PHYSICIANS' MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY.
§33-20F-7. Initial capital and surplus; special assessment;
failure to pay assessment by a date certain;
suspension of license; reinstatement.
(a) There is hereby created in the state treasury a special
revenue account designated as the "Board of Risk and Insurance
Management Physicians' Mutual Insurance Company Account" solely for
the purpose of receiving moneys transferred from the West Virginia
tobacco medical trust fund pursuant to subsection (c), section two,
article eleven-a, chapter four of this code for the company's use
as initial capital and surplus.
(b) On the first day of July, two thousand three, a special
one-time assessment, in the amount of one thousand dollars, shall
be imposed on every physician licensed by the board of medicine or
by the board of osteopathy for the privilege of practicing medicine
in this state:
Provided, That the following physicians shall be
exempt from the assessment:
(1) A faculty physician who meets the criteria for full-time faculty under subsection (f), section one, article eight, chapter
eighteen-b of this code who is a full-time employee of a school of
medicine or osteopathic medicine in this state and who does not
maintain a private practice;
(2) A resident physician who is a graduate of a medical school
or college of osteopathic medicine enrolled and who is
participating in an accredited full-time program of post-graduate
medical education in this state;
(3) A physician who has presented suitable proof that he or
she is on active duty in armed forces of the United States and who
will not be reimbursed by the armed forces for the assessment;
(4) A physician who receives more than fifty percent of his or
her practice income from providing services to federally qualified
health center as that term is defined in 42 U. S. C. §1396d(l)(2);
and
(5) A physician who practices solely under a special volunteer
medical license authorized by section ten-a, article three, chapter
thirty of this code or section twelve-b, article fourteen of said
chapter. The assessment is to be imposed and collected by the board
of medicine and the board of osteopathy on forms prescribed by each
licensing board.
(6) A physician holding an inactive license until such time
the physician is issued an active license.
(c) The entire proceeds of the special assessment collected
pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall be dedicated to
the company. The board of medicine and the board of osteopathy shall promptly pay over to the company all amounts collected
pursuant to this section to be used as policyholder surplus for the
company.
(d) Any physician who applies to purchase insurance from the
company and who has not paid the assessment pursuant to subsection
(b) of this section shall pay one thousand dollars to the company
as a condition of obtaining insurance from the company.
(e) Within twenty days of the enactment of this section, the
board of medicine or the board of osteopathy shall give written
notice, by certified mail to the last known address given to the
boards, to physicians of the requirement that the assessment shall
be paid by the thirtieth day of June, two thousand four. Prior to
that date any physician may file with his or her respective board
a request for an exemption pursuant to this section or pay the
assessment. The board of medicine or the board of osteopathy
shall, if the physician is not otherwise exempt, suspend the
license of any physician who has failed to pay the assessment
required under this section within the time stated in this section.
Upon payment of the required assessment by the physician to the
appropriate board, the physician's license shall be reinstated.
(f) The board of risk and insurance management physicians'
mutual insurance company account shall continue to exist until the
first day of July, two thousand six, unless sooner terminated,
continued or reestablished pursuant to the provisions of article
ten, chapter four of this code.
________
(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require the board of
medicine and the board of osteopathy, after notice, to suspend the
license to practice medicine of any physician who has failed to pay
the $1,000 assessment required for the physicians' mutual insurance
company by June 30, 2004. Such license would be reinstated upon
payment to the appropriate licensing board. The bill allows a
physician who has retired to keep the original wall license issued
by the board of medicine. A physician who holds an inactive
license is exempt from paying the assessment. The mutual company
account, created in this section, will sunset on July 1, 2006.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.)