HBA-MPM H.B. 1987 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1987
By: McCall
Public Health
3/22/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the Medical Practice Act is used to license physicians in Texas.
This act requires physicians seeking licensure in this state by way of
endorsement or by way of original license to be reviewed, examined, and
evaluated according to certain standards.  The Texas State Board of Medical
Examiners (board) is the state agency which carries out laws prescribing
the regulation of physicians who practice medicine in Texas.   

H.B. 1987 permits the board to accept an appropriate licensure examination
currently being given on a national basis.  This bill also sets forth the
methods in which an examination for licensure is to be administered and
provides for a method of reporting examination scores to examinees. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Texas State Board of Medical
Examiners in SECTION 1 (Section 3.05, Article 4495b, V.T.C.S.) of this
bill. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 3.05, Article 4495b, V.T.C.S. (Medical Practice
Act), as follows: 

Sec. 3.05.  New title:  EXAMINATIONS ADMINISTERED OR ACCEPTED.  (a)  Allows
the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners (board) to administer or accept
certain examinations for licensure as determined by rule.  Sets forth a
list of examinations.  

(b)  Provides that each examination used by the board for licensure to
practice medicine must be in writing in the English language and be fair
and impartial to all individuals and every school or system of medicine.
Requires an applicant wishing to request reasonable accommodations to
submit the request on filing the application.  

(c)  Requires examinations to include subjects generally taught by medical
schools, a knowledge which is commonly and generally required of candidates
for the degree of doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathy conferred by
schools in this state.  

(d)  Requires the board to additionally administer the Texas medical
jurisprudence examination to all applicants.  

(e)  Requires the board, by rule, to determine the passing grade for each
examination used.  
(f)  Requires examinations administered to evaluate basic medical knowledge
and clinical competency to be prepared by a national testing service or the
board and validated by qualified independent testing professionals.  

(g)  Requires all questions, answers, and grades to be preserved for one
year, as per board rule. 

(h)  Requires all applicants to be given notice of the date and place of
the examination,  if it is administered by the board. 

(i)  Requires each examinee to be notified of examination results no later
than the 120th day after the date the board administers the examination.
Requires the board to notify each examinee of the examination results no
later than the 30th day after it receives the results from a national
testing service, if the examination is graded or reviewed by the service. 

(j)  Provides that an applicant must pass each part of certain examinations
described in Subsection (a) within seven years. 

(k)  Prohibits an applicant from taking an examination more than three
times. 

Deletes existing text relating to examinations administered for licensure
of physicians. 

SECTION 2.Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.