HBA-JEK H.B. 556 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 556 By: Maxey Public Health 2/8/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In an effort to provide health care consumers with objective information regarding their physicians, the 76th Legislature enacted legislation requiring the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners to make profiles of physicians available to the public. These profiles are now available to the public on the Internet. House Bill 556 requires that profiles of chiropractors, podiatrists, dentists, optometrists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, and pharmacists also be created and made available to the public on the Internet. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners in SECTION 1 (Section 201.206, Occupations Code), the Texas State Board of Podiatric Medical Examiners in SECTION 2 (Section 202.206, Occupations Code), the State Board of Dental Examiners in SECTION 3 (Section 255.009, Occupations Code), the Texas Optometry Board in SECTION 4 (Section 351.206, Occupations Code), the Texas Board of Physical Therapy Examiners in SECTION 5 (Section 453.156, Occupations Code), the Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners in SECTION 6 (Section 454.155, Occupations Code), the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists in SECTION 7 (Section 501.207, Occupations Code), and the Texas State Board of Pharmacy in SECTION 8 (Section 555.013, Occupations Code) of this bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 556 amends the Occupations Code to require the following boards of health care professionals (boards) to create and make available to the public a profile for each of its health care professionals: Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners (SECTION 1), Texas State Board of Podiatric Medical Examiners (SECTION 2), State Board of Dental Examiners (SECTION 3), Texas Optometry Board (SECTION 4), Texas Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SECTION 5), Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners (SECTION 6), Texas State Board of Examiners for Psychologists (SECTION 7), and Texas State Board of Pharmacy (SECTION 8). The bill outlines the information to be contained in the profile, including information regarding the health care professional's practice, education, any speciality certification, and a description of any criminal or disciplinary charges against the health care professional. The bill prohibits a board from disclosing a pending malpractice claim or complaint, but does not prevent a board from investigating and disciplining a health care professional on the basis of such a complaint. The bill does not require a board to disclose confidential settlement information. The bill does not prevent a board from providing explanatory information regarding malpractice settlements. The bill requires each board to obtain additionally needed information each time its health care professionals renew their licenses. The bill requires each board to inform its health care professionals that it is mandatory to provide the profile information, to disclose the date the information will be made available to the public, and instruct the health care professional that, on request, the board is required to provide a health care professional with a copy of the profile at the time of the professional's license renewal. The bill requires each board to provide the health care professional one month from the date the copy is provided to correct factual errors in the profile. The bill requires a board to update its profile information annually, and to adopt a form that allows each health care professional to update the profile information. The bill requires the form to be made available on the Internet and in other formats as prescribed by board rule. The bill authorizes each board to adopt rules concerning the type and content of additional information that may be included in a profile. The bill requires each state agency subject to these provisions to adopt rules under these provisions no later than April 1, 2002, and make the initial profiles available to the public no later than September 1, 2003. The bill requires each state agency to raise fees to cover the costs of implementing the profile system in an amount no greater than $20 for each fiscal year in the 2002-2003 biennium and no greater than $10 for each fiscal year in the 2004-2005 biennium. The state agency is required to reduce these increased fees no later than the second anniversary of the date the profiles are made available to the public to the extent the increase in fee amounts was necessary to cover the initial costs incurred by the agency in establishing a profile system. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.