| (a) Provisional License.
(1) Requirements for Provisional License. On application
for examination, a candidate may apply for a provisional license under
the following circumstances:
(A) The applicant must be licensed in good standing
as a therapeutic optometrist in another state, the District of Columbia,
or a territory of the United States that has licensing requirements
that are substantially equivalent to the requirements of the Texas
Optometry Act, and must furnish proof of such licensure on board forms
provided.
(B) The applicant must have passed the National Board
of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) Examination Parts I and II, after
January 1, 1984, and Part III after June of 1994, as well as the Treatment
and Management of Ocular Disease (TMOD) Examination after January
of 1985 and must submit a true and correct copy of the applicant's
score report.
(C) The applicant must have satisfied the educational
requirement of §271.11 of this title (relating to Required Education
for Therapeutic Licensure).
(D) The applicant must not have failed an examination
for a license conducted by the Board.
(E) The applicant's license to practice optometry must
not have been revoked or suspended by any jurisdiction.
(2) Sponsorship. A candidate for provisional licensure
must be sponsored by a therapeutic optometrist who is currently licensed
by the Board with the following conditions applicable.
(A) Prior to practice in Texas, on forms provided by
the Board, the sponsor licensee will certify to the Board the following:
(i) that such candidate will be working within the
same office as the licensee, under direct supervision of the sponsor
licensee; and
(ii) that such sponsor licensee is aware of the Act
and rules governing provisional licensure and that the sponsorship
will cease upon the invalidity of the provisional license.
(B) Sponsor licensee will be held responsible for the
unauthorized practice of optometry should such provisional license
expire.
(3) Hardship. An applicant for a provisional license
may be excused from the requirements of sponsorship if the Board determines
that compliance constitutes a hardship to the applicant.
(4) Application and fee.
(A) The candidate for provisional licensure will be
subject to all application requirements required by Chapter 271 of
this title (relating to Licensing) and subject to the applicable fees
established under §273.4 of this chapter (relating to Fees (Not
Refundable)). In addition, the candidate will be subject to a fee
for issuance of a provisional license, as established under §273.4
of this chapter.
(B) No provisional license can be issued until all
application forms and fees are received and the application is approved.
(C) A provisional license expires upon the earlier
to occur of the passage of 180 days or notice by the Board of the
candidate's successful passage or failure of all examinations required
by Chapter 271 of this title. It shall be the responsibility of the
candidate and sponsor to return the provisional license to the Board
upon expiration.
(D) Each candidate for provisional license shall receive
only one nonrenewable license prior to the issuance of a therapeutic
optometry license.
(5) If at any time during the provisional licensure
period it is determined that the holder of such provisional license
has violated the Optometry Act or Board rules, such provisional license
will be subject to termination.
(b) Military Limited Volunteer License.
(1) Pursuant to §351.266 of the Texas Optometry
Act, the Board may issue a military limited volunteer license to practice
optometry or therapeutic optometry to an applicant who:
(A) is licensed and in good standing, or was licensed
and retired in good standing, as an optometrist or therapeutic optometrist
in another state;
(B) is or was authorized as an optometrist or therapeutic
optometrist to treat personnel enlisted in a branch of the United
States armed forces or veterans; and
(C) meets all other requirements prescribed by Board
Rule.
(2) The Board may not issue a license under this section
to an applicant who:
(A) holds an optometry or therapeutic optometry license
that:
(i) is currently under investigation by a state or
territory of the United States, or a uniformed service of the United
States;
(ii) is or was restricted, cancelled, suspended, revoked,
or subject to other discipline or denial of licensure by a state or
territory of the United States, or a uniformed service of the United
States;
(B) holds a license issued by the Drug Enforcement
Agency or a state public safety agency to prescribe, dispense, administer,
supply, or sell a controlled substance that:
(i) is currently under investigation by a state or
territory of the United States, or a uniformed service of the United
States;
(ii) is or was restricted, cancelled, suspended, revoked,
or subject to other discipline or denial by a state or territory of
the United States, or a uniformed service of the United States; or
(C) is currently under investigation or has been convicted
of, or placed on deferred adjudication, community supervision, or
deferred disposition for a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral
turpitude.
(3) An optometrist or therapeutic optometrist who practices
optometry or therapeutic optometry under a license issued under this
section may:
(A) only practice at a clinic that primarily treats
indigent populations; and
(B) not receive direct or indirect compensation or
payment of anything of monetary value in exchange for the optometric
services rendered by the optometrist or therapeutic optometrist to
the indigent patients at the clinic.
(4) A military limited volunteer license holder is
subject to Board rules, including rules regarding disciplinary action,
license registration and renewal.
(5) A military limited volunteer license shall be issued
for a period of one year and may be renewed and maintained according
to registration requirements as prescribed by Board Rules.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §273.6 adopted to be effective September 10, 1993, 18 TexReg 5745; amended to be effective February 18, 1994, 19 TexReg 789; amended to be effective August 2, 1998, 23 TexReg 7563; amended to be effective March 21, 2012, 37 TexReg 1904; amended to be effective March 23, 2014, 39 TexReg 2079; amended to be effective March 1, 2018, 43 TexReg 1101; amended to be effective September 16, 2024, 49 TexReg 7324 |
