| (a) The Texas Optometry Act, §351.364(a), requires
that the space occupied by the optometrist or therapeutic optometrist
shall be separated from the space occupied by the dispensing optician
by solid partitions or walls from floor to ceiling. The intent of
the Texas Legislature in passing §351.364 is specifically spelled
out in §351.364(d) and is to insure that the practices of optometry
and therapeutic optometry shall be carried out in such a manner that
they are completely and totally separated from the business of any
dispensing optician.
(b) In light of the overriding legislative intent in
passing §351.364 that the practices of optometry and therapeutic
optometry be completely and totally separate from the business of
any dispensing optician, it is the interpretation of the Board that §351.364(a),
set forth in subsection (a) of this section, prohibits the space occupied
by an optometrist or therapeutic optometrist and space occupied by
a dispensing optician from being joined by a wall in which there is
a door, either locked or unlocked.
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