The Texas Medical Board (Board) proposes amendments to Chapter 174, §§174.1, 174.2, 174.4, and 174.6, concerning Telemedicine.

The amendment to §174.1, relating to Purpose, adds a citation to the statute authorizing the Board to adopt rules regarding telemedicine and clarifies that these rules do not apply to a limited purpose telemedicine license. The amendment to §174.2, relating to Definitions, revises definitions to distant site physician, patient site location, and telemedicine medical service to conform to recent changes to definitions by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). The amendment to §174.4, relating to Use of the Internet in Medical Practice, provides that an out-of-state physician may provide only episodic consultations to patients in Texas without a Texas medical license, as provided in §172.12(f). The amendment to §174.6, relating to Delegation to and Supervision of Patient Site Presenters, provides that distant site physicians must adequately supervise patient site presenters and have the presenters with the patients when a telemedicine medical service is provided.

Elsewhere in this issue of the Texas Register, the Board contemporaneously proposes the rule review of Chapter 174.

Robert D. Simpson, General Counsel for the Board, has determined that for each year of the first five years the sections as proposed are in effect, the public benefit anticipated as a result of enforcing the proposal will be to improve access to and quality of health care services.

Mr. Simpson has also determined that for the first five-year period the sections are in effect, there will be no fiscal implications to state or local government as a result of enforcing the sections as proposed. However, these rules do conform to recent rule adoptions by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to 1 TAC §354.1430, relating to Definitions, and §354.1432, relating to Benefits and Limitations, which did have a fiscal impact to state government. There will be no effect to individuals required to comply with the rules as proposed. There will be no effect on small or micro businesses.

Comments on the proposal may be submitted to Sally Durocher, P.O. Box 2018, Austin, Texas 78768-2018, or e-mail comments to: rules.development@tmb.state.tx.us. A public hearing will be held at a later date.

The amendments are proposed under the authority of the Texas Occupations Code Annotated, §153.001, which provides authority for the Board to adopt rules and bylaws as necessary to: govern its own proceedings; perform its duties; regulate the practice of medicine in this state; enforce this subtitle; and establish rules related to licensure.

Section 151.056, Texas Occupations Code is affected by this proposal.