H5378

	2015 -- H 5378
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	LC001024
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	STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015
	____________
	A N A C T
	RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS - HEARING AID DEALERS AND
	FITTERS

	Introduced By: Representatives Lombardi, Morin, Carson, Canario, and Almeida
	Date Introduced: February 11, 2015
	Referred To: House Corporations
	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
1	SECTION 1. Section 5-49-13 of the General Laws in Chapter 5-49 entitled "Hearing Aid
2	Dealers and Fitters" is hereby amended to read as follows:
3	5-49-13. Prohibited acts and practices. – (a) No person shall:
4	(1) Sell, barter, or offer to sell or barter, a license.
5	(2) Purchase or procure by barter a license with intent to use it as evidence of the
6	holder's qualifications to practice the fitting and sale of hearing aids.
7	(3) Alter a license with fraudulent intent.
8	(4) Use or attempt to use as a valid license a license which has been purchased,
9	fraudulently obtained, counterfeited, or materially altered.
10	(5) Willfully make a false statement in an application for license or application for
11	renewal of a license.
12	(b) The sale and/or delivery of hearing aids directly to the consumer through the internet
13	or direct mail in those instances where the consumer does not have a valid certificate of need
14	pursuant to § 5-49-2.1 is prohibited and shall be punishable by a fine of not more than five
15	hundred dollars ($500) or imprisonment for not more than ninety (90) days, or both.
16	SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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	LC001024
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	EXPLANATION
	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
	OF
	A N A C T
	RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS - HEARING AID DEALERS AND
	FITTERS
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1	This act would prohibit the sale and/or delivery of hearing aids directly to the consumer
2	through the internet or direct mail, and would provide for criminal penalties for violations.
3	This act would take effect upon passage.
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	LC001024
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