Chapter
037
2007 -- H 5382
Enacted 06/14/07
A N A C T
RELATING TO
BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS
Introduced By: Representatives Naughton, and Lewiss
Date Introduced: February 08, 2007
It is
enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION
1. Section 5-37-5.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 5-37 entitled "BOARD OF
MEDICAL
LICENSURE AND DISCIPLINE" is hereby amended to read as follows:
5-37-5.1.
Unprofessional conduct. -- The term "unprofessional conduct"
as used in this
chapter
includes, but is not limited to, the following items or any combination of
these items and
may be
further defined by regulations established by the board with the prior approval
of the
director:
(1) Fraudulent or deceptive procuring or use of a license or limited
registration;
(2) All advertising of medical business, which is intended or has a tendency to
deceive
the
public;
(3) Conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude; conviction of a felony;
conviction
of a
crime arising out of the practice of medicine;
(4) Abandoning a patient;
(5) Dependence upon controlled substances, habitual drunkenness, or rendering
professional
services to a patient while the physician or limited registrant is intoxicated
or
incapacitated
by the use of drugs;
(6) Promotion by a physician or limited registrant of the sale of drugs,
devices,
appliances,
or goods or services provided for a patient in a manner as to exploit the
patient for the
financial
gain of the physician or limited registrant;
(7) Immoral conduct of a physician or limited registrant in the practice of
medicine;
(8) Willfully making and filing false reports or records in the practice of
medicine;
(9) Willfully omitting to file or record, or willfully impeding or obstructing
a filing or
recording,
or inducing another person to omit to file or record, medical or other reports
as
required
by law;
(10) Failing to furnish details of a patient's medical record to succeeding
physicians,
health
care facility, or other health care providers upon proper request pursuant to
section 5-37.3-
4;
(11) Soliciting professional patronage by agents or persons or profiting from
acts of
those
representing themselves to be agents of the licensed physician or limited
registrants;
(12) Dividing fees or agreeing to split or divide the fees received for
professional
services
for any person for bringing to or referring a patient;
(13) Agreeing with clinical or bioanalytical laboratories to accept payments
from these
laboratories
for individual tests or test series for patients;
(14) Making willful misrepresentations in treatments;
(15) Practicing medicine with an unlicensed physician except in an accredited
preceptorship
or residency training program, or aiding or abetting unlicensed persons in the
practice
of medicine;
(16) Gross and willful overcharging for professional services; including filing
of false
statements
for collection of fees for which services are not rendered, or willfully making
or
assisting
in making a false claim or deceptive claim or misrepresenting a material fact
for use in
determining
rights to health care or other benefits;
(17) Offering, undertaking, or agreeing to cure or treat disease by a secret
method,
procedure,
treatment or medicine;
(18) Professional or mental incompetency;
(19) Incompetent, negligent, or willful misconduct in the practice of medicine
which
includes
the rendering of medically unnecessary services, and any departure from, or the
failure
to
conform to, the minimal standards of acceptable and prevailing medical practice
in his or her
area of
expertise as is determined by the board. The board does not need to establish
actual injury
to the
patient in order to adjudge a physician or limited registrant guilty of the
unacceptable
medical
practice in this subdivision;
(20) Failing to comply with the provisions of chapter 4.7 of title 23;
(21) Surrender, revocation, suspension, limitation of privilege based on
quality of care
provided,
or any other disciplinary action against a license or authorization to practice
medicine
in
another state or jurisdiction; or surrender, revocation, suspension, or any
other disciplinary
action
relating to a membership on any medical staff or in any medical or professional
association
or
society while under disciplinary investigation by any of those authorities or
bodies for acts or
conduct
similar to acts or conduct which would constitute grounds for action as
described in this
chapter;
(22) Multiple adverse judgments, settlements or awards arising from medical
liability
claims
related to acts or conduct which would constitute grounds for action as
described in this
chapter;
(23) Failing to furnish the board, its chief administrative officer,
investigator or
representatives,
information legally requested by the board;
(24) Violating any provision or provisions of this chapter or the rules and regulations
of
the
board or any rules or regulations promulgated by the director or of an action,
stipulation, or
agreement
of the board;
(25) Cheating on or attempting to subvert the licensing examination;
(26) Violating any state or federal law or regulation relating to controlled
substances;
(27) Failing to maintain standards established by peer review boards,
including, but not
limited
to, standards related to proper utilization of services, use of nonaccepted
procedure,
and/or
quality of care;
(28) A pattern of medical malpractice, or willful or gross malpractice on a
particular
occasion;
(29) Agreeing to treat a beneficiary of health insurance under title XVIII of
the Social
Security
Act, 42 U.S.C. section 1395 et seq., ("Medicare Act"), and
then charging or collecting
from
this beneficiary any amount in excess of the reasonable charge for that
service as
determined
by the United States secretary of health and human services; amount or amounts
permitted
pursuant to the Medicare Act; or
(30) Sexual contact between a physician and patient during the existence of the
physician/patient
relationship.
SECTION
2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC01055
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