pact would not change the current procedure. If a physician is licensed in multiple states and is subject to a complaint, he or she is subject to po- tential investigation in every state in which he or she is licensed. While more physicians may obtain a license in multiple states if the compact takes effect, complaint sharing is already the standard, she says. Ms. Robinson says it’s unlikely for
one state board to dismiss a complaint and another state board to later take action on it. In actuality, she says, the compact would make it possible for all state boards to adopt one action, rather than subjecting a physician to multiple investigations in each state. Critics also point out Texas’ high
standards for medical licensure and argue that an unqualified physician could go to a member state with lower standards to obtain his or her initial medical license and then obtain a medical license in Texas more easily through the expedited process.
But, Ms. Robinson says, in draft-
ing the compact, “this was absolutely considered. That’s why we used the highest licensure standards among all the states.” Eligibility requirements for a com-
pact license are higher than the re- quirements for a candidate’s primary medical license. If a physician has any disciplinary record with the medical board or any history of criminal or DEA investigations, he or she must obtain an out-of-state license through the traditional method. “This is not going to sneak in any
wide swaths of people who otherwise wouldn’t be qualified in our state,” she said. “We already know not everyone is going to qualify.” Physicians would not be required
to participate in the compact if the legislature adopts it; they could in- stead go through the current process to obtain a medical license in each in- dividual state. Ms. Robinson says if a future leg-
islature repeals the state’s participa- tion in the compact, physicians who obtained licenses through the expe- dited process would likely lose those licenses. SB 190 would establish an Inter-
state Medical Licensure Compact Commission to administer the com- pact. According to the bill, the com- mission may develop its own rules to address the impact on physicians’ licenses if a member state withdraws from the compact.
THE RISE OF TELEMEDICINE Dr. Thomas served on TMB from 1993 to 2001. During that time, he served on a committee for FSMB that de- veloped a white paper on uniform standards with the intention of creat- ing reciprocity for licensing between states. “It went up on the shelf, and I’m not
sure it ever came down from the shelf,” he said. “It [a multistate agreement for licensure] has been beat around and
Late HIV DIAGNOSIS
contributes to increased transmission of HIV.
People who don’t know about their HIV infection are more likely to transmit it to others.
Learn more at:
www.testtexashiv.org
March 2015 TEXAS MEDICINE 47
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