07 LC 28
3626S
The
House Committee on Regulated Industries offers the following substitute to HB
241:
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Code Section 43-29-7 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to license requirements for dispensing opticians, qualifications of applicants,
subjects to be tested on examination, and issuance and display of license, so as
to specify certain requirements for practical training and experience for an
applicant to obtain licensure through an apprenticeship program; to provide for
credit for previous training and experience; to provide for alternative means of
obtaining the required education, training, and experience for licensure; to
prohibit the use of certain titles unless a person is licensed; to provide for
related matters; to provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and
for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Code
Section 43-29-7 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to license
requirements for dispensing opticians, qualifications of applicants, subjects to
be tested on examination, and issuance and display of license, is amended as
follows:
"43-29-7.
(a)
Any person wishing to obtain the right to practice the trade or occupation of
dispensing optician, as defined in this chapter, shall, before it shall be
lawful for him to do so in this state, make application to the board, upon such
form and in such manner as shall be adopted and prescribed by the board, and
obtain a license from the board. Unless such person shall have obtained a
license as provided in this subsection, it shall be unlawful for him to practice
the trade or occupation of dispensing optician in this state; and he shall be
subject to the penalties prescribed in Code Section 43-29-21.
(b)
The board shall admit to examination any candidate who pays the fee provided for
in this chapter and submits evidence satisfactory to the board, verified on
oath, that:
(1)
The applicant is over 18 years of age;
(2)
The applicant has completed a high school education or its equivalent, as
defined by the State Board of Education;
(3)
The applicant is of good moral character; and
(4)
The applicant has satisfactorily completed one school year of not less than an
850 hour course of study in a recognized school of optical dispensing or has had
practical training and experience of a grade and character satisfactory to the
board for not less than two years under the supervision of a
licensed
dispensing optician, a licensed physician, or a licensed optometrist, provided
that any time spent in a recognized school shall be considered as part of the
apprenticeship period.
The practical
training and experience required under this paragraph for an apprenticeship
shall include, at a minimum, 3,000 hours of experience engaged in apprenticeship
functions and shall include instruction in ophthalmic optics, optical laboratory
materials and techniques, eye anatomy and physiology, related laws and
regulations, ophthalmic dispensing theory and application, and basic contact
lens theory. Prior to beginning an apprenticeship, the applicant shall submit
to the board a written statement of intent to qualify through an apprenticeship
program pursuant to this paragraph. The board shall establish by rule a process
to accept and review, no less frequently than once per month, written statements
of intent to qualify through an apprenticeship program and to review and
approve, no less frequently than once per month, written plans of instruction
submitted to the board by a supervising licensed dispensing optician, licensed
physician, or licensed optometrist to provide instruction to an apprentice
pursuant to this Code section. Prior to providing instruction to an apprentice,
the supervising licensed dispensing optician, licensed physician, or licensed
optometrist shall provide to the board for approval a written plan of
instruction including, but not limited to, the title of the subject, a
description of the topics presented and the instructional techniques that will
be employed, a list of textbooks and instructional materials, and a description
of the methods of evaluation. Upon completion by the applicant, such training
and experience shall be certified by the supervising licensed dispensing
optician, licensed physician, or licensed optometrist to the board.
(b.1)
Applicants who have received practical training and experience prior to July 1,
2007, may receive credit toward the practical training and experience
requirements of subsection (b) of this Code section if they make application to
the board, in a form prescribed by the board, to receive such credit and such
application is received by the board no later than August 31, 2007. The board
shall review such application and determine whether any such training and
experience shall be credited toward the practical training and experience
requirements of subsection (b) of this Code section. The board shall make such
determination within 60 days of receipt of the application.
(b.2)
Applicants may also meet the educational requirements of this Code section by
receiving a certificate from recognized schools of opticianry with the Georgia
Department of Technical and Adult Education or formal home study programs
through the Career Progression Program with the National Academy of Opticianry
or other programs approved by the board.
(c)
Applicants for examination may be examined by the board upon matters pertaining
to mathematics and physics, ophthalmic materials and laboratory technique,
ophthalmic optics, ophthalmic dispensing, and practical subjects. When any
applicant passes the necessary examination and meets the qualifications set out,
the board shall issue a license to such person to practice the trade or
occupation of dispensing optician.
(d)
Such license shall be conspicuously displayed in the office or place of business
of the dispensing optician; and it shall not be necessary to remove the same so
long as such dispensing optician continues to practice his
or
her trade or occupation in
the
this
state and so long as the license is not revoked or suspended by the board.
No person
shall hold themselves out as being an 'optician,' 'licensed dispensing
optician,' or anything similar without being licensed under the provisions of
this chapter. No person in this state, other than a licensed physician or
licensed optometrist, shall dispense lenses, spectacles, eyeglasses, contact
lenses, or optical devices to the intended user thereof as specifically directed
or authorized on the written prescription of a physician skilled in diseases of
the eye or an optometrist duly licensed to practice his or her profession unless
such person has been duly licensed in accordance with the requirements of this
chapter or is directly supervised by a licensed physician, licensed optometrist,
or licensed optician."
SECTION
2.
This
Act shall become effective on July 1, 2007.
SECTION
3.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.