Amended in Assembly April 30, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 23, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 684


Introduced by Assembly Member Bonilla

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Alejo)

February 25, 2015


An act to add and repeal Sections 655.1 and 2556.1 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to healingbegin delete arts.end deletebegin insert arts, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 684, as amended, Bonilla. Healing arts: licensees: disciplinary actions.

Existing law prohibits a licensed optometrist and a registered dispensing optician from having any membership, proprietary interest, coownership, landlord-tenant relationship, or any profit-sharing arrangement in any form, directly or indirectly, with each other. Existing law prohibits a licensed optometrist from having any membership, proprietary interest, coownership, landlord-tenant relationship, or any profit-sharing arrangement in any form, directly or indirectly, either by stock ownership, interlocking directors, trusteeship, mortgage, trust deed, or otherwise with any person who is engaged in the manufacture, sale, or distribution to physicians and surgeons, optometrists, or dispensing opticians of lenses, frames, optical supplies, optometric appliances or devices or kindred products. Existing law makes a violation of these provisions by a licensed optometrist and any other persons, whether or not a healing arts licensee, who participates with a licensed optometrist subject to a crime.

Under existing law, the Medical Board of California is responsible for the registration and regulation of dispensing opticians. Existing law makes the State Board of Optometry responsible for the licensure of optometrists.

This bill, until January 1, 2017, would prohibit a registered dispensing optician or optometrist from being subject to discipline by the Medical Board of California, the State Board of Optometry, or other state agency with enforcement authority for engaging in any of the aforementioned business relationships.

Existing law makes it unlawful to, among other things, advertise the furnishing of, or to furnish, the services of a refractionist, an optometrist, or a physician and surgeon, or to directly or indirectly employ or maintain on or near the premises used for optical dispensing, a refractionist, an optometrist, a physician and surgeon, or a practitioner of any other profession for the purpose of any examination or treatment of the eyes.

This bill, until January 1, 2017, would prohibit a registered dispensing optician from being subject to discipline for engaging in that aforementioned conduct.

begin insert

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

end insert

Vote: begin deletemajority end deletebegin insert23end insert. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 655.1 is added to the Business and
2Professions Code
, to read:

3

655.1.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law and on and after
4January 1, 2016, no dispensing optician registered pursuant to
5Chapter 5.5 (commencing with Section 2550) or optometrist
6licensed pursuant to Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 3000)
7shall be subject to discipline by the Medical Board of California,
8the State Board of Optometry, or other state agency with
9enforcement authority for engaging in any business relationship
10prohibited by Section 655.

11(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to imply or suggest
12that a registered dispensing optician or optometrist engaging in
P3    1any business relationship is in violation of or in compliance with
2the law.

3(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
4and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
5is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

6

SEC. 2.  

Section 2556.1 is added to the Business and Professions
7Code
, to read:

8

2556.1.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law and on and after
9January 1, 2016, a person registered under this chapter shall not
10be subject to discipline for engaging in conduct prohibited by
11Section 2556, except that, a registrant shall be subject to discipline
12for duplicating or changing lenses without a prescription or order
13from a person duly licensed to issue the same.

14(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to imply or suggest
15that a person registered under this chapter is in violation of or in
16compliance with the law.

17(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017,
18and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
19is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.

20begin insert

begin insertSEC. 3.end insert  

end insert
begin insert

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
21immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
22the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
23immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

end insert
begin insert

24In order to protect various businesses, opticians, and
25optometrists who engage in a business relationship that is
26prohibited by Section 655 of the Business and Professions Code
27from discipline by the Medical Board of California, the State Board
28of Optometry, or other state agency with enforcement authority
29while the Legislature, with the assistance of appropriate regulatory
30agencies, develops a model that will allow California businesses
31to provide services to patients and also protect the interests of
32practitioners, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.

end insert


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