(a) Whenever any person has engaged, or is about to engage, in any acts or practices which constitute, or will constitute, an offense against this chapter, the superior court in and for the county wherein the acts or practices take place, or are about to take place, may issue an injunction, or other appropriate order, restraining the conduct on application of the State Board of Optometry, the Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, the Attorney General, or the district attorney of the county.
The proceedings under this section shall be governed by Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 525) of Title 7 of Part 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(b) (1) Any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to a fine of not less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) nor more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) per violation. The fines collected pursuant to this section from licensed physicians and surgeons shall be available upon appropriation to the Medical Board of California for the purposes of administration and enforcement. The fines collected pursuant to this section from licensed optometrists and registered dispensing opticians shall be deposited into the Optometry Fund and the Dispensing Opticians Fund, respectively, and shall be available upon appropriation to the State Board of Optometry for the purposes of administration and enforcement.
(2) The Medical Board of California and the State Board of Optometry shall adopt regulations implementing this section and shall consider the following factors, including, but not limited to, applicable enforcement penalties, prior conduct, gravity of the offense, and the manner in which complaints will be processed.
(3) The proceedings under this section shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 489, Sec. 12. (SB 1478) Effective January 1, 2017.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018