Code of Alabama - Title 34: Professions and Businesses - Chapter 22 - Optometrists

• Article 1 General Provisions.
• Section 34-22-1 Definitions
  For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the respective meanings ascribed by this section: (1) BOARD. The Alabama Board of Optometry....
• Section 34-22-2 Objects and purposes of chapter
  The practice of optometry is hereby declared to affect the public health, safety, and welfare, and optometry is subject to regulation and control in the...
• Section 34-22-3 Intent of chapter
  It is intended that this chapter shall furnish a complete and exclusive system, of and in itself, for obtaining the right to practice optometry in...
• Section 34-22-4 Limitation on application of chapter
  (a) It is not the intent of this chapter to prevent any school teacher, welfare worker, state, county, municipality, or other public board, body, agency,...
• Section 34-22-5 Limited teaching licenses
  The board may, under rules and regulations to be promulgated by the board, issue limited licenses, in the case of teachers, to persons who hold...
• Section 34-22-6 Violations; penalties; assistance in prosecutions; costs and attorney fees; venue
  (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to perform any of the following: (1) Practice optometry in this state without having a valid, unrevoked,...
• Section 34-22-7 Injunctions
  The board may enjoin violations of any provision of this chapter by proceeding in accordance with the provisions of Section 6-6-502.
• Section 34-22-8 Disciplinary action; charges; hearing; judicial procedure; appeals; sanctions; immunity of board, etc., from suit
  (a) Any person, including a licensed optometrist may initiate a charge of violation of the provisions of this chapter or a charge of misconduct by...
• Article 2 Licenses.
• Section 34-22-20 Qualifications of applicants; examination; issuance and execution of licenses; use of pharmaceutical agents
  (a) Every person desiring to practice optometry in this state shall be 19 years of age, or over, a citizen of the United States or,...
• Section 34-22-21 Reciprocity; pharmaceutical agents
  Any person who has successfully passed a standard examination in optometry in any state of the United States or all parts of the examination given...
• Section 34-22-22 Continuing education requirements; suspension and reinstatement; renewal; registration certificate; waiver of registration and fees
  (a) All registered optometrists licensed in the State of Alabama are required to take annual courses of study in subjects relating to the practice of...
• Section 34-22-23 Grounds for revocation or suspension
  Any of the following shall constitute grounds for revocation of license or suspension of license for a definite period of time, for a private or...
• Section 34-22-24 Disposition of fees
  All fees received by the board for examinations, annual renewal registrations, or from any other source shall be utilized in regulating the practice of optometry...
• Article 3 Board of Optometry.
• Section 34-22-40 Creation; composition; terms of office; election of candidates; annual meeting
  (a) In order to accomplish the purposes and to provide for the enforcement of this chapter, there is created the Alabama Board of Optometry. The...
• Section 34-22-41 Officers; meetings; compensation; disposition of funds; bonds; annual report
  (a) The board shall choose annually one of its members as president, one as vice-president, and one as secretary-treasurer, who each may administer oaths and...
• Section 34-22-42 Powers and duties generally
  The board shall exercise and perform, subject to this chapter, each of the following powers and duties: (1) Conduct examinations at least once each year...
• Section 34-22-43 Registry, records, and office of board
  (a) The secretary of the board shall keep a registry in which shall be entered the names of all persons to whom temporary licenses, limited...
• Article 4 Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards.
• Section 34-22-60 Establishment; composition
  (a) There is established the Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards which shall establish scholarships to provide for and further optometric training in pursuance of an...
• Section 34-22-61 Powers and duties of board
  (a) The Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards shall have power and authority to make reasonable rules and regulations not inconsistent with the laws of this...
• Section 34-22-62 Types of scholarships
  The Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards shall establish two types of scholarships as follows: (1) A number of loans not exceeding 25 percent of the...
• Section 34-22-63 Repayment of loans; service contracts
  (a) Scholarships extended under subdivision (1) of Section 34-22-62 shall be repaid following graduation, either in cash as is provided under subsection (b) or under...
• Section 34-22-64 Contractual agreement of recipients; penalties for breach; institution of legal proceedings
  Each recipient of a scholarship loan under the provisions of this article shall enter into a contract with the Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards whereby...
• Section 34-22-65 Localities in need of optometrists
  Any incorporated or unincorporated municipality or locality in the state having a population of less than 100,000 desiring additional optometrists and wishing to be designated...
• Article 5 License to Practice Across State Lines.
• Section 34-22-80 Legislative findings
  The Legislature hereby finds and declares that technological advances are occurring in the practice of optometry, thereby changing the practice of optometry, and that those...
• Section 34-22-81 Definitions
  For the purposes of this article, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (1) BOARD. The Alabama Board of Optometry created pursuant to Section...
• Section 34-22-82 Telemedicine - Protocols; privacy practices
  (a) A provider who uses telemedicine in his or her practice shall adopt protocols to prevent fraud and abuse through the use of telemedicine. (b)(1)...
• Section 34-22-83 Telemedicine - Services; provider-patient relationship; standards of practice; confidentiality
  (a) Telemedicine services provided at an established treatment site may be used for all patient visits, including initial evaluations to establish a proper doctor-patient relationship...
• Section 34-22-84 Maintenance of records
  (a) Patient records shall be maintained for all telemedicine services. The provider or distant site provider shall maintain the records created at any site where...
• Section 34-22-85 Exceptions
  (a) A licensed optometrist, who is not licensed in Alabama pursuant to Section 34-22-20 or Section 34-22-21, who utilizes telemedicine across state lines in an...
• Section 34-22-86 Penalties
  Any person who violates this article is subject to criminal prosecution for the unlicensed practice of optometry under Section 34-22-6, or other action authorized in...
• Section 34-22-87 Rulemaking authority
  The Alabama Board of Optometry is vested with authority to adopt and promulgate rules to effect the purposes of this article.
• Section 34-22-88 Rules and regulations
  The Alabama Board of Optometry is vested with authority to adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to effect the purposes of this article.
• Article 6 Impaired Doctor of Optometry Treatment Program.
• Section 34-22-100 Purpose
  The purpose of this article is to provide for the identification and treatment of optometrists licensed under Alabama law who suffer from impairment in order...
• Section 34-22-101 Definitions
  For purposes of this article, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (1) BOARD. The Alabama Board of Optometry. (2) IMPAIRED or IMPAIRMENT. The...
• Section 34-22-102 Powers and duties of board
  To carry out the purposes of this article, the board may: (1) Contract with any nonprofit corporation, health provider, or professional association for the purpose...
• Section 34-22-103 Procedures for notification of program, self-reporting, and participation
  The board shall develop procedures for the following: (1) Informing each participant in a treatment program of the program procedures, responsibilities of program participants, and...
• Section 34-22-104 Evaluation; hearing
  (a) If the board has reason to believe that an optometrist is impaired, the board may cause an evaluation of the optometrist to be conducted...
• Section 34-22-105 Restriction of license upon request
  (a) An impaired optometrist may request in writing to the board the imposition of a restriction of his or her license to practice. (b) The...
• Section 34-22-106 Confidentiality of records; discovery; limitations on testimony
  (a)(1) Notwithstanding any provision of law, records of the board pertaining to an impaired optometrist shall be confidential and shall not be subject to discovery...
• Section 34-22-107 Limitations or restrictions to employment on basis of treatment prohibited
  An impaired optometrist who is participating in or has successfully completed a treatment program pursuant to this article shall not be limited or restricted in...
• Section 34-22-108 Liability
  (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the board, board members, board committees, board committee members, and employees and agents of the board shall not...
• Section 34-22-109 Responsibilities of optometrists under article
  Any optometrist who is identified as being impaired or voluntarily reports his or her impairment shall be responsible for the following: (1) Paying fines for...
• Section 34-22-110 Rules and regulations
  The board may adopt and promulgate rules to effect the purposes of this article with such rules to be promulgated and enforced pursuant to the...

Last modified: May 3, 2021