Chapter 202. To regulate the practice of optometry in the District of Columbia
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CHAP. 202.— An Act To regulate the practice of optometry in the District of Columbia. May 28, 1924.[[R. R. 3236](/us/bill/68/rr/3236).][[Public, No. 151](/us/pl/68/151).] *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, * That the practiceDistrict of Columbia.Optometry.Practice of, defined. of optometry is defined to be the application of optical principles through technical methods and devices in the examination of the human eye for the purpose of determining visual defects, and the adaptation of lenses for the aid and relief thereof.
Sec. 2. That on and after six months from the passage of this ActPracticing, etc., without a license, unlawful. it shall be unlawful for any person in the District of Columbia to engage in the practice of optometry or represents himself to be a practitioner of optometry, or attempt to determine by an examination of the eyes the kind of eyeglasses required by any person, or represents himself to be a licensed optometrist when not so licensed, or to represent himself as capable of examining the eyes of any person for the purpose of fitting glasses, excepting those hereinafter exempted, unless he shall have fulfilled the requirements and com178 plied with the conditions of this Act and shall have obtained a license from the District of Columbia Board of Optometry, createdFalse impersonation, failure to register, etc., unlawful. by this Act; nor shall it be lawful for any person in the District of Columbia to represent that he is a lawful holder of a license as provided by this Act when in fact he is not such lawful holder, or to impersonate any licensed practitioner of optometry, or shall fail to*Post*, p. 180. register the certificate as provided in section 13 of this Act.
Punishment for violations.Any person violating any of the provisions of this Act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction for the first offense shall be fined not more than $500, and upon conviction for any subsequent offense shall be fined not less than $500 nor more than $1,000, or be imprisoned in the District jail not less than three months nor more than one year, or both, in the discretion of the court. Sec. 3. Board of Optometry.Appointment of, by District Commissioners from list furnished by Optometric Society.
That the Commissioners of the District of Columbia shall appoint a Board of Optometry consisting of five persons, such persons and those thereafter appointed as hereinafter provided for to be selected from a list of ten optometrists submitted by a majority vote at some regular meeting of the District of Columbia OptometricQualifications. Society, each of whom shall be a citizen of the United States, over the age of twenty-one years, actually engaged in the practice of optometry as defined in section 1 of this Act, and who shall have been engaged in the actual and continuous practice of*Ante*, p. 177. the same in the District of Columbia for at least three years next preceding hisTerms of first appointees. appointment.
The said Board of Optometry shall be so appointed within thirty days after the approval of this Act, and of the first appointees the said commissioners shall designate two, who shall serve for a term of one year, two for a term of two years, and one for a term of three years from the date of said appointment, andSubsequent. each year thereafter the commissioners shall appoint successors to those whose terms expire as members of said board to serve for a term of three years; and in case of death, resignation, or removal of any member the vacancy for the unexpired term shall be filled by the said commissioners in the same manner as other appointments.
Qualifying oath.Each appointee to the Board of Optometry as hereinbefore provided for shall, within fifteen days from the date of his appointment, qualify by subscribing to the following oath of office before any officer authorized to administer oaths in the District of Columbia: “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully, impartially, with fidelity and according to law, perform the duties of a member of the Board of Optometry of the District of Columbia, to the best of my ability, so help me God.
” Certificate of appointment.Upon such oath being filed with the commissioners, they shall issue to said member a certificate of his appointment. Removal, etc.The commissioners are herewith vested with authority to remove from office at any time any member of said board for neglect of duty, incompetency, improper conduct, or when the license to practice optometry of any member of said board shall have been suspended or revoked. Sec. 4. Organization, etc. That the first meeting of the Board of Optometry created under the provisions of this Act shall be held within thirty days from the date of appointment, at which meeting and at each annual meeting thereafter the members shall organize by electing a president, vice president, and a secretary-treasurer, who shall hold office for one year or until their respective successors have beenMeetings. appointed and have qualified.
Said board shall hold its meetings at the end of every six months thereafter at such hour and place as it may designate for the examination of applicants for license to practice optometry in the District of Columbia, and for the transaction of such other business as may legally come before it; and may hold such additional meetings upon the call of the179 president of the said board, or upon a call of a majority of the members of the board as the same become necessary for the examination of applicants for licenses or for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.
If the date of any of said meetings shall fall upon a Sunday or a legal holiday, said meeting shall he held on the first business day thereafter. Three members of the board shall constitute a quorum for theQuorum. transaction of business, and should a quorum not be present on the day appointed for any meeting those present may adjourn from day to day until a quorum be present. Sec. 5. That the board shall have authority and it shall be itsBy-laws and regulations. duty to make all by-laws and necessary regulations for the proper discharge of its duties, and submit same to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia for approval.
Sec. 6. That before entering upon the discharge of the dutiesSecretary-treasurer.Bond required. of his office the secretary-treasurer of the board shall give such bond for the performance of his duties as the Commissioners of the District of Columbia shall require, the premium of such bond to be paid from the funds in the possession of the board. Sec. 7. That the secretary-treasurer shall receive as compensationCompensation, etc., from funds of board. for his services an annual salary to be determined by the board, which salary and all other expenses of the board necessary in carrying out the provisions of this Act shall be paid from the funds in the custody or the secretary-treasurer for the use of the board upon requisition signed by the secretary-treasurer and countersigned by the president of the board; and on the 30th day of JunePayment to members from surplus. of each year if any surplus remains the members of the board shall be paid such reasonable compensation out of the funds in the custody of the board as the Commissioners of the District of Columbia may determine: *Provided, however*, That said compensation and*Proviso*.Limit. expenses shall not exceed the amount received by the board under the provisions of this Act.
Sec. 8. That the District Board of Optometry shall have anSeal, record, etc. official seal and shall keep a record of its proceedings, a record of registered optometrists and of licenses by it revoked. Its records shall be open to public inspection between the hours of nine and three o’clock of any business day, and it shall keep on file all examination papers for a period of one year after each examination. A transcript of an entry in such records, certified by the secretary-treasurer, under the seal of the board, shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein stated.
The board shall on or before the 10thAnnual report to Commissioners. day of July in each year make a report to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia of its official acts during the preceding twelve months ending June 30, and of its receipts and disbursements, and a full and complete report of the conditions pertaining to optometry in the District of Columbia. Sec. 9. That on and after six months from the passage of thisExaminations for authority to practice. Act, as set forth in section 2 hereof, every person desiring to practice optometry, or, if now in practice, to continue the practice thereof, except as herein otherwise provided, shall take an examination as provided in this Act and shall fulfill the other requirements as in this Act provided.
Sec. 10. That any person who has been engaged in the practice ofLimited examinations for present practitioners. optometry for at least two full years (one of which must have been in the District of Columbia), immediately prior to the passage of this Act, who is more than twenty-one years of age and of good moral character, shall be entitled to take the limited examination covering the following only: Subjects.
(a)The limitations of the sphere of optometry.
(b)The essential scientific instruments used in optometry. 180
(c)The form and power of lenses used in optometry.
(d)A correct method of measuring hypermetropia, myopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia.
(e)The writing of formulas or prescriptions for the adaptation of lenses in aid of vision. Standard examinations if desired.Any person who has previously taken the limited examination and received certificate of the same as herein provided may also, if he so desires, take the standard examination at any time, any provisions*Proviso*.Failure not a disqualification. in section 11 hereof to the contrary notwithstanding: *Provided, however*, That failure to pass the standard examination after having qualified under the limited examination as in this paragraph set forth shall not disqualify him as a lawful practitioner. Sec. 11. Standard examinations.Qualifications of applicants. That any person over the age of twenty-one years, of good moral character, who has had a preliminary education equivalent to a two years’ course in a first-grade high-school (which shall be determined either by examination or by certificate acceptable to the board as to work clone in such approved institution), and who is a graduate of a school of optometry in good standing (as determined by the board and which maintains a course in optometry of not less than one thousand hours), shall be entitled to take theTests for. standard examination. Such standard examination shall consist of tests in—
(a)Practical optics.
(b)Theoretic optometry.
(c)Anatomy and physiology and such pathology as may be applied to optometry.
(d)Practical optometry.
(e)Theoretic and physiologic optics. Sec. 12. Subsequent changes of educational standards permitted. That the board, with the approval of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, is authorized and empowered to alter, amend, and otherwise change the educational standards at any time, but in altering, amending, or changing said standards the board shall not be permitted to lower the same below the standards herein set forth. Sec. 13. Applications to be filed.Requirements. That every person desiring to be licensed as in this Act provided shall file with the secretary-treasurer of the board upon appropriate blank to be furnished by said secretary-treasurer an application accompanied by the recommendation of two reputable citizens, verified by oath, setting forth the facts which entitled theSecond examination allowed on failure at first. applicant to examination and license under the provisions of this Act. The said board shall hold at least two examinations each year. In case of failure at any standard examination the applicant, after the expiration of six months and within two years, shall have the privilege of taking a second examination by the board without the payment of an additional fee. In case of failure at the limited examination hereinbefore provided for the applicant shall, after the expiration of six months and within two years, have the privilege of taking a second examination without the payment of an additional fee. License to practice given on passage of examination, etc.Every applicant, who shall pass the standard examination or the limited examination, as the case may be, and who shall otherwise comply with the provisions of this Act, shall receive from the said board under its seal a license entitling him to practice optometry in the District of Columbia, which license shall lie duly registered in a record book to be properly kept by the secretary-treasurer of the board for that purpose which shall be open to public inspection;Certified copy to be recorded in office of clerk of District supreme court. and a duly certified copy of said record shall be recorded in the clerk’s office of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, and shall be admitted as prima facie evidence in all courts of the District of Columbia in the trial of any cause, and it shall be the181 duty of the clerk of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia to keep a special book for the purpose of recording said licenses, and shall, upon application and by the payment of a fee of 50Fee for certificate of record. cents, deliver to any person applying therefor a certificate that the license has been recorded in compliance with the provisions of this Act. Each person to whom a certificate of license shall be issued byLicense to be displayed, etc., by practitioner. said board shall keep same displayed in a conspicuous place in his principal office or place of business wherein said person shall practice optometry, and shall, whenever required, exhibit the said certificate to any member or agent of the board. Sec. 14. That the said board shall charge the following fees forFees authorized.Annual. examinations, registrations, and renewals of certificates: The sum of $25 for a standard or a limited examination. Every registered optometrist who desires to continue the practice of optometry shall annually, on or before the 10th day of January of each year, pay to the secretary-treasurer of the board a renewal registration fee to be fixed annually by the board, not to exceed $10, for which he shall receive a renewal of his certificate. In case of neglect to pay theLicense revoked if annual fee not paid. renewal registration fee as herein provided the board shall have authority to revoke such license and the holder thereof may be reinstated by complying with the conditions specified in this section, but no license or permit may be revoked without giving sixty days’Notice to delinquent. notice to the delinquent, but the board shall only have the right to renew such license on the payment of the renewal fee with penalty of $5: *Provided*, That retirement from practice for a period of not*Proviso*.Renewal after retirement. exceeding five years shall not deprive the holder of said license of the right to renew the same upon the payment of the fee herein required. Sec. 15. That the board shall adopt a seal and license of suitableForm of seal and license. design and shall have an office in the District of Columbia where examinations shall be held and where all of the permanent records shall be kept. Sec. 16. That the board may in its discretion refuse to grant aLicenses may be refused, canceled, etc. license to any applicant and may cancel, revoke, or suspend the operation of any license by it granted for any of the following reasons: The conviction of crime involving moral turpitude, habitualReasons specified. use of narcotics, or any other substance which impairs the intellect and judgment to such an extent as to incapacitate anyone for the duties of optometry, or for a conviction as provided in section 2 of*Ante*, p. 178. this Act. Sec. 17. That any person who is the holder of a license or who isHearings. an applicant for a license against whom any charges are preferred shall be furnished by the board with a copy of the complaint and shall have a hearing before the board at which hearing he may be represented by counsel. At such hearing witnesses may be examined for and against the accused respecting such charges; the board shall thereupon pass upon said charges. Sec. 18. That any applicant for a license who has been examinedIssue without examination to holder of State, etc., license. by the Board of Optometry in any of the States of the United States which through reciprocity similarly accredits the holder of a license issued by the Board of Optometry of the District of Columbia to the full privileges of practice within such State may on the payment of a fee of $25 to the said board and on filing in the office of the board a true and attested copy of said license, certified by the president and secretary-treasurer of the said board, showing the same and also showing that the standard of requirements adopted and enforced by said board is equal to that provided by this Act, shall without further examination receive the license: *Provided*, That such*Proviso*.Condition. applicant has not previously failed at any examination held by the Board of Optometry of the District of Columbia. 182 Sec. 19. No medical, etc., title conferred hereby. That nothing in this Act shall be construed as conferring on the holder of any license issued by said board the right to use any title or any word or abbreviation indicating that he is engaged in the practice of medicine, surgery, or the treatment of the eye, of the diagnosis of diseases of or injuries to the human eye, or the writing or issuing of prescriptions for the obtaining of drugs or medicine in any form for the treatment or examination of the human eye. Sec. 20. Persons not affected. That the provisions of this Act shall not apply—
(a)Practicing physicians and surgeons. To physicians and surgeons practicing under authority or license issued under the laws of the District of Columbia for the practice of medicine and surgery.
(b)If only dealers in spectacles, etc. To persons selling spectacles and
(or)eyeglasses and who do not attempt either directly or indirectly to adapt them to the eye, and who do not practice or profess the practice of optometry. Sec. 21. Meaning of words. That wherever in this Act the singular number is used it shall be interpreted as meaning either singular or plural if compatible with the sense of the language used, and when in this Act the masculine gender is used it shall be construed as meaning also the feminine gender if not inconsistent with such use. Sec. 22. Invalidity of any provision not to affect remainder of Act. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstances, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act, and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby. Approved, May 28, 1924.