Sec. 1451.153. USE OF OPTOMETRIST, THERAPEUTIC OPTOMETRIST, OR OPHTHALMOLOGIST. (a) A managed care plan may not:

(1) discriminate against a health care practitioner because the practitioner is an optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist;

(2) restrict or discourage a plan participant from obtaining covered vision or medical eye care services or procedures from a participating optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist solely because the practitioner is an optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist;

(3) exclude an optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist as a participating practitioner in the plan because the optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist does not have medical staff privileges at a hospital or at a particular hospital;

(4) exclude an optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist as a participating practitioner in the plan because the services or procedures provided by the optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist may be provided by another type of health care practitioner; or

(5) as a condition for a therapeutic optometrist or ophthalmologist to be included in one or more of the plan's medical panels, require the therapeutic optometrist or ophthalmologist to be included in, or to accept the terms of payment under or for, a particular vision panel in which the therapeutic optometrist or ophthalmologist does not otherwise wish to be included.

(b) A managed care plan shall:

(1) include optometrists, therapeutic optometrists, and ophthalmologists as participating health care practitioners in the plan; and

(2) include the name of a participating optometrist, therapeutic optometrist, or ophthalmologist in any list of participating health care practitioners and give equal prominence to each name.

(c) For the purposes of Subsection (a)(5), "medical panel" and "vision panel" have the meanings assigned by Section 1451.154(a).

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1274, Sec. 3, eff. April 1, 2005.

Amended by:

Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 728 (H.B. 2018), Sec. 11.043, eff. September 1, 2005.

Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1147 (H.B. 1951), Sec. 12.001, eff. September 1, 2011.