Ohio Admin. Code 4725-3-08 - Requirements for licensure by endorsement, optometrist, dispensing optician or ocularist educated outside the United States of America
The board will recognize for
licensure by endorsement any optometrist meeting the requirements of section
4725.18 of the Revised Code who has an active license in good standing issued
by another state board of optometry or a province in Canada.
The applicant for licensure by
endorsement must meet the qualifications as set forth in divisions (A) and
(B)(1) to (B)(4) of section 4725.12 of the Revised Code. The applicant must
provide proof of being in an active practice of optometry including the use of
therapeutic pharmaceutical agents, for at least three years immediately
preceding the application. The board may require that the applicant pass all or
part of the licensing examination accepted by the board under section 4725.11
of the Revised Code if the board determines that testing is necessary to
determine the applicants qualifications for issuance of a certificate of
licensure and therapeutic pharmaceutical agents certificate under this
paragraph.
If the applicant has not been
involved in an active practice of optometry for the past three years the board
may require additional testing as deemed necessary. The minimum requirement for
such non-practicing applicants to be granted licensure by endorsement would be
passing scores in the clinical skills section of the examination given by the
national board of examiners in optometry or any equivalent examination as
determined by the board.
Applicants licensed after May 19,
1992 must have passed the testing requirements of the national board of
examiners in optometry as stated in the Ohio law. Applicants licensed prior to
May 19, 1992 must have passed the national board of examiners in optometry
examinations or a state test equivalent to the Ohio examination at the time the
applicant was licensed in that state.
The board may require copies of all
testing given by the state or province from the state board or province in
which the applicant was initially examined to determine that the test was
equivalent to the Ohio examination at the time the applicant was licensed in
that state or province.
(B) All applications for initial
licensure as a dispensing optician or ocularist in Ohio by endorsement shall be
submitted to the board in a form designated by the board.
(C) Applications shall
be:
(1) Accompanied by the fee in a form
established by the board; and,
(2) Accompanied by such evidence,
statement, or documents as specified on the application form, including but not
limited to:
(a) Verification of licensure in
good standing received directly from the state of the current licensure or
registration at the time of application; and,
(b) Shall submit to criminal records
check completed by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation in
accordance with section 4725.501 of the Revised Code. The results of the
criminal records check shall be received by the board prior to the issuance of
a license to practice as a dispensing optician. In accordance with this rule,
the applicant requesting the criminal records check shall:
(i) Provide the bureau of criminal
identification and investigation with the applicant's name and address and with
the name and address for the Ohio vision professionals board;
and,
(ii) Cause a records check to be
conducted with the federal bureau of investigation regarding
applicant.
(3) The board will only accept the
results of a criminal records check that is submitted to the board directly by
the bureau of criminal identification and investigation.
(D) An applicant for initial
licensure by endorsement as a dispensing optician shall:
(1) Be at least eighteen years of
age;
(2) Be of good moral
character;
(3) Be a graduate of a secondary
school recognized by the state department of education in this state, or
similar educational agency in another state or has attained an educational
equivalent such as proof of having successfully passed the general educational
development (GED) examination or a GED certificate of high school equivalency
diploma.
(4) Have successfully completed
either of the following:
(a) A two-year college level program
in optical dispensing approved by the board that includes, but is not limited
to, courses of study in:
(i) Mathematics;
(ii) Science;
(iii) English;
(iv) Anatomy and physiology of the
eye;
(v) Applied optics;
(vi) Measurement and inspection of
lenses, lens grinding and edging;
(vii) Ophthalmic
optics;
(viii) Ophthalmic lens
design;
(ix) Keratometry;
and,
(x) Fitting and adjusting of
spectacle lenses, frames and contact lenses, including methods of fitting
lenses and post-fitting care; or,
(b) Two years of supervised
experience of at least one thousand hours per year in optical dispensing as a
registered apprentice under the direct supervision of a licensed optician;
or,
(c) Two years of supervised
experience as an employee and under the direct supervision of an optometrist or
physician engaged in the practice of ophthalmology.
(d) Not more than one year of such
experience may be continuous, supervised optical laboratory experience of not
less than thirty hours per week.
(5) The applicant has successfully
completed the state board national qualifying examination for either the
spectacle dispensing license, the contact lens dispensing license or
combination of both examinations for a spectacle-contact lens dispensing
license.
(E) If an application for licensure
by endorsement submitted to the board remains incomplete for one year, the
application shall be considered void.
(F) The appropriate license and wall
certificate shall be issued by the board no later than sixty days after
approval by the board.
(G) All applications for licensure
as an optician or ocularist, educated outside the United States of America,
shall be submitted to the board on the appropriate application as designated by
the board.
(H) Applications shall
be:
(1) Accompanied by a non-refundable
fee in a form established by the board and as prescribed in division (B) of
section 4725.48 of the Revised Code; and,
(2) Accompanied by such evidence,
statements or documents as specified on the application form including but not
limited to:
(a) An official transcript in
English from the education program submitted to the board directly by the
program administrator or designee that includes information sufficient for the
board to determine whether the program has educational content and requirements
that are substantially similar to those set forth in rule 4725-3-01 of the
Administrative Code; or,
(b) Evidence satisfactory to the
board of completion of an apprentice program that meets the requirements of
section 4725.48 of the Revised Code.
(c) Evidence satisfactory to the
board that the applicant has successfully completed the appropriate state board
national qualifying examination for the license sought.
(I) An applicant for licensure as a
dispensing optician or ocularist, educated outside the United States of America
shall:
(1) Be at least eighteen years of
age;
(2) Be of good moral
character;
(3) Be a graduate of a secondary
school substantially similar to a high school equivalency
diploma.
(4) For a license as a dispensing
optician, have completed the requirements as established in rule 4725-3-01 of
the Administrative Code.
(5) For a license as an ocularist,
have completed the requirements as established in rule 4725-3-01 of the
Administrative Code.
(J) In addition to the requirements
of this rule, all optician and ocularist applicants for licensure under this
section, shall submit to criminal records checks completed by the bureau of
criminal identification and investigation in accordance with section 4725.501
of the Revised Code.
(K) If an application for licensure,
under this section, by an optician or ocularist that is submitted to the board
remains incomplete for one year, the application shall be considered
void.
(L) The appropriate license and wall
certificate shall be issued by the board no later than sixty days after
approval by the board
Notes
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 4725.09, 4725.44
Rule Amplifies: 4725.18, 4725.44
Prior Effective Dates: 10/20/2003, 08/30/2019
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