16 Tex. Admin. Code § 110.70 - Standards of Conduct
(a) An athletic
trainer, when carrying out the practice of athletic training in accordance with
§451.001(3) of the Act, shall work under the direction of a licensed
physician or another qualified, licensed health professional, who is authorized
to refer for health care services within the scope of the person's license.
(1) The athletic trainer must obtain their
physician-delegated authority document before practicing.
(2) A physical copy of the
physician-delegated authority document must be kept on file with the athletic
trainer's license or current license identification card. Both documents must
be made available for inspection upon request.
(3) The physician-delegated authority
document must include the name, phone number, physical office address, and
electronic mail address of the sponsoring physician. The authority document
must be renewed each time the sponsoring physician changes.
(b) A licensee shall not
misrepresent any professional qualifications or credentials.
(c) A licensee shall not make any false or
misleading claims about the effectiveness of any athletic training
care.
(d) A licensee shall not
promote or endorse products in a manner that is false or misleading.
(e) A licensee shall not abuse alcohol or
drugs in any manner which detrimentally affects the provision of athletic
training care.
(f) A licensee shall
comply with the provisions of the Texas Controlled Substances Act, Health and
Safety Code, Chapter 481, and the Texas Dangerous Drug Act, Health and Safety
Code, Chapter 483, and any rules of the Department of State Health Services or
the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, implementing those statutes.
(g) A licensee shall have the responsibility
of reporting violations of department rules to the department.
(h) A licensee shall not present false
information to the department, on any application or other document or in any
investigation or disciplinary proceeding of the department.
(i) A licensee shall not aid or abet the
practice of an unlicensed person when that person is required to have a license
under the Act.
(j) A licensee shall
comply with any order relating to the licensee, which is issued by the
executive director or commission.
(k) A licensee shall not provide health care
services, which are not within the definition of "athletic training" in the
Act, except in accordance with state and federal laws and rules applicable to
the provided services including, but not limited to, Occupations Code, Chapter
157, (relating to a physician's authority to delegate certain medical acts);
other licensure laws; and laws relating to the possession and distribution of
controlled substances.
(l) A
licensee shall not receive or give a commission or rebate or any other form of
remuneration for the referral of athletes for professional services.
(m) A licensee shall provide athletic
training services without discrimination based on race, creed, sex, religion,
national origin, or age.
(n) A
licensee shall not violate any provision of any federal or state statute
relating to confidential medical communications and/or records.
(o) A licensee shall not offer professional
services to a person concurrently receiving the same or similar professional
services from another individual, except with the knowledge of that
individual.
(p) A licensee shall
not engage in sexual contact or sexually exploitive behavior with a person
receiving athletic training services from the licensee. Sexual contact shall
mean the activities or behaviors described in the Texas Penal Code, §
21.01. Sexually exploitive
behavior shall mean any verbal or physical conduct that can reasonably be
construed as intended to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any
person.
(q) A licensee shall not
use advertising that is false, misleading, or deceptive or that is not readily
subject to verification. False, misleading, or deceptive advertising or
advertising that is not readily subject to verification includes advertising
that:
(1) makes a material misrepresentation
of fact or omits a fact necessary to make the statement as a whole not
materially misleading;
(2) makes a
representation likely to create an unjustified expectation about the results of
a health care service or procedure;
(3) compares a health care professional's
service with another health care professional's service, unless the comparison
can be factually substantiated;
(4)
causes confusion or misunderstanding as to the credentials, education, or
licensure of a health care professional;
(5) advertises or represents that health care
insurance deductibles or copayments may be waived or are not applicable to
health care services to be provided, if the deductibles or copayments are
required;
(6) advertises or
represents that the benefits of a health benefit plan will be accepted as full
payment, when deductibles or copayments are required;
(7) makes a representation that is designed
to take advantage of the fears or emotions of a particularly susceptible type
of patient; or
(8) advertises or
represents in the use of a professional name, a title or professional
identification, that is expressly or commonly reserved to or used by another
profession or professional.
(r) On the written request of a client, a
client's guardian, or a client's parent, if the client is a minor, a licensee
shall provide, in plain language, a written explanation of the charges for
athletic training services previously made on a bill or a statement for the
client. This requirement applies even if the charges are to be paid by a third
party.
(s) Unreasonable or
medically unnecessary billing is prohibited.
(t) The license certificate shall be
displayed in the primary office or place of employment of the licensee. In the
absence of a primary office or place of employment or when the licensee is
employed in multiple locations, the licensee shall carry a current license
identification card.
(u) Neither
the licensee nor anyone else, shall display a photocopy of a license
certificate or carry a photocopy of a license identification card in lieu of
the original document.
(v) Neither
the licensee nor anyone else, shall make any alteration on a license
certificate or identification card issued by the department.
(w) The licensee shall notify the department
of changes in name or preferred mailing address within thirty (30) days of such
change.
(x) A licensee may not
violate any provision of the Act or this chapter.
(y) A person may not hold himself or herself
out as an athletic trainer or perform any of the duties of an athletic trainer
as defined in the Act, unless the person holds an appropriate license issued
under the Act. A person may not hold himself or herself out as an athletic
trainer by implying that he or she has the title of "licensed athletic
trainer," "sports trainer," or "athletic trainer" or using the letters "LAT,"
"LATC," or "AT" or any facsimile of those titles in any manner, unless the
person holds a license issued under the Act.
Notes
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
(a) An athletic trainer, when carrying out the practice of athletic training in accordance with §451.001(3) of the Act , shall work under the direction of a licensed physician or another qualified, licensed health professional, who is authorized to refer for health care services within the scope of the person 's license.
(b) A licensee shall not misrepresent any professional qualifications or credentials.
(c) A licensee shall not make any false or misleading claims about the effectiveness of any athletic training care.
(d) A licensee shall not promote or endorse products in a manner that is false or misleading.
(e) A licensee shall not abuse alcohol or drugs in any manner which detrimentally affects the provision of athletic training care.
(f) A licensee shall comply with the provisions of the Texas Controlled Substances Act , Health and Safety Code, Chapter 481, and the Texas Dangerous Drug Act , Health and Safety Code, Chapter 483, and any rules of the Department of State Health Services or the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, implementing those statutes.
(g) A licensee shall have the responsibility of reporting violations of department rules to the department .
(h) A licensee shall not present false information to the department , on any application or other document or in any investigation or disciplinary proceeding of the department .
(i) A licensee shall not aid or abet the practice of an unlicensed person when that person is required to have a license under the Act .
(j) A licensee shall comply with any order relating to the licensee , which is issued by the executive director or commission .
(k) A licensee shall not provide health care services, which are not within the definition of "athletic training" in the Act , except in accordance with state and federal laws and rules applicable to the provided services including, but not limited to, Occupations Code, Chapter 157, (relating to a physician's authority to delegate certain medical acts); other licensure laws; and laws relating to the possession and distribution of controlled substances.
(l) A licensee shall not receive or give a commission or rebate or any other form of remuneration for the referral of athletes for professional services.
(m) A licensee shall provide athletic training services without discrimination based on race, creed, sex, religion, national origin, or age.
(n) A licensee shall not violate any provision of any federal or state statute relating to confidential medical communications and/or records.
(o) A licensee shall not offer professional services to a person concurrently receiving the same or similar professional services from another individual, except with the knowledge of that individual.
(p) A licensee shall not engage in sexual contact or sexually exploitive behavior with a person receiving athletic training services from the licensee . Sexual contact shall mean the activities or behaviors described in the Texas Penal Code, § 21.01. Sexually exploitive behavior shall mean any verbal or physical conduct that can reasonably be construed as intended to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person .
(q) A licensee shall not use advertising that is false, misleading, or deceptive or that is not readily subject to verification. False, misleading, or deceptive advertising or advertising that is not readily subject to verification includes advertising that:
(1) makes a material misrepresentation of fact or omits a fact necessary to make the statement as a whole not materially misleading;
(2) makes a representation likely to create an unjustified expectation about the results of a health care service or procedure;
(3) compares a health care professional's service with another health care professional's service, unless the comparison can be factually substantiated;
(4) causes confusion or misunderstanding as to the credentials, education, or licensure of a health care professional;
(5) advertises or represents that health care insurance deductibles or copayments may be waived or are not applicable to health care services to be provided, if the deductibles or copayments are required;
(6) advertises or represents that the benefits of a health benefit plan will be accepted as full payment, when deductibles or copayments are required;
(7) makes a representation that is designed to take advantage of the fears or emotions of a particularly susceptible type of patient; or
(8) advertises or represents in the use of a professional name, a title or professional identification, that is expressly or commonly reserved to or used by another profession or professional.
(r) On the written request of a client, a client's guardian, or a client's parent, if the client is a minor, a licensee shall provide, in plain language, a written explanation of the charges for athletic training services previously made on a bill or a statement for the client. This requirement applies even if the charges are to be paid by a third party.
(s) Unreasonable or medically unnecessary billing is prohibited.
(t) The license certificate shall be displayed in the primary office or place of employment of the licensee . In the absence of a primary office or place of employment or when the licensee is employed in multiple locations, the licensee shall carry a current license identification card.
(u) Neither the licensee nor anyone else, shall display a photocopy of a license certificate or carry a photocopy of a license identification card in lieu of the original document.
(v) Neither the licensee nor anyone else, shall make any alteration on a license certificate or identification card issued by the department .
(w) The licensee shall notify the department of changes in name or preferred mailing address within thirty (30) days of such change.
(x) A licensee may not violate any provision of the Act or this chapter.
(y) A person may not hold himself or herself out as an athletic trainer or perform any of the duties of an athletic trainer as defined in the Act , unless the person holds an appropriate license issued under the Act . A person may not hold himself or herself out as an athletic trainer by implying that he or she has the title of "licensed athletic trainer," "sports trainer," or "athletic trainer" or using the letters "LAT," "LATC," or "AT" or any facsimile of those titles in any manner, unless the person holds a license issued under the Act .