Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
(1) The Board
permits the dissemination to the public of legitimate information in accordance
with the Board's rules, regarding the practice of osteopathic medicine and
where and from whom osteopathic medical services may be obtained, so long as
such information is in no way false, deceptive, or misleading.
(2) No physician shall disseminate or cause
the dissemination of any advertisement or advertising which is in any way
false, deceptive, or misleading. Any advertisement or advertising shall be
deemed by the Board to be false, deceptive, or misleading if it:
(a) Contains a misrepresentation of facts,
or
(b) Makes only a partial
disclosure of relevant facts, or
(c) Creates false or unjustified expectations
of beneficial assistance, or
(d)
Appeals primarily to a layperson's fears, ignorance, or anxieties regarding his
state of well-being, or
(e)
Contains any representation or claims as to which the osteopathic physician
referred to in the advertising does not expect to perform, or
(f) Contains any representation, statement,
or claim which misleads or deceives, or
(g) States or implies that the osteopathic
physician is a specialist in any aspect of the practice of osteopathic medicine
unless he has in fact completed post-doctoral training in the recognized
specialty field including internship, residency, fellowship, or alternate
training requirements, accredited by either the AOA or the ACGME for the number
of years contemplated for completion of the specialty program. However, a
physician may indicate the services offered and may state that the practice is
limited to one or more types of services when this is, in fact, the case,
or
(h) States or implies that an
osteopathic physician has been certified as a specialist in any aspect of the
practice of osteopathic medicine unless he or she has in fact received such
certification, meets the training requirements of paragraph
64B15-14.001(2)(g),
F.A.C., includes the name of the certifying agency in any statement or
advertisement claiming certification. For purposes of this rule, the Board
approves the specialty boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties
(ABMS), the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and such other recognizing
agencies as may request and receive future approval by the Board based upon the
following criteria:
1. The organization has
been granted Section 501(c) status under the Internal Revenue Code.
2. The organization shall have full time
administrative staff, housed in dedicated office space which is appropriate for
the organization's program.
3. The
organization shall have bylaws, a code of ethics to guide the practice of its
members, and an internal review and control process, including budgetary
practices, to ensure effective utilization of resources.
4. The organization shall be national in
scope, one of whose central purposes is credentialing of Physicians. An
umbrella organization composed of more than one academy and board shall also
have formal procedures for recognition and discipline of academies and
boards.
5. With regards to
certification, the organization shall be able to demonstrate the existence of
appropriate procedures to ensure, with regard to any examination given after
the effective date of this rule, that:
a. Such
examination is of sufficient breadth and scope as to cover the specialty field,
b. The exams and answers thereto
are adequately secured,
c. A
standard grading system with pass/fail standards has been established in
advance of testing,
d. The
proctoring of all examinations shall be done by independent proctors, i.e., at
a minimum, members of the certification board not related to, in practice or
association with, or having a financial interest in the applicant being tested,
e. The grant or denial of
certification is based on objective performance, skill, knowledge, and merit of
the candidate,
6. The
organization has an interest in the continuing proficiency of its members, by
requiring periodic recertification and/or documentation of continuing medical
education hours as well as continued practice in the field of
certification.
(i)
Represents that professional services can or will be competently performed for
a stated fee when this is not the case, or makes representations with respect
to fees for professional services that do not disclose all variables affecting
the fees that will, in fact, be charged, or
(j) Conveys the impression that the
osteopathic physician disseminating the advertising or referred to therein
possesses qualifications, skills or other attributes, which are superior to
other osteopathic physicians, other than a simple listing of earned
professional, post-doctoral or other professional achievements recognized by
the Board, or
(k) Fails to
conspicuously identify the osteopathic physician by name in the advertisement
or fails to conspicuously identify the osteopathic physician referred to in the
advertising as an osteopathic physician.
(3) As used in the rules of this Board, the
terms "advertisement" and "advertising" shall mean any statements, oral or
written, disseminated to or before the public or any portion thereof, with the
intent of furthering the purpose, either directly or indirectly, of selling
professional services, or offering to perform professional services, or
inducing members of the public to enter into any obligation relating to such
professional services.
(4) It shall
be the responsibility of any duly licensed osteopathic physician who utilizes
the electronic media for the purpose of advertising to insure that an exact
copy of the audio tape and/or video tape is maintained and preserved for a
period of at least 90 days from the date that the actual advertisement is aired
or shown through the electronic media.
(5) The recognizing agencies currently
approved by the Board of Osteopathic Medicine include:
(a) American Association of Physician
Specialists, Inc. (Approved June, 2002).
(b) American Board of Interventional Pain
Physicians (Approved August, 2010).
Rulemaking Authority
459.005,
459.015(1)(d), (e), (l), (m), (o), (q), (v),
(nn), 459.0152 FS. Law Implemented 459.005,
459.015(1)(d), (e), (l), (m), (o), (q), (v), (nn),
459.0152
FS.
New 7-1-80, Formerly 21R-14.01, Amended 10-28-91, Formerly
21R-14.001, 61F9-14.001, 59W-14.001, Amended
11-29-10.
