Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 6, March 15, 2024
(1) Every licensed optometrist shall notify
the board of any change of legal name, mailing address, and telephone number
within thirty (30) days.
(2) Every
licensed optometrist shall prominently display his/her renewal license in
his/her principal place of practice.
(3) Whenever a licensed optometrist has
additional offices, he/she, in lieu of delivering a certificate of
identification to each patient in his/her care pursuant to section
336.070,
RSMo, may prominently display a duplicate renewal license in each additional
office.
(4) Failure of the licensee
to receive a renewal application shall not relieve the licensee of the
obligation to renew the license and pay the renewal fee prior to the license
expiration date. Deposit of the renewal fee by the board or the Division of
Professional Registration does not indicate acceptance of the renewal
application or that any licensing requirements have been fulfilled.
(5) Effective with the two- (2-) year
continuing education reporting period beginning on November 1, 2008, every
optometrist currently licensed in Missouri shall obtain a minimum of thirty-two
(32) hours of approved continuing education (herein "C.E." credits) relevant to
the practice of optometry. Any hours acquired beyond the required number may be
carried forward into the next renewal period not to exceed sixteen (16)
hours.
(6) The two- (2-) year
continuing education reporting period shall begin on November 1 and end on
October 31. C.E. credits earned after October 31 of the second year of the
reporting period shall apply to the next reporting period unless the licensee
pays the continuing education penalty fee. Payment of the continuing education
penalty fee will provide a licensee with the ability to earn C.E. credits on or
after November 1 and before December 31 and apply any needed C.E. credits to
the prior reporting period. If the licensee pays the continuing education
penalty fee for C.E. credits earned late, those credits shall not be applied to
the next reporting period. A renewal license will not be issued until all
renewal requirements have been met.
(7) Licensees shall report the number of C.E.
credits earned during the continuing education reporting period on the renewal
form provided by the board. The licensee shall not submit the record of C.E.
attendance to the board except in the case of a board audit.
(8) Every licensed optometrist shall maintain
full and complete records of all approved C.E. credits earned for the two (2)
previous reporting periods in addition to the current reporting period. The
records shall document the titles of the courses taken, dates, locations,
course sponsors, and number of hours earned. The board may conduct an audit of
licensees to verify compliance with the continuing education requirement.
Licensees shall assist the board in its audit by providing timely and complete
responses to the board's inquiries.
(9) Violation of any provision of this rule
shall be deemed by the board to constitute misconduct, fraud,
misrepresentation, dishonesty, unethical conduct, or unprofessional conduct in
the performance of the functions or duties of an optometrist depending on the
licensee's conduct. In addition, a licensee who has failed to complete and
report in a timely fashion the required thirty-two (32) hours of continuing
education and engages in the active practice of optometry without the express
written authority of the board shall be deemed to have engaged in the
unauthorized practice of optometry.
(10) The following guidelines govern the
attendance of educational optometric programs for license renewal:
(A) Each speaker, lecturer, or other
participant in the presentation of the continuing education program must be
recognized as possessing the requisite qualifications and as being expert in
his/her field. The board will determine whether a speaker, lecturer, or other
person meets the requirements of this section;
(B) Instruction courses sponsored for
commercial purposes by individuals or institutions or programs in which the
speaker advertises or urges the use of any particular ophthalmic product or
appliance generally shall not be recognized for educational credit. Exceptions
may be made if the procedure in subsection (11)(D) is followed and the majority
of the board votes to recognize the instruction course or program;
(C) Educational programs that currently are
approved, except as noted in subsection (10)(B), as meeting the minimum
standards include the following:
1.
Educational meetings of the American Optometric Association (AOA);
2. Educational meetings of the National
Optometric Association (NOA);
3.
Educational meetings of the Missouri Optometric Association or any other state
or regional optometric association affiliated with the American Optometric
Association. This excludes local society meetings unless the courses are
approved by an entity pursuant to this rule;
4. Scientific sections and continuing
education courses of the American Academy of Optometry;
5. Postgraduate courses offered by any
accredited college of optometry;
6.
Educational meetings of the Southern Council of Optometrists;
7. Educational meetings approved by the
COPE;
8. Educational meetings of
the North Central States Optometric Council;
9. Educational meetings of the Heart of
America Optometric Congress and the Heart of America Contact Lens
Society;
10. Educational meetings
of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development;
11. Educational meetings of the Optometric
Extension Program;
12. Optometric
related meetings of any accredited school of medicine; and
13. Continuing education courses by the
American Board of Optometry;
(D) With the exception of any of the
previously mentioned educational organizations, any other regularly organized
group of optometrists that wishes to sponsor an educational program to meet the
standard for license renewal in Missouri shall submit one (1) copy of the
program schedule and outline to the board's executive director not fewer than
thirty (30) days prior to the date of the program and shall pay the continuing
education sponsor fee. The outline must indicate the program's subject matter,
the number of hours required for its presentation, and the identity and
qualifications of the speakers and instructors. The board shall review the
schedule and outline. If the program meets the standards set out in subsections
(11)(A)-(B), the board may grant approval. The board will not consider requests
for approval of any program submitted following the meeting;
(E) Of the thirty-two (32) hours of
board-approved continuing education required for license renewal, no more than
sixteen (16) hours may be obtained through distance learning methods such as
correspondence courses, online only courses, magazine articles, or other
methods where the licensee is not physically present with the course speaker or
presenter. Live interactive virtual presentations shall not be considered
distance learning courses and as such shall not be restricted;
(F) Individuals who obtain a license by
endorsement during the second year of a two- (2-) year reporting period will
only be required to obtain sixteen (16) hours of continuing education in order
to renew the license for the initial license renewal. Individuals who obtain a
license by endorsement during the first year of a two- (2-) year reporting
period will be required to obtain thirty-two (32) hours of board-approved
continuing education in order to renew the license for the initial license
renewal;
(G) Individuals who obtain
a license by examination are considered to have satisfied the continuing
education requirement for the first renewal after their initial license
date;
(H) Licensees who present
Council on Optometric Practitioner Education (COPE)-approved continuing
education will be allowed one (1) hour of continuing education credit for each
hour of the continuing education presented. Each COPE numbered course may be
used one (1) time for continuing education credit during the reporting
period;
(I) Licensees who are
enrolled in a postgraduate residency program accredited by the Council on
Optometric Practitioner Education will receive sixteen (16) hours of continuing
education credit to satisfy one (1) year of the two- (2-) year reporting
period; and
(J) The board will
consider requests for exemption from the educational requirements only if the
request for exemption is filed with the board's executive director and actually
approved by the board before the end of the reporting period. The request for
exemption must clearly set out the reasons asserted for noncompliance,
including at least a listing of all other years for which the board has
exempted the licensee and a listing of the dates upon which the licensee's
reasons for exemption required his/her absence from active practice. In its
discretion, the board may refuse to exempt a licensee from the required
attendance, notwithstanding the existence of a valid reason, if the board
determines that the licensee has or had other reasonable opportunities to meet
the requirements of this rule.
(11) The license renewal period shall
commence on November 1 and end on October 31 of each even-numbered
year.
