Itinerant Vender.—Any itinerant vender of any drug, nostrum, medicine, ointment, or appliance of any kind intended for the treatment of disease or injury, who shall publicly profess to cure or treat diseases, injuries, deformities, or ailments by any drug, nostrum, medicine, or other appliance, shall pay a license to the Secretary of the State of $100 per month.
Violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500 or imprisonment in a county jail for not more than six months, or both. Such licenses to any firm or company do not permit the transaction of business in different places at the same time (ib., s. 11, as amended February 21st, 1891).
Penalty.—Practising medicine or surgery without complying with the act is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $50 to $500 or imprisonment in a county jail from thirty days to three hundred and sixty-five days, or both, for each offence. Filing or attempting to file as his own the certificate of another, or a forged affidavit or identification, is a felony punishable the same as forgery in the second degree (ib., s. 12).
Former Practitioners.—Persons practising in the State at the time of the passage of the act were allowed sixty days afterward to register (ib., s. 13).
Fees.—To the secretary of the board, for examining a genuine diploma, $1.
To the secretary of the board, for examining a fraudulent diploma, or a diploma not owned by the possessor, $20 (ib., s. 4).
To the county clerk, for recording certificate, usual fee (ib., s. 6).
To board of examiners, for examination, $10 (ib., s. 8).
To the Secretary of the State, from itinerant vender, for license, $100 per month (ib., s. 11, as amended February 21st, 1891).
Pennsylvania.
[Present Law.—The following is the law at present in effect; for the new law which goes into effect hereafter, see below.]
Qualification.—The standard of a practitioner of medicine, surgery, or obstetrics consists of a good moral character, a thorough elementary education, a comprehensive knowledge of human anatomy, human physiology, pathology, chemistry, materia medica, obstetrics, and practice of medicine and surgery and public hygiene (Act March 24th, 1877, s. 1).
It is unlawful for any person to announce himself as a practitioner of medicine, surgery, or obstetrics, or to practise as such, who has not received in a regular manner a diploma from a chartered medical school, duly authorized to confer upon its alumni the degree of doctor of medicine. The act does not apply to a resident practitioner who has been in continuous practice in the commonwealth for not less than five years prior to its passage (ib., s. 2).
Before any person can lawfully engage in the practice of medicine, surgery, or obstetrics, or who has not a diploma as provided in sec. 2, he must make an affidavit under oath, or affirm before the prothonotary of the county in which he intends to practise, setting forth the time of continuous practice and the place or places where such practice was pursued in the commonwealth, and it shall be entered of record (ib., s. 3).
Transient Practitioner.—Any person attempting to practise medicine or surgery for a valuable consideration by opening a transient office within the commonwealth, or by handbill or other form of written or printed advertisement, assigning such transient office or other place to persons seeking medical or surgical advice, or prescribing or itinerating from place to place or from house to house and proposing to cure any person sick or afflicted, by the use of any medicine, means, or agency whatsoever, for a valuable consideration, shall before being allowed to practise in this manner appear before the clerk of the court of quarter sessions of the county where he desires to practise and furnish satisfactory evidence to such clerk that this act has been complied with, and shall take out a license for one year and pay $50 therefor (ib., s. 4).
Penalty.—To violate this act is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $200 to $400 for each offence (ib., s. 5).
Qualification.—Every person who shall practise medicine or surgery, or any of their branches, for gain, or shall receive or accept for his services any fee or reward directly or indirectly, shall be a graduate of a legally chartered medical college or university having authority to confer the degree of doctor of medicine (except as provided in sec. 5), and shall present to the prothonotary of the county in which he resides or sojourns his medical diploma as well as a true copy of the same, including any indorsements thereon, and make affidavit before him that the diploma and indorsements are genuine; thereupon the prothonotary shall enter in the register the name in full of the practitioner, his place of nativity, place of residence, the name of the college or university that has conferred the degree of doctor of medicine, the year when it was conferred, and in like manner any other degree or degrees that the practitioner may desire to place on record; to all of which the practitioner shall make affidavit before the prothonotary and the prothonotary shall place the copy of the diploma and indorsements on file (Act June 8th, 1881, s. 2).
Any person whose medical diploma has been destroyed or lost shall present to the prothonotary of the county in which he resides or sojourns a duly certified copy of his diploma, but if the same is not obtainable a statement of this fact, with the names of the professors whose lectures he attended and the branches of study upon which each professor lectured, to all of which the practitioner shall make affidavit before the prothonotary; after which the practitioner shall be allowed to register and the prothonotary shall place such certificate or statement on file (ib., s. 3).
Any person desiring to commence the practice of medicine or surgery, having a medical diploma issued by any college, university, society, or association in another State or foreign country, shall lay the same before the faculty of one of the medical colleges or universities of this commonwealth for inspection, and the faculty being satisfied as to the qualifications of the applicant and the genuineness of the diploma shall direct the dean of the faculty to indorse the same, after which such person shall be allowed to register as required by sec. 2 (ib., s. 4).
The act extends the privilege of continuing to practise to those who have been in the continuous practice of medicine or surgery in the commonwealth since 1871, but such a person must make affidavit to a written statement of the facts before the prothonotary of the county in which he resides; and the prothonotary shall enter in the register the name in full of the practitioner, his place of nativity, place of residence, the time of continuous practice in the commonwealth, and the place or places where such practice was pursued, to all of which the practitioner shall make affidavit, and the prothonotary shall place the certificate or statement on file in his office (ib., s. 5).
Penalty.—Presenting to the faculty of an institution for indorsement or to the prothonotary a diploma which has been obtained by fraud, or in whole or in part a forgery, or making an affidavit to a false statement, or practising without conforming with the act, or otherwise violating or neglecting to comply with the act, is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of $100 or imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year, or both, for each offence (ib., s. 7).
Exception.—The act does not prevent any physician or surgeon, legally qualified to practise medicine or surgery in the State where he resides, from practising in the commonwealth, but a person opening an office or appointing a place to meet patients or receive calls is a sojourner and must conform to its requirements (ib., s. 8).
Fees.—To the prothonotary, for affidavit of continuous practice, $2 (Act March 24th, 1877, s. 3).
To county treasurer, for transient license, $50.
To clerk of the court of quarter sessions, for issuing transient license, $5 (ib., s. 4).
To the prothonotary, for registration, $1 (Act June 8th, 1881, s. 6).
[New Law.—The following law has been enacted whose practical application does not begin until March 1st, 1894:]
Medical Council.—The law provides for a medical council of the State (Act of May 18th, 1893, s. 1).
The council is to supervise the examinations conducted by the State boards of medical examiners for licenses to practise medicine and surgery, and issue licenses to applicants who shall have presented satisfactory and properly certified copies of licenses from the State boards of medical examiners or State boards of health of other States, or who shall have successfully passed the examination of one of the State boards established by this act (ib., s. 5).
Medical Boards.—From and after March 1st, 1894, there are to be three separate boards of medical examiners, one representing the medical society of the State, one representing the homœopathic medical society of the State, and one representing the eclectic medical society of the State. Each board is to consist of seven members appointed by the governor from the full lists of the members of the said medical societies, and is to be composed exclusively of members of the same medical society. Each appointee must be a registered physician in good standing, and shall have practised medicine or surgery under the laws of the State for not less than ten years prior to his appointment.
The governor is to fill vacancies and may remove a member for continual neglect of duties or on the recommendation of the medical society with which he may be in affiliation, for unprofessional or dishonorable conduct (ib., s. 6).
Examinations.—For the purpose of examining applicants each board is to hold two or more stated or special meetings in each year after due public notice. A majority constitutes a quorum, but the examination may be conducted by a committee of one or more members authorized by the board (ib., s. 9).
The boards not less than one week prior to each examination must submit to the council questions for thorough examination in anatomy, physiology, hygiene, chemistry, surgery, obstetrics, pathology, diagnosis, therapeutics, practice of medicine, and materia medica; and the council must select therefrom the questions for each examination, and such questions for each examination shall be the same for all candidates, except that in the departments of therapeutics, practice of medicine, and materia medica the questions shall be in harmony with the teachings of the school selected by the candidate (ib., s. 10).
The examinations are to be in writing under rules prescribed by the council. After an examination the board must act on it without unnecessary delay and transmit to the council an official report of its action stating the examination average of each candidate in each branch, the general average, and the result, and whether successful or unsuccessful. The report must embrace all the examination papers, questions, and answers, which shall be kept for reference and inspection for not less than five years (ib., s. 11).
Qualification.—The council must forthwith issue to each applicant returned as having successfully passed said examination, and adjudged by the council to be duly qualified, a license to practise medicine and surgery. The council must require the same standard of qualifications from all candidates except in therapeutics, practice of medicine, and materia medica, in which the standard shall be determined by the boards respectively. Before the license is issued, it must be recorded in a book in the office of the council, and the number of the book and page containing the record noted on the face of the license; the records shall have the same weight as evidence as that given to conveyance of land (ib., s. 12).
On and after July 1st, 1894, any person not theretofore authorized to practise medicine and surgery in the State may deliver to the secretary of the council a written application for a license with satisfactory proof that the applicant is more than twenty-one years of age, is of good moral character, has obtained a competent common-school education, and has received a diploma conferring the degree of medicine from some legally incorporated medical college of the United States, or a diploma or license conferring the full right to practise all the branches of medicine and surgery in some foreign country. Applicants who have received their degree in medicine after July 1st, 1894, must have pursued the study of medicine for at least three years, including three regular courses of lectures in different years in some legally incorporated medical college or colleges prior to the granting of said diploma or foreign license. Such proof shall be made, if required, upon affidavit, and if the council is satisfied with the same it shall issue to the applicant an order for examination before such one of the boards of examiners as the applicant may select. In case of failure at the examination the candidate, after the expiration of six months and within two years, shall have the privilege of a second examination by the same board without additional fee. Applicants examined and licensed by State boards of medical examiners or State boards of health of other States, on filing in the office of the medical council a copy of said license certified by the affidavit of the president and secretary of such board, showing also that the standard of acquirements adopted by said board is substantially the same as is provided by secs. 11, 12, and 13 of this act, shall without further examination receive a license conferring on the holder all the rights and privileges provided by secs. 14 and 15 (ib., s. 13).
From and after March 1st, 1894, no person shall enter upon the practice of medicine or surgery unless he has complied with this act and shall have exhibited to the prothonotary of the court of common pleas of the county in which he desires to practise a license duly granted, which shall entitle him to be duly registered in the office of such prothonotary.
Penalty.—Violating the provisions of this act shall be a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of not more than $500 for each offence (ib., s. 14).
Exceptions.—The act does not interfere with or punish commissioned medical officers serving in the army or navy of the United States, or its marine hospital service, while so commissioned, or medical examiners of relief departments of railroad companies, while so employed, or any one while actually serving as a member of the resident medical staff of any legally incorporated hospital, or any legally qualified and registered dentist exclusively engaged in the practice of dentistry, nor interfere with or prevent the dispensing and sale of medicine or medical appliances by apothecaries [or] pharmacists, nor interfere with the manufacture of artificial eyes, limbs, or orthopædical instruments or trusses of any kind for (sic) fitting such instruments on persons in need thereof, or any lawfully qualified physicians and surgeons residing in other States or countries meeting registered physicians of this State in consultation, or any physician or surgeon residing on the border of a neighboring State and duly authorized under the laws thereof to practise medicine and surgery therein, whose practice extends into the limits of this State, provided such practitioner shall not open an office or appoint a place to meet patients or receive calls within the limits of Pennsylvania, or physicians duly registered in one county of this State called to attend cases in another, but not residing or opening an office therein.
The act does not prohibit the practice of medicine and surgery by any practitioner who shall have been duly registered before March 1st, 1894, according to the Act of June 8th, 1881, and one such registration shall be sufficient warrant to practise medicine and surgery in any county (ib., s. 15).
Former Laws.—All acts or parts of acts inconsistent with this are repealed (ib., s. 17).
Fees.—To the secretary of the council, upon application for a license, $25.
To the secretary of the county, upon application for a license by licensees in other States, $15 (ib., s. 13).
To the prothonotary, upon exhibition of a license, for registry, $1 (ib., s. 14).
Rhode Island.
Registration.—Every physician must cause his name and residence to be recorded in the town clerk’s office of the town where he resides (Public Statutes, 1882, c. 85, s. 12).
Penalty.—Wilful neglect or refusal to perform this duty is punishable with a fine not exceeding $20 (ib., s. 11).
South Carolina.
Qualification.—All physicians engaging in the practice of medicine or surgery, before doing so, must submit their diplomas to a board consisting of three reputable physicians in each county. The board is appointed by the governor on the recommendation of the medical societies of the counties, and where no medical society exists, upon the recommendation of the senator and members of the House of Representatives for such counties (Act of 1890, c. 454, s. 1).
The said board must examine said diploma, when submitted, and if the holder is a bona fide holder, and if the college issuing said diploma is a reputable medical college, and if he also submits a certificate of good moral character, the board must certify to the fact, and upon such certificate the diploma shall be registered by the clerk of the court of the county in which the applicant resides (ib., s. 2).
Exception.—The act does not apply to physicians and surgeons already registered under former laws (ib., s. 4).
South Dakota.
Prohibition.—It is unlawful for any person to practise medicine, surgery, or obstetrics in any of their departments without having received a license to practise medicine from the board of health, and having it recorded in the office of the register of deeds in the county where such person resides (Act February 16th, 1893, s. 1).
Exceptions.—The act does not affect those in the lawful practice of medicine, surgery, or obstetrics in this State at the time of its passage (ib., s. 2).
Nor does it prohibit students from prescribing under the supervision of a preceptor, nor prohibit gratuitous services in case of emergency, nor apply to commissioned surgeons in the United States army and navy (ib., s. 3).
Penalty.—Violation of the act or practising without the license is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $25 to $100 or imprisonment in the county jail not more than thirty days or both (ib., s. 4).
Qualification.—The State board of health is constituted a board of public examiners ex-officio to examine and license physicians to practise medicine. Any person who is a graduate of a lawful medical college, who has attended three full courses of medical lectures of six months each, no two full courses within the same year, and who is of good moral character, and is not an habitual drunkard, shall, upon proof of such facts to the superintendent of the State board of health, as the board shall require, receive from said superintendent a license; which shall be recorded as above. The requirement of three courses of lectures does not apply to those who had graduated prior to the passage of the act (ib., s. 5).
Cancellation of License.—The State board of health, upon complaint made to it on oath by one responsible person, has power to cancel any license that may have been fraudulently obtained or when the person to whom such license was issued is an habitual drunkard, or is guilty of immoral practices or gross unprofessional conduct. Such license shall not be cancelled except after a hearing before such board of health, at which a majority of such board shall be present, and of which the person holding the license to be cancelled shall have had at least ten days’ notice, and only upon due proof of the facts stated in the complaint. An appeal may be taken to the circuit court of the county in which the person whose license is cancelled lives by any person aggrieved, in the same manner as now provided by law in case of appeal from the decisions of the county commissioners (ib., s. 6).
Fee.—To the superintendent of the State board of health, for a license, $5 (ib., s. 5).
Tennessee.
Qualification.—No person can lawfully practise medicine in any of its departments, except dentistry, unless he possesses the qualifications required by the act. If a graduate in medicine, he must present his diploma to the State board of medical examiners for verification as to its genuineness. If found genuine and from a legally chartered allopathic, homœopathic, or eclectic medical college in good standing with the school of medicine in which said college is classed, of which the State board of medical examiners shall be the judge, and the person named therein be the person claiming and presenting it, the board must issue a certificate to that effect, conclusive as to the rights of the lawful holder to practise medicine (Act of 1889, c. 178, s. 1).
Persons in actual practice at the time of the passage of the act were allowed till July 1st, 1891, to comply with the provisions of the act respecting them (ib., s. 2, as amended Act 1891, c. 109, s. 1).
A person wishing to enter upon the practice of medicine must present to the board of medical examiners a diploma from some medical college in good standing as provided by sec. 1, or shall present himself to the said board for examination upon anatomy, physiology, chemistry, pathology, surgery, obstetrics, and therapeutics. If the diploma be found genuine, or if the applicant for examination be found worthy and competent, the board shall issue a certificate which shall entitle the lawful holder to all the privileges of this act (ib., s. 3, as amended Act 1891, c. 109, s. 2).
The governor appoints six graduate physicians as a State board of medical examiners; the three schools allopathic, homœopathic, and eclectic must be represented on the board; five constitute a quorum and a majority of those present are necessary to reject an applicant, but such rejection shall not bar a re-examination after the lapse of three months; provided the members representing each school shall have the right to examine all applicants of that school, and the board shall issue the certificate to applicants who are recommended by the member or members of the board who belong to said school after such examination (ib., s. 4).
To prevent delay and inconvenience two members of the board may grant a temporary license to any applicant if the applicant has not been refused a license by the board within six months, which shall be in force till the next regular meeting of the board (ib., s. 5).
The members of the board shall not be members of the State board of health, nor any medical faculty (ib., s. 6).
The regular meeting of the board shall be once in each year at such time and place as the board may decide, but the president of the board may call a special meeting when demanded by public necessity (ib., s. 7).
Every person holding a certificate must have it recorded in the office of the county court clerk where he resides, and the date of record must be indorsed thereon. Until such record is made the holder shall not exercise any of the rights and privileges conferred. A person removing to another county to practise shall record his certificate in like manner in the county to which he removes. Practitioners may go from one county to another on professional business, without being required to register, if they have done so in the county in which they reside (ib., s. 9).
Itinerant Physician or Vender.—It is unlawful for an itinerant physician or vender of any drug, nostrum, ointment, or appliance of any kind intended for the treatment of disease or injury to sell or apply the same, or by writing, printing, or other method to profess to cure or treat disease or deformity by any drug, nostrum, manipulation, or other expedient.
A violation of this section is punishable with a fine of $100 to $400, but this section does not apply to merchants and druggists, and this act does not apply to veterinary surgeons and stock doctors (ib., s. 13, as amended Act 1891, c. 109, s. 3).
Penalty, Exception.—To practise medicine or surgery without a certificate is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $10 to $25.
To file or attempt to file as his own the diploma or certificate of another or a forged affidavit of identification is a felony punishable same as forgery. The act does not apply to women who pursue the avocation of midwife (ib., s. 14, as amended Act 1891, c. 109, s. 4).
Fees.—To the county court clerk, for recording certificate, the usual fee (ib., s. 9).
To the board of examiners, for issuing a certificate, $1.
To the board of examiners, for examination of non-graduate, $10.
If applicant fails to pass a satisfactory examination, and no certificate or license is issued to him, $5 only is retained.
For a certificate of temporary license, $1, which is to be credited to the applicant when he applies for a permanent license (ib., s. 12, as amended Act 1891, c. 109, s. 2).
Texas.
Constitutional Provision.—The legislature may pass laws prescribing the qualifications of practitioners of medicine, but no preference shall ever be given by law to any schools of medicine (Const. 1876, art. xiv., s. 31 in part).
Boards of Examiners.—A board of medical examiners for each judicial district is appointed by the judge of the district court (R. S., art. 3,625).
Each board is composed of not less than three practising physicians of known ability, graduates of some medical college recognized by the American Medical Association, residents of the district from which they are appointed (ib., art. 3,626).
The boards are required to meet regularly semi-annually at some central point in their districts to conduct examinations and grant certificates, and after at least one month’s public notice of the time and place of meeting by publication in at least one newspaper published in the district (ib., art. 3,629).
Qualification.—The board is required to examine thoroughly all applicants for a certificate of qualification to practise medicine in any of its branches or departments, whether furnished with medical diplomas or not, upon anatomy, physiology, pathological anatomy and pathology, surgery, obstetrics, and chemistry; but no preference shall be given to any school of medicine (ib., art. 3,632).
When the board is satisfied as to the qualifications of an applicant, they are required to grant a certificate, which entitles him to practise medicine in any county when it has been recorded (ib., art. 3,633).
Any two members of the board may grant a certificate, and any member may grant a temporary certificate upon examination, which shall be in force until the next regular meeting of the board (ib., art. 3,634).
The certificate must, before the person to whom it was granted is entitled to practise, be recorded in the office of the clerk of the district court of the county in which such practitioner resides or sojourns, and when recorded the clerk shall certify thereon under his official seal the fact and date of record, and shall return the certificate to its owner (ib., art. 3,635).
Exceptions.—This title does not apply to those who have already qualified under the act of May 16th, 1873, nor to those regularly engaged in the general practice of medicine in the State in any branch or department for five consecutive years prior to January 1st, 1875, nor to females who follow the practice of midwifery strictly as such (ib., art. 3,637).
Penalty.—No person except those named in art. 3,637 can lawfully practise medicine in any of its branches or departments without having first obtained and recorded a certificate of qualification as above provided. A person so offending shall be punished as provided in the Penal Code (ib., art. 3,638).
If any person shall practise for pay or as a regular practitioner medicine in any of its branches or departments, or offer or attempt to practise medicine without first having obtained a certificate of professional qualification from some authorized board of medical examiners, or without having a diploma from some actual medical college chartered by the legislature of the State, or its authority, in which the same is situated, he shall be punished by a fine of not less than $50, nor more than $500 (Penal Code, art. 396).
Each patient visited or prescribed for, or each day’s offer to practise constitutes a separate offence (ib., art. 397).
If any person shall engage in the practice of medicine in any of its branches or departments for pay or as a registered practitioner, without having first filed for record, with the clerk of the district court of the county in which he resides or sojourns, a certificate from some authorized board of medical examiners or a diploma from some actual medical college, he shall be punished as prescribed in art. 396 (ib., art. 398).
Fees.—To the clerk of the district court, for recording certificate, $1 (R. S., art. 3,635).
To the board of examiners, for examination, $15, whether certificate is granted or not (R. S., art. 3,636).
Utah.
Board of Examiners.—The governor appoints by and with the advice and consent of the council a board of seven medical examiners from the various recognized schools of medicine; appointees are required to be graduates of a legally chartered medical college in good standing (Act 1892, c. 72, s. 1).
Qualification.—The board has power to issue certificates to all who furnish satisfactory proof of having received degrees or licenses from a chartered medical college in good and legal standing, and pass examinations before said board (ib., s. 2).
Graduates of respectable medical colleges at the time of the passage of the act engaged in actual practice in the Territory shall be licensed on presenting their degree to the board, and producing satisfactory evidence of identity (ib., s. 4).
Every person holding a certificate from said board must have it recorded in the office of the recorder of the county in which he resides within three months from its date, and the date of record must be indorsed thereon. Until the certificate is recorded, the holder shall not exercise any of the privileges conferred. A person removing to another county to practise must record his certificate in like manner in the county to which he removes (ib., s. 5).
Examinations shall be wholly or partly in writing (ib., s. 7).
The board may refuse to issue certificates to individuals guilty of unprofessional or dishonorable conduct, the nature of which shall be stated in writing, and it may revoke certificates for like causes to be stated in writing (ib., s. 8).
Definition.—Any person is regarded as practising medicine who treats, operates upon, or prescribes for any physical ailment of another for a fee, or who holds himself out by means of signs, cards, advertisements, or otherwise as a physician or surgeon.
Exceptions.—The act does not prohibit service in case of emergency or the administration of family remedies, and does not apply to commissioned surgeons of the United States army in discharge of their official duties, or to visiting physicians in actual consultation (ib., s. 9).
Offence.—Practising medicine or surgery without a certificate or contrary to this act is a misdemeanor (ib., s. 10).
Persons not graduates who had practised continuously for ten years in the Territory prior to the taking effect of the act were allowed six months in which to comply with its provisions concerning them. Practising without complying with these provisions, and practising after rejection of an application or the revocation of certificate, is a violation of the law (ib., s. 11).
Obstetricians.—Persons practising obstetrics were required within three months after the passage of the act to apply to the board for a certificate, and after passing a proper examination were entitled to one.
Practising obstetrics without first obtaining a license or contrary to this act is a misdemeanor; provided all persons who furnish to said board satisfactory evidence by affidavit or otherwise of having practised obstetrics previous to the passage of the act, shall receive a license without an examination. This section does not apply to physicians holding certificates nor prohibit services in cases of emergency, nor apply to persons practising obstetrics in communities where there are no licensed practitioners (ib., s. 12).
Board Meetings.—The board is required to meet at the territorial capital on the first Monday of January, March, June, and September of each year at 10 A.M., and such other times as the president of the board shall deem necessary (ib., s. 13).
Colleges.—“Respectable medical colleges” include colleges in legal standing of any recognized school of medicine (ib., s. 15).
Fees.—To the treasurer of the board of examiners, for examination and certificate, $25 (ib., s. 3).
To the treasurer of the board of examiners, for license to a graduate, $5 (ib., s. 4).
The secretary of the board is required to enter without fee, on the register to be kept by him, the names of all persons to whom licenses are issued as physicians and surgeons (ib., s. 4).
To the county recorder, for recording, his usual fees (ib., s. 5).
To the treasurer of the board of examiners, upon examination for license to practise obstetrics, $10.
To the treasurer of the board of examiners, upon license to practise obstetrics without examination, $1 (ib., s. 12).
Vermont.
Qualification.—The medical societies organized under a charter from the General Assembly at each annual session elect a board of censors of three members, who may examine and license practitioners of medicine, surgery, and midwifery (Revised Laws, 1880, s. 3,908).
A practitioner of medicine, surgery, or midwifery who by sign or advertisement offers his services to the public as a practitioner of medicine, surgery, or midwifery, or who by such sign or advertisement assumes the title of doctor, shall obtain a certificate from one of such medical societies, either from a county, district, or State society (ib., s. 3,909).
A person not a resident of the State who has not received a diploma from a chartered medical college must obtain a certificate from a board of censors before he shall be permitted to practise the medical art in the State (ib., s. 3,910).
Each board of censors must issue certificates without fee to physicians and surgeons who furnish evidence by diploma from a medical college or university, or by a certificate of examination by an authorized board, which satisfies said censors that the person presenting such credentials has been, after due examination, deemed qualified to practise the branch mentioned in such diploma or certificate (ib., s. 3,911).
The censors in their discretion shall notify the practitioner of medicine, surgery, or midwifery of this chapter, and require such persons to comply therewith within thirty days after notification or such further time as is allowed by the censors not exceeding ninety days (ib., s. 3,912).
The certificate must set forth the branches of the medical art in which the person is qualified to practise (ib., s. 3,913).
The certificate must be recorded in the clerk’s office of the county in which the holder resides, or, if not a resident of the State, in the county in which he obtained his certificate (ib., s. 3,914).
A certificate issued by a board of censors is valid throughout the State after being duly recorded. The censors may revoke or annul a certificate if in their judgment the holder has obtained it fraudulently or has forfeited his right to public confidence by the conviction of crime (ib., s. 3,915).
Penalty.—To practise medicine, surgery, or midwifery in the State, or sign a certificate of death for burial or removal unless authorized by a certificate issued and recorded, is punishable with a fine of from $50 to $200 for the first offence, and for subsequent offences with a fine of from $200 to $500, recoverable by an action of debt for the use of any person who sues or by indictment (ib., s. 3,916).
No person practising either of the branches of medicine, surgery, or midwifery is permitted to enforce in the courts the collection of a fee or compensation for services rendered or medicine or material furnished in the practice of any of the branches for which he has not a certificate (ib., s. 3,917).
Exceptions.—The law does not apply to the practice of dentistry, nor to the practice of midwifery by women in the town or locality in which they reside, nor to practitioners of medicine who resided and practised medicine in the State for five years previous to November 28th, 1876 (ib., s. 3,918).
Virginia.
Board of Examiners.—There is a State board of medical examiners consisting of three members from each congressional district and two from the State at large, and five homœopathic physicians from the State at large (Code 1887, s. 1,744).
The board is composed of men learned in medicine and surgery appointed by the governor from a list of names recommended by the Medical Society of Virginia, together with five homœopathic physicians nominated to him by the Hahnemann Medical Society of the Old Dominion. The recommendations are required to be by votes of a majority present at some meeting of such society; but if the governor considers any person so recommended unsuitable he may decline to appoint him, in which case such society shall within ninety days after notification make another recommendation, and if the society fail to make a recommendation the governor is required to appoint such board in whole or in part without regard to such recommendation. If any examiner cease to reside in the district for which he was appointed his office is deemed vacant (ib., s. 1,745).
The regular meetings of the board are required to be held at least once a year, and at such times and places as the board may prescribe, and special meetings may be held on the call of the president and any five members (ib., s. 1,746).
Qualification.—The board at any of its meetings must examine all persons making application to them who desire to practise medicine or surgery; when an applicant shall have passed an examination satisfactory as to proficiency before the board in session the president must grant a certificate to that effect. If any applicant fail to pass a satisfactory examination before the board he shall not be permitted to stand a further examination within the next three months, nor shall he be required again to pay the fees prescribed, but no applicant shall be rejected on his examination on account of his adherence to any particular school of medicine or system of practice, nor on account of his views as to the method of treatment and the cure of disease.
When, in the opinion of the president of the board, the applicant has been prevented by good cause from appearing before the board, he shall appoint a committee of three members who shall examine the applicant and may grant a certificate having the same effect as though granted by a full board, until the applicant have an opportunity to appear before the board, when, if he fail to appear for examination, the president shall have the authority to revoke said certificate; or in any case the president shall have authority, at his discretion, to grant a special permit to any applicant to practise medicine until he shall have an opportunity to appear before the board in session for examination, revokable at the discretion of the president. The board has in its discretion authority to accept in lieu of examination a certificate from a medical board of any other State, showing that the applicant has passed a satisfactory examination as to his proficiency, and obtained a license from said board to practise medicine and surgery in said State (ib., s. 1,747, as amended Act 1892, c. 70).
A person obtaining a certificate from the president of the board must cause it to be recorded in the clerk’s office of the county or the corporation court, of the county or corporation in which he resides, or, if he resides in the city of Richmond, in the clerk’s office of the chancery court of the said city (ib., s. 1,749).
No person who shall have commenced the practice of medicine or surgery since January 1st, 1885, or who shall hereafter commence the practice of the same, shall practise as a physician or surgeon for compensation without having obtained a certificate and caused it to be recorded.
Penalty.—The violation of this act is punishable with a fine of from $50 to $500 for each offence, and the violator is debarred from receiving compensation for services rendered as a physician or surgeon; a person assessed with a license tax as a physician or surgeon by any commissioner of revenue prior to July 1st, 1892, shall be taken as having commenced the practice of medicine or surgery prior to that date; but any person who shall not have been so assessed shall be taken as not having commenced such practice prior to that date (ib., s. 1,750, as amended Act 1892, c. 70).
Non-Residents.—A physician or surgeon residing in an adjoining State within ten miles of the boundary line of this State, is entitled to stand the examination and receive a certificate, and the certificate must be recorded in that county in the State nearest to his place of residence, and such certificate and recordation shall make it lawful for him to practise medicine and surgery in this State (ib., s. 1,751).
Exceptions.—This chapter does not affect practitioners of dentistry, nor include physicians or surgeons residing in other States called into consultation in a special case with a physician or surgeon residing in this State, nor does it affect in any way the laws in reference to the license tax (ib., s. 1,752) nor does it apply to midwives (ib., s. 1,753).
Fees.—To the board of examiners, before examination, $5 (ib., s. 1,747, as amended Act 1892, c. 70).
To the clerk of the court, for recording, same fee as for recording a deed (ib., s. 1,749).
Washington.
Examining Board.—The governor is required to appoint a State medical examining board of nine members, learned and skilled in the practice and theory of medicine and surgery (Act March 28th, 1890, s. 1).
The said board is required to hold meetings for examination on the first Tuesday of January and July in each year, alternately in western and eastern Washington at such places as the board may designate. The board may call special meetings when, in the opinion of a majority of the board, they are necessary. The board is required to keep a record of all applicants for a license, with their ages, the time spent in the study and practice of medicine and surgery, and the name and location of all institutions granting to such applicants degrees or certificates of lectures in medicine or surgery, and whether such applicant was rejected or licensed; and said register is prima facie evidence of all matters therein recorded (ib., s. 2).
Qualification.—Every person desiring to commence the practice of medicine or surgery, or either of them, in any of their or its branches, must make a written application to the board for a license, supported by an affidavit of the applicant, setting forth the actual time spent in the study of medicine and surgery, and when; whether such study was in an institution of learning and, if so, its name and location; if not in such institution, where and under whose tutorship such study was prosecuted, the time engaged in the actual practice, if at all, of medicine and surgery or either, and where, and the age of the applicant at the time of the application, such application and affidavit to be filed and preserved of record in the office of the secretary of the board. At the time and place designated by the board or at a regular meeting of the board, applicants must be examined in anatomy, physiology, chemistry, histology, materia medica, therapeutics, preventive medicines, the practice of medicine, surgery, obstetrics, diseases of women and children, of the nervous system, of the eye and ear, medical jurisprudence, and such other branches as the board deem advisable. The examination must be both scientific and practical, and of sufficient severity to test the candidate’s fitness to practise medicine and surgery, by written or printed, or partly written and partly printed, questions and answers, and the same are required to be filed and preserved of record in the said secretary’s office. After the examination, if it be satisfactory, the board shall grant a license, by the consent of not less than five members, except as hereinafter provided.
Refusal or Revocation.—The board may refuse or revoke a license for unprofessional or dishonorable conduct, subject to the right of appeal (ib., s. 3).
“Unprofessional or dishonorable conduct” means: procuring or aiding or abetting in procuring a criminal abortion; or employing what are popularly known as cappers or steerers; or obtaining any fee on the assurance that a manifestly incurable disease can be permanently cured; or wilfully betraying a professional secret; or advertisements of medical business in which untruthful and improbable statements are made; or advertising any medicine or means whereby the monthly periods of women can be regulated, or the menses re-established if suppressed; or the conviction of any offence involving moral turpitude; or habitual intemperance (ib., s. 4).
In case of a refusal or a revocation of a license, the board is required to file a brief and concise statement of the grounds and reasons thereof in the office of its secretary, which, with the decision of the board in writing, shall remain of record in said office. Before a license can be revoked for unprofessional or dishonorable conduct, a complaint of some person under oath must be filed in the office of the secretary of the board, charging the acts of unprofessional or dishonorable conduct and the facts complained against the accused in ordinary and concise language, and at least ten days prior to the hearing the board shall cause to be served upon the accused a written notice and a copy of such complaint containing a statement of the time and place of the hearing. The accused may appear at the hearing and defend in person or by counsel, and may have the sworn testimony of witnesses taken and present other evidence in his behalf, and the board may receive arguments of counsel (ib., s. 5).
In case of refusal or revocation of a license by the board, there is a right of appeal within thirty days after the filing of the decree in the office of the secretary, to the superior court in and for the county in which was held the last general meeting of the board prior to the refusal of the license, in case of refusal; and to the superior court in and for the county in which the hearing was had upon which such license was revoked, in case of revocation. The person desiring to appeal must serve or cause to be served on the said secretary a written notice of appeal containing a statement of its grounds, and must file in the said secretary’s office an appeal bond with a good and sufficient surety to be approved by the Secretary of the State of Washington, conditioned for the speedy prosecution of such appeal and the payment of such costs as may be adjudicated against him upon such appeal. Said secretary must within ten days after service of said notice and filing, and the approval of the said appeal bond, transmit to the clerk of the court to which the appeal is taken a certified copy, under the seal of the board, of the decision and the grounds, in case of refusal, and in addition a certified copy under said seal of the complaint, in the case of revocation, with the bond and notice of appeal. The clerk must thereupon docket such appeal causes and they stand for trial in all respects as ordinary civil actions, and like proceedings are had thereon. On appeal the cause is tried de novo. Either party may appeal from a judgment of the superior court to the supreme court in like manner as in civil actions within sixty days after the rendition and entry of such judgment. If the judgment be in favor of the party appealing from the decision of the board, and the examining board does not appeal within sixty days, in that case at the end of sixty days the board shall immediately issue to the successful party the usual license, and in addition reinstate upon its records the name of such successful applicant, in case of revocation. In case of appeal to the supreme court by the board, no such license shall be issued nor re-instatement required until the final determination of the cause. In case the final decision of the supreme court be against the board, then the said court shall make such order as may be necessary and the board shall act accordingly. No appeal bond can be required of the board, nor any costs adjudged or taxed against the same (ib., s. 6).
Filing Authority.—The person receiving a license must file it, or a copy, with the county clerk of the county where he resides, and the county clerk is required to file said certificate or copy and enter a memorandum thereof, giving its date and the name of the person to whom it was issued, and the date of filing, and on notice to him of a change of location or the death of a person licensed or of revocation, the county clerk is required to enter a memorandum of said fact at the appropriate place in the record. In case of removal into another county, the person licensed must procure from the county clerk a certified copy of the said license, and file it with the county clerk of the county to which he shall remove, with like effect as an original license (ib., s. 7).
Penalty, Definition.—To practise medicine or surgery without a license or contrary to this chapter is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $50 to $100, or imprisonment in a county jail from ten to ninety days, or both. Any person is regarded as practising who appends the letters “M.D.” or “M.B.” to his name, or for a fee prescribes, directs, or recommends for the use of any person any drug or medicine or agency for the treatment, care, or relief of any wound, fracture, or bodily injury, infirmity, or disease; but the chapter does not apply to dentists.
Regulations.—The board has authority to prescribe and establish all needful rules and regulations to carry this chapter into effect (ib., s. 9).
Former Practitioner.—All persons licensed under sec. 2,289 of the laws of Washington Territory, 1881, or having complied with its provisions, are to be taken and considered as licensed under this act, and the secretary of the board is required to enter the names of such persons upon the register kept by him, as licensed physicians and surgeons on their written application (ib., s. 10).
Fee.—To the treasurer of the board, for examination, $10 (ib., s. 3).
West Virginia.
Qualification.—The following persons and no others are permitted to practise medicine:
1. Graduates of a reputable medical college in the school of medicine to which the person desiring to practise belongs. Such person must present his diploma to the State board of health, or the two members thereof in his congressional district, and if it be found to be genuine and was issued by such medical college as hereinafter mentioned, and the person presenting it be the graduate therein named, the board or said two members, as the case may be, must issue and deliver to him a certificate to that effect, and such diploma and certificate shall entitle the person named in the diploma to practise medicine in all its departments.
2. Persons not graduates in medicine who had practised medicine in this State under a certificate issued by the State board of health prior to the passage of the act are authorized to practise medicine in all its departments.
3. A person not a graduate of medicine and who has not practised medicine in this State under a certificate must be examined by the State board of health, or the two members thereof in the congressional district where he resides, or if he resides out of the State by the two members in the congressional district nearest to his place of residence, who, together with a member of the local board of health who is a physician, if there be such a member of the local board of health of the county in which the examination is held, shall examine him and if upon a full examination they find him qualified to practise medicine in all its departments, they, or a majority of them, shall grant him a certificate to that effect, and thereafter he shall have the right to practise medicine in the State to the same extent as if he had the diploma and certificate above mentioned. The members of the State board of health in each congressional district must, by publication in some newspaper printed in the county in which their meeting is to be held, or if no such paper is printed therein, in some newspaper of general circulation in such district, give at least twenty-one days’ notice of the time and place of their meeting for the examination of applicants for permission to practise medicine, published at least once a week for three consecutive weeks before the day of such meeting.
This section does not apply to a physician or surgeon called from another State to treat a particular case or to perform a particular surgical operation in the State, or who does not otherwise practise in the State (Code of W. Va., 1891, c. 150, s. 9).
Every person holding a certificate must have it recorded in the office of the secretary of the State board of health, and the secretary is required to indorse on said certificate the fact of such recordation and deliver the same to the person named therein or his order.
The State board of health may refuse certificates to individuals guilty of malpractice or dishonorable conduct, and may revoke certificates for like causes; such revocation being after due notice and trial by the said board, with right of appeal to the circuit court of the county in which such individual resides; but no such refusal or revocation shall be made by reason of his belonging to or practising in any particular school or system of medicine (ib., s. 10).
The examination fee is not retained if a certificate is refused, but the applicant may again, at any time within a year after refusal, be examined without an additional fee, and if a certificate be again refused he may, as often as he sees fit, on payment of the fee, be examined until he obtains a certificate (ib., s. 11).
Examinations may be wholly or partly in writing, and shall be of an elementary and practical character, embracing the general subjects of anatomy, physiology, chemistry, materia medica, pathology, pathological anatomy, surgery, and obstetrics, but sufficiently strict to test the qualifications of the candidate as a practitioner of medicine, surgery, and obstetrics. The chapter does not apply to females practising midwifery (ib., s. 12).
Definition, Exceptions.—Any person is regarded as practising medicine who professes publicly to be a physician, and to prescribe for the sick, or who appends to his name “M.D.” This act also applies to apothecaries and pharmacists who prescribe for the sick. It does not apply to commissioned officers of the United States army and navy and marine hospital service (ib., s. 13).
Itinerant Physician or Vender.—Any itinerant physician or itinerant vender of any drug, nostrum, ointment, or appliance of any kind intended for the treatment of disease or injury, or who shall by writing or printing or in any other method publicly profess to cure or treat diseases, injuries, or deformities by any drug, nostrum, manipulation, or other expedient, shall before doing so pay to the sheriff of every county in which he desires to practise a special tax of $50 for each month or fraction of a month he shall so practise in such county, and take his receipt in duplicate therefor. He shall present said receipts to the clerk of the county court of such county, who shall file and preserve one of them in his office and indorse on the other, “A duplicate of this receipt has been filed in my office,” and sign the same. For such a person to practise or attempt to practise in any county without having paid such tax and filed such receipt and obtained such indorsement, or to practise or attempt to practise for a longer time than that for which he has paid a tax, is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $100 to $500. Any person who shall travel from place to place and by writing, printing, or otherwise publicly profess to cure or treat diseases, injuries, or deformities is deemed an itinerant physician subject to the taxes, fines, and penalties of this section (ib., s. 14).
Penalty.—To practise or attempt to practise medicine, surgery, or obstetrics without complying with sec. 9 is a misdemeanor punishable, for every offence, with a fine of from $50 to $500 or imprisonment in a county jail from one month to twelve months, or both. To file or attempt to file as his own a diploma or certificate of another, or a false or forged affidavit of identity, or wilfully swear falsely to any question propounded to him on examination or to any affidavit required to be made and filed, is punishable with confinement in the penitentiary from one to three years or imprisonment in a county jail from six to twelve months, and a fine of from $100 to $500 (ib., s. 15).
Fee.—To the State board of health, or its examining members, for examination, $10 (ib., s. 11).
Wisconsin.
Prohibition.—No person practising physic or surgery, or both, shall have the right to collect in any action in any court fees or compensation for the performance of any medical or surgical service, or to testify in a professional capacity as a physician or surgeon, unless he shall have received a diploma from some incorporated medical society or college or shall be a member of the State or some county medical society legally organized in this State; provided that in all criminal actions the court may in its discretion and in the furtherance of justice receive the testimony of any physician or surgeon without requiring proof of the incorporation of the medical society or college from which he graduated (R. S., 1878, s. 1,436, as amended c. 131, 1887).
No person practising physic or surgery, or both, prohibited by the above section from testifying in a professional capacity as a physician or surgeon, shall assume the title of doctor, physician, or surgeon by means of any abbreviation or by the use of any other word or words, letters of the alphabet of the English or any other language, or any device of whatsoever kind, printed, written, or painted, or exhibited in any advertisement, circular, handbill, letter, or other instrument, nor on any card, sign, door, or place whatsoever.
Penalty, Exceptions.—A violation of this act is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $25 to $100, or imprisonment in a county jail from ten days to sixty days for each offence (s. 1, c. 256, 1881, as amended c. 40, 1882).
On complaint in writing under oath before any magistrate or justice of the peace charging the commission of an offence against the provisions of this act in his county, it is the duty of the district attorney to prosecute the offender, and in all such prosecutions the burden of proof shall be upon the defendant to establish his right to use such title under the provisions of this act (ib., s. 2).
Any person prohibited by sec. 1 from assuming the title of doctor, physician, or surgeon who shall practise or pretend to practise physic or surgery, or both, is not exempted from any, but is liable to all, of the legal penalties and liabilities of malpractice, and ignorance shall be no excuse for a failure to perform or for neglect or unskilfully performing or attempting to perform any of the duties required by law of practising physicians or surgeons. The act does not prevent students from practising under the direction of a qualified preceptor, nor women from practising midwifery, nor veterinarians from practising in their special department (ib., s. 3).
Wyoming.
Qualification.—No person can lawfully practise medicine, surgery, or obstetrics who has not received a medical education and diploma from some regularly chartered medical school having a bona fide existence when the diploma was granted (R. S., 1887, s. 1,925).
Every physician, surgeon, or obstetrician must file for record with the register of deeds of the county in which he is about to practise or where he practises, a copy of his diploma, exhibiting the original, or a certificate from the dean of the medical school of which he is a graduate certifying to his graduation (ib., s. 1,926).
When filing a copy of his diploma or certificate of graduation, he must be identified as the person named in the paper about to be filed by the affidavit of two citizens of the county, or his affidavit taken before a notary public or commissioner of deeds for the State, which affidavit must be filed in the office of the register of deeds (ib., s. 1,927).
Penalty.—To practise without complying with this chapter is a misdemeanor punishable with a fine of from $50 to $500 or imprisonment in a county jail from thirty days to six months, or both, for each offence. To file or attempt to file as his own a diploma or certificate of another, or a forged affidavit of identification, is a felony subject to a fine and imprisonment in the penitentiary (ib., s. 1,928).
It is the duty of the police, sheriff, or constable to arrest all persons practising medicine, surgery, or obstetrics without complying with these provisions (ib., s. 1,929).
Exceptions.—This chapter does not apply to persons in emergency prescribing or giving advice in medicine, surgery, or obstetrics in a section of country where no physician, surgeon, or obstetrician resides, or where no physician, surgeon, or obstetrician resides within a convenient distance, nor to persons prescribing in their own families, nor to persons claiming to practise medicine, surgery, or obstetrics in any section of the State where no physician or surgeon having a diploma or a certificate resides (ib., s. 1,930).
Evidence.—On the trial of persons charged with the violation of this chapter it shall be sufficient for the prosecution to show that defendant has practised medicine, surgery, or obstetrics within the county where the indictment is found at any time since the passage of the act (1876), and the defendant shall not after proof be entitled to acquittal until he shows by the testimony of some competent witness upon oath that the defendant has received a medical education, and a genuine diploma from some regularly chartered medical school; provided that the defendant may show such facts by depositions taken in the same manner as depositions in civil cases (ib., s. 1,931).
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Medical Acts.—The Act 21 and 22 Victoria, c. 90, and the amendments thereof and additions thereto, are generally spoken of as the Medical Acts.
Medical Councils.—There is a general council of medical education and registration of the United Kingdom, with branch councils for England, Scotland, and Ireland (21 and 22 Vict., 1858, c. 90, s. 3, 6).
Members of the general council are chosen as provided in 49 and 50 Vict., c. 48, s. 7; those representing the medical corporations must be qualified to register under this act (21 and 22 Vict., c. 90, s. 7).
The general council appoints a registrar for England, and the branch councils for Scotland and Ireland appoint respectively a registrar for Scotland and Ireland (ib., s. 10, 11).
Registrar.—It is the duty of the registrars to keep their registers correct, and to erase the names of all registered persons who shall have died, and from time to time to make the necessary alterations in the addresses or qualifications of persons registered. It is lawful for the registrar to write a letter to any registered person, addressed to him according to his address on the register, to inquire whether he has ceased to practise or has changed his residence, and if no answer be returned within six months from the time of sending the letter, it is lawful to erase the name of such person from the register, but it may be restored by direction of the general council (ib., s. 14).
Qualification.—Persons possessed of one or more of the qualifications described in Schedule A, on the payment of a fee not exceeding £5, are entitled to register on the production to the registrar of the branch council for England, Scotland, or Ireland the document conferring or evidencing the qualification in respect whereof he seeks to be registered, or upon transmitting by post to such registrar information of his name and address, and evidence of his qualifications and of the time or times at which they were obtained. The several colleges and bodies mentioned in Schedule A may transmit from time to time to the registrar, under their respective seals, lists of the persons who by grant of such colleges and bodies respectively, are for the time being entitled to register, stating the qualifications and residences of such persons, and it shall be lawful for the registrar on the payment of the said fee to enter in the register the persons mentioned in such lists with their qualifications and places of residences as therein stated without other application (ib., s. 15).
The general council is required to make orders for regulating the registers from time to time (ib., s. 16).
Persons actually practising medicine in England before August 1st, 1815, were entitled to register under the act (ib., s. 17).
Any two or more of the colleges and bodies in the United Kingdom mentioned in Schedule A may, with the sanction and under the direction of the general council, unite or co-operate in conducting the examinations required for qualifications to be registered (ib., s. 19, 37 and 38 Vict., c. 34).