STATE OF WISCONSIN
MEDICAL EXAMINING BOARD
IN THE MATTER OF RULEMAKING PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE
MEDICAL EXAMINING BOARD
ORDER OF THE MEDICAL EXAMINING BOARD
ADOPTING RULES
(CLEARINGHOUSE RULE 15-047)
ORDER
An order of the Medical Examining Board to repeal Med 1.06 (5), 1.07, 1.08 (1), and 1.09, amend Med 1.01, 1.02 (2) and (3) (a), (b), and (c), 1.06 (1) (a) (intro.) and 9., (b), and (d), (2), and (3) (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f) (intro.) and 2., 1.08 (2), 14.03, and 14.06 (2) (intro.), and create Med 1.015 (2m), 1.02 (3) (cm), and 1.06 (3) (bm) and (4), relating to general update and cleanup of rules.
Analysis prepared by the Department of Safety and Professional Services.
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ANALYSIS
Statutes interpreted:
Statutory authority:
Explanation of agency authority:
Section 15.08 (5) (b), Stats., provides examining boards, “shall promulgate rules for its own guidance and for the guidance of the trade or profession to which it pertains. . .” Section 227.11 (2) (a), Stats., sets forth the parameters of an agency’s rule-making authority, stating an agency, “may promulgate rules interpreting provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency. . .but a rule is not valid if the rule exceeds the bounds of correct interpretation.” Section 448.05 (2) (c), Stats., provides “[t]he board may promulgate rules specifying circumstances in which the board, in cases of hardship or in cases in which the applicant possesses a medical license issued by another jurisdiction, may grant a waiver from any requirement under par. (a) or (b). The board may grant such a waiver only in accordance with those rules.” Section 448.05 (6) (a), Stats., provides “… the board shall examine each applicant it finds eligible under this section in such subject matters as the board deems applicable to the class of license or certificate which the applicant seeks to have granted. Examinations may be both written and oral. In lieu of its own examinations, in whole or in part, the board may make such use as it deems appropriate of examinations prepared, administered, and scored by national examining agencies, or by other licensing jurisdictions of the United States or Canada. The board shall specify passing grades for any and all examinations required.” Section 448.40 (1), Stats., provides “[t]he board may promulgate rules to carry out the purposes of this subchapter, including rules requiring the completion of continuing education, professional development, and maintenance of certification or performance improvement or continuing medical education programs for renewal of a license to practice medicine and surgery.” Related statute or rule:
None.
Plain language analysis:
The rules update chs. Med 1 and 14 relating to licenses to practice medicine and surgery and biennial registration. The rules better align with statute, reflect current practices, and provide a clearer regulatory landscape for applicants. Current rules contain provisions relating to an open-book examination on statutes and rules governing the practice of medicine and surgery in Wisconsin. As the Board no longer requires an applicant for licensure to practice medicine and surgery to take the statutes and rules examination, the rules remove all references to it.
2015 Wisconsin Act 269 removed a requirement that examinations for licensure to practice medicine and surgery be limited to those administered by national organizations. As a result, the Board is conducting an oral examination in lieu of the oral interview referenced in current rules. The rules replace references to the oral interview with the oral examination, specify how the oral examination is administered, and update the criteria the Board may use to determine if an applicant is required to take the oral examination. Current rules do not address the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination, commonly known as the COMLEX-USA. The rules specify the Board requirements for the COMLEX-USA examination.
The rules update the list of board-recognized accrediting agencies to include 2 internationally recognized accrediting agencies not listed in the current rules, the World Directory of Medical Schools and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
The rules more explicitly refer to section 448.05 (2) (c) of the Wisconsin Statutes as the Board’s authority to grant waivers from the required 24 months of postgraduate training in programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association in cases of hardship and for applicants who demonstrate substantially equivalent education and training.
Current rules indicate the Board administers and determines eligibility for the USMLE Step 3, which does not reflect current practices. In addition, the USMLE Step 2 is administered in 2 parts, which is not reflected in current rules. The rules make revisions to reflect current practices.
The renewal date currently specified in ch. Med 14 does not match the statutory renewal date for a doctor of osteopathy. The rules align the renewal dates for licensees with the dates provided by statute. Summary of, and comparison with, existing or proposed federal regulation:
None.
