An applicant must meet specific age, character, education, training, exam, and license-history requirements to be eligible for a medical license, and the board cannot require maintenance of certification.
Sec. 155.003. GENERAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. (a) To be eligible for a license under this chapter, an applicant must present proof satisfactory to the board that the applicant: (1) is at least 21 years of age; (2) is of good professional character and has not violated Section 164.051, 164.052, or 164.053; (3) has completed: (A) at least 60 semester hours of college courses, other than courses in medical school, that are acceptable to The University of Texas at Austin for credit on a bachelor of arts degree or a bachelor of science degree; (B) the entire primary, secondary, and premedical education required in the country of medical school graduation, if the medical school is located outside the United States or Canada; or (C) substantially equivalent courses as determined by board rule; (4) is a graduate of a medical school located in the United States or Canada and approved by the board; (5) has either: (A) successfully completed one year of graduate medical training approved by the board in the United States or Canada; or (B) graduated from a medical school located outside the United States or Canada and has successfully completed two years of graduate medical training approved by the board in the United States or Canada; (6) has passed an examination accepted or administered by the board; and (7) has passed a Texas medical jurisprudence examination as determined by board rule. (b) All medical or osteopathic medical education an applicant receives in the United States must be accredited by an accrediting body officially recognized by the United States Department of Education as the accrediting body for medical education leading to the doctor of medicine degree or the doctor of osteopathy degree. This subsection does not apply to postgraduate medical education or training. (c) An applicant who is unable to meet the requirement established by Subsection (b) may be eligible for an unrestricted license if the applicant: (1) received medical education in a hospital or teaching institution sponsoring or participating in a program of graduate medical education accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, the American Osteopathic Association, or the board in the same subject as the medical or osteopathic medical education as defined by board rule; or (2) is specialty board certified by a specialty board approved by the American Osteopathic Association or the American Board of Medical Specialties. (d) Except as provided by Subsection (d-1), in addition to the other requirements prescribed by this subtitle, the board may require an applicant to comply with other requirements that the board considers appropriate. (d-1) The board may not require maintenance of certification by an applicant for the applicant to be eligible for a license under this chapter. (e) An applicant is not eligible for a license if: (1) the applicant holds a medical license that is currently restricted for cause, canceled for cause, or suspended for cause by a state, a province of Canada, or a uniformed service of the United States; (2) an investigation or a proceeding is instituted against the applicant for the restriction, cancellation, suspension, or revocation in a state, a province of Canada, or a uniformed service of the United States; (3) a prosecution is pending against the applicant in any state, federal, or Canadian court for any offense that under the laws of this state is a felony or a misdemeanor that involves moral turpitude; or (4) the applicant held a license to practice medicine that has been revoked by the licensing authority in another state or a province of Canada for a reason that would be grounds for the board to revoke a license to practice medicine in this state. Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 388, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999. Amended by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1420, Sec. 14.027(b), eff. Sept. 1, 2001. Amended by: Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 269 (S.B. 419), Sec. 1.21, eff. September 1, 2005. Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 498 (H.B. 1380), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2011. Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1121 (S.B. 1148), Sec. 4, eff. January 1, 2018. Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 827 (H.B. 1998), Sec. 6, eff. September 1, 2023.