(a) No person except those already licensed by the State Board of Optometry shall practice optometry until he or she has:
(1) Successfully passed all examinations as the board may require in the rules of the board, to include, but not be limited to, clinical examinations if required; and
(2) Registered and received a certificate of registration which shall have conspicuously printed on its face the definition of optometry set forth in § 17-90-101.
(b) Every applicant for examination shall present satisfactory evidence that he or she is:
(1) At least twenty-one (21) years of age;
(2) A successful candidate having passed all parts of the National Board of Examiners in Optometry examination since January 1, 1997; and
(3) A graduate of a college of optometry that has been accredited by the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education of the American Optometric Association.
(c) All persons making application for examination and for registration shall be required to pay to the Secretary-treasurer of the State Board of Optometry a fee in a reasonable amount to be fixed by the board.
(d)
(1) Beginning July 1, 2003, the board will issue licenses only for optometric physicians to persons who meet:
(A) The requirements of this section;
(B) The requirements of § 17-90-401; and
(C) The requirements of rules of the board.
(2) A person who was licensed as an optometrist before July 1, 2003, and who does not meet the standard for licensure as an optometric physician may continue to renew the license as an optometrist but may only practice in the manner prescribed by the rules of the board.