(a) Short title. This section may be cited as the “Truth in Health Care Professional Services Act”.
(b) Purpose. The Legislature of the Virgin Islands hereby finds and declares that:
(1) There are widespread differences regarding the training and qualifications required to earn professional degrees and these differences often concern the training and skills necessary to correctly detect, diagnose, prevent, and treat illnesses or health care conditions.
(2) There is a compelling government interest in patients being promptly and clearly informed of the training and qualifications of the health care professionals who provide health care services.
(3) There is a compelling government interest in the public being protected from potentially misleading and deceptive health care advertising that might cause patients to have undue expectations regarding their treatment and outcome.
(c) Definitions. For the purposes of this section:
(d) Requirements.
(1) An advertisement for health care services must identify the type of license held by the health care professional advertising or providing services pursuant to the definitions, titles, and initials authorized under his or her licensing statute or examination designations required for licensure under the professional's licensing statute. The advertisement shall be free from any and all deceptive or misleading information.
(2) A health care professional providing health care services in the Territory must conspicuously post and affirmatively communicate the professional's specific licensure by doing the following:
(A) The health care professional shall wear a name tag during all patient encounters that clearly identifies the type of license held by the health care professional, unless precluded by adopted sterilization or isolation protocols. The name tag shall be of sufficient size and be worn in a conspicuous manner so as to be visible and apparent.
(B) If the health care professional has an office in which he or she sees current or prospective patients, then the health care professional shall display in his or her office a writing that clearly identifies the type of license held by the health care professional. The writing must be of sufficient size so as to be visible and apparent to all current and prospective patients.
(C) The health care professional must only use the licensure titles or initials authorized by the professional's licensing statute, examination designations required for licensure under the professional's licensing statute, or the titles authorized by the professional licensing statute for students in training.
(3) A health care professional who practices in more than one practice setting shall comply with these requirements in each practice setting.
(4) Health care professionals working in non-patient care settings, and who do not have any direct patient care interactions, are not subject to the provisions of subsections (d)(2) and (d)(3) of this section.
(5) Under this section, a health care professional who is a student or resident and does not have a government license shall only be required to wear a name tag that clearly identifies himself or herself by name and as a student or resident, as authorized by the professional licensing statute.
(e) Violations and enforcement.
(1) Failure to comply with any provision under this section shall constitute a violation under this section.
(2) Each day this section is violated shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as such.
(3) Any health care professional who violates any provision of this Act is guilty of unprofessional conduct and subject to disciplinary action under the appropriate provisions of the specific statute governing that health care profession.
(f) Effective date. This section takes effect ninety (90) days after enactment.