LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1535, as amended, Jones. Audiologists: hearing aids.
Existing law, the Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists
Licensure Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of
audiologists by the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board,
defines the practice of audiology, and makes a violation of that act
a crime. Under existing law, the board is comprised of 3 licensed
speech-language pathologists, 3 licensed audiologists, and 3 public
members.
Existing law, the Hearing Aid Dispensers Licensing Law, provides
for the licensure and regulation of hearing aid dispensers, who fit
or sell hearing aids, by the Hearing Aid Dispensers Bureau. Existing
law exempts audiologists and individuals supervised by audiologists
from the hearing aid dispenser licensure requirement if those persons
do not directly or indirectly engage in the sale or offering for
sale of hearing aids.
This bill would define the practice of audiology to include the
selling of hearing aids and would also exempt audiologists from the
hearing aid dispenser licensure requirements. However, the bill would
prohibit a licensed audiologist from selling hearing aids unless he
or she has completed an application for a dispensing audiologist
certificate, paid all applicable fees, and passed a specified
examination approved by the board. The bill would also make various
provisions relating to the sale of hearing aids applicable to
audiologists, such as, but not limited to, requiring hearing aids
sold by catalog or direct mail to meet certain requirements,
requiring a specified written receipt to be provided to a purchaser
upon the sale of a hearing aid, and requiring specified records
pertaining to the sale of a hearing aid to be maintained for 7 years.

By making licensed audiologists subject to specified requirements
relating to the sale of hearing aids, the violation of which would be
a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The bill would also abolish the Hearing Aid Dispensers Bureau and
would transfer the bureau's duties, powers, purposes,
responsibilities, and jurisdiction over the licensing and regulation
of hearing aid dispensers to the Speech-Language Pathology and
Audiology Board, which would be renamed the Speech-Language Pathology
and Audiology and Hearing Aid Dispensers Board. The bill would also
provide for the transfer of funds from the Hearing Aid Dispensers
Fund to the Hearing Aid Dispensers Account in the Speech-Language
Pathology and Audiology Fund. Under the bill, the board would be
comprised of 2 licensed speech-language pathologists, 2 licensed
audiologists, one of whom shall be an audiologist that dispenses
hearing aids, 2 licensed hearing aid dispensers, and 3 public
members. The bill would create the Hearing Aid Dispensing Committee,
comprised of specified board members, to review and research the
practice of fitting or selling hearing aids and to advise the board
about this practice. The bill would require the board, by January 1,
2011, to review specified license fees to assess whether there is
adequate revenue to support the board's functions. The bill would
make other conforming changes.
The bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 101 and
149 of the Business and Professions Code, proposed by AB 48 and SB
819, to be operative only if this bill and one or both of the other
bills are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1,
2010, and this bill is chaptered last.
The bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 2530.2,
3357, 3362, and 3456 of the Business and Professions Code proposed by
both this bill and SB 821, to be operative only if SB 821 and this
bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1,
2010, and this bill is chaptered last.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.

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Comments/questions on AB 1535 (Jones): Audiologists: hearing aids.