Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFICE OFIHE A-~T~RNEY GENERALOFTWAS . ‘. Honor8ble Hoaer Garrlaon, .’ Department of’ Publio Safety 08mp EfabrY Ayein, TexaS is Stat6 vho ail dealer. of We have rem r of recent date uher6I.n s you request the tment ppo~ the above otat- ed qyestion. of the Penal code reads: ny person to man- s control, aella .:. spense, or coqpo~ any id Artlole 725b providest . llnot be w~l.avPul to mmkaoture, e, oontrol, sell; prescribe, adniaio: .. 0, or coqouud any narcotio drug s a~thorizod’under the terns of’ this . . Seotion 6(l.)of Article ‘725b provides, in parts “An apothecary, In good faith, my sell and .. d&manse nm.Qotic drugs to any person upRn a vritten prescription of a phyxLoian,.... 2 .. . - C’ - .* 880’ . : r tlonorable Homer Qsrrisoq, Jr. i Page 2 I’ Se&Son 7(l) of said Article 725b provides8 - “A physician or 8 dentist, ln good faith.\ - 22 'andin the course of his professional practice .-c only, may presorlbe, administer, and dispense narcotlo drugs, or he my cause the aem to be admlnistered bg a nurse or interno under his direction end a?pervlsion.” Section 1 of Artiole 725b reads in part as follows: %.ection ‘1, The follovlng words and phrases, : . as used In thin Act, shall have the following meanings, unless the context othemiae,reqtires: n . .’ ..t. ‘(2) IPhyslcia;l( m!%msa person authorized by law to practice z?edidLne in this State and any other perso;l authorized by lav to treat 810% and Injured humanbeings ‘in this State and to use narcotic drug5 in conneotion with suoh treatment. (I. . . . . '(7) tApo&eoaryt means a lloensedpharmclst as defined py the laws of t&s State and, irhore the context so requires, the omer of a store or other placie of business where narcotic drugs am- . cqqopdsd or dispensed by a licensed pharmsclst~ _ .. ... - irtlale 4498a,Vernonta Civil Statutesj’ provides Zn part: “Sea. 1. It shall be the duty of all persons nov lawfully qualified tmd engaged in the practice of ntodicine in this State as dsfined In kntlcle .. 4510, Mvised Statutes of 1925, or uho shall here- after be licensed for s_uchpractice by the !Texas State Board of Medical Ersmincrs, to be reglstered~ . . . _ t. .. Honorable Homer Garrison, Jr;, Paga 3 ., . as such practltlonars vith the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners, on or bafora the 1st day of January A. D. 1932, and thereafter to registefc.in like manner annually, on or beWe the 1st &v:$f_ January, of each suoceeding year. ; . .” Article 4504, Vernonfs Civil Statutes, exempts from lliansa end registration certain physicians, specifically enumerated. . Artiole 4504 reads, in part: n . . ..The provlsions of this Chapter do not apply.to,.;.; nor to OoIllnission5d or contraot surgeons of the United States Army, Bavy; or Public Health and Marine Hospital Service, in the performance of their duties, andnot engaged in private practice1 nor to legally qualified physicians of other statas~celled in consultation, but who have no office inTaxes, and eppoint no place in this State for saaing, exa&ning, or treat- paticnts~. , . .” In the absence 0) speoial legislative authority, Texas does not recognize the licensing and registering of physioians under the laus of another State. The only physl- oians vho are petitted to praatioe medioira inthis State vithout first obtaining a license and registering under the laws of this State era those physicians speolfically exempt from such registration, as provided by Article 4504, supra. Therefore, the physician referred to in Section 6(l) of Artl- cla 725b, supra, could only mean a phyuiclen vho IS licensed in and who praoticeo madioine in the St8te of Taxas, or one uho is specifically exempt from such lioonse and registration under Artiole 4504, supra. . Underthe foregoing authorities8 therefore, you are respectfully advised that It is the opinion of this department that your quostion should be answered in the nagative,~ unlees I - . . , . . Honorake Homer Garrison, Jr<, Page 4 . Such phgsiclm falls vii&In the exemption set forth $nArticle . 4504, sqra. F e-e &. Trustti~g that this satlsfactorll~ srm&i your ques- t&on, .we remain lleq truly 'goyrs ATTOi3~Ey GEPIERAL OF !PEXAS 0, BurieDavitt~ .: Assistant . DBD:AW XTTORNEY GENRRAL OB T5iZS .