Content deleted Content added
m Removed erroneous space and general fixes (task 1) |
|||
(11 intermediate revisions by 6 users not shown) | |||
Line 2:
{{Use American English|date=March 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Medical law sidebar}}
A '''medical license''' is an [[Occupational licensing|occupational license]] that permits a person to legally practice [[medicine]]. In most countries, a person must have a medical license bestowed either by a specified government-approved [[professional association]] or a [[government agency]] before they can practice medicine. Licenses are not granted automatically to all people with [[medical school|medical degree]]s. A medical school graduate must receive a license to practice medicine to legally be called a [[physician]]. The process typically requires testing by a medical board. The medical license is the documentation of authority to practice [[medicine]] within a certain locality. An active license is also required to practice medicine as an [[Assistant Physician|assistant physician]], a [[physician assistant]] or a [[clinical officer]] in jurisdictions with authorizing legislation.
Line 10 ⟶ 8:
== Canada ==
Canada requires that applicants have graduated from a school registered in the [[World Directory of Medical Schools]], and apply to sit the ''[[Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mcc.ca/examinations/mccee/application-information/ |title=StackPath |access-date=2017-03-15 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321021434/http://mcc.ca/examinations/mccee/application-information/ |archive-date=2017-03-21 }} retrieved 15/03/2017</ref> Licenses are issued by [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Provincial]] bodies.
===Criticism===
Line 16 ⟶ 14:
==China==
Medical practitioners in China
==Colombia==
{{
The Instituto Colombiano para el Fomento de la Educación Superior (ICFES) and the Ministry of Education regulate the medical schools that are licensed to offer medical degrees. After completing all the schools' requirements to obtain a medical degree, physicians must serve the "obligatory social service" (in rural areas, research, public health or special populations e.g., orphan children), which usually lasts one year. After completing the social service, a doctor obtains a "medical registration" at the governor's office (Gobernación) of the Department (province/state) where they served the obligatory term. This registration is the same as a license in other countries, and authorizes the physician to practice medicine anywhere in the national territory. However, to practice in other departments requires an inscription from that department. Unlike the US, there is no official licensing exam for medical graduates in Colombia, since this responsibility is delegated to medical schools that have permission to confer medical degrees.
==Germany<!--'Approbation (Germany)'-->==
In Germany, licensing of doctors ("Approbation") is the responsibility of the state governments. Licensed doctors are compulsory members of "Ärztekammern" (literally: "Physician chambers"), which are medical associations organized on state level. Criteria for licensing of doctors are regulated in the
Physicians who have not studied medicine in Germany, among others, must prove their language skills by means of a German B2 certificate and a successfully completed Fachsprachprüfung. In addition, doctors who have not studied in the EU, EEA or Switzerland must prove that their studies are equivalent. For this purpose, they usually have to pass a Kenntnisprüfung (''test of competence'').<ref>"[https://approbatio.de/approbation-for-foreign-doctors-in-germany/ Approbation for foreign doctors in Germany]". www.approbatio.de (in German). Retrieved 15 September 2021.</ref>
==India==
Line 41 ⟶ 39:
===History===
The [[Tenth Amendment to the United States
The [[American Medical Association]] when formed in 1847, proposed that the state legislate medicine (rather than each of the different medical schools). Horowitz argues that this suggestion was made in order to gain greater control over medical education.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=38}}
Line 49 ⟶ 47:
In 1877, the Illinois legislature passed the Illinois medical licensing law, which led to the aggressive prosecution of physicians that were perceived as illegal or unethical.<ref name = PMC2701151/> Medical boards of other states (often composed of both regular and irregular physicians) followed suit.<ref name = PMC2701151/> Some authors claim that these efforts allowed organized regular and irregular physicians to exclude not only fraudulent practitioners, but other groups, including midwives, clairvoyants, osteopaths, Christian Scientists, and magnetic healers.<ref>Sandvick, Clinton. "Enforcing Medical Licensing in Illinois:1877-1890" Yale J. Bio. Med. June 2009, volume 82, issue 2, pages 67.</ref>
In 1889, ''[[Dent v. West Virginia]]'',<ref>{{cite web |title=Dent v. West Virginia, 129 U.S. 114, 9 S. Ct. 231, 32 L. Ed. 623, 1889 U.S. LEXIS 1669 – CourtListener.com |url=https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/92392/dent-v-west-virginia/?q=%22129%20U.S.%20%22&type=o&order_by=dateFiled%20asc&stat_Precedential=on&filed_after=01%2F01%2F1889&filed_before=01%2F01%2F1890&court=scotus |website=CourtListener |access-date=15 April 2022 |language=en-us}}</ref> the U.S. Supreme Court for the first time upheld a state physician licensing law. A practitioner with insufficient credentials to obtain a medical license sued West Virginia, claiming a violation of his rights under the [[due process clause]] of the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|14th Amendment]]. The Supreme Court upheld the statute noting that, while each citizen had a right to follow any lawful calling, they were subject to reasonable state restrictions. Because of the nature of medical training, the large amount of knowledge required, and the life-and-death circumstances with which physicians dealt, patients needed to rely on the assurance of a license requiring physicians to meet a minimum set of standards.
In 1956, the [[Federation of State Medical Boards]] released "A Guide to the Essentials of a Modern Medical Practice Act."<ref>https://medicallicensedirect.com/files/A_Guide_to_the_Essentials_of_a_Modern_Medical_Practice_Act.pdf</ref> The report distilled a series of recommendations that addressed five core areas: the definition of the practice of medicine; eligibility standards for licensure; licensing examinations; licensure endorsement; and the bases for probation, suspension, or revocation of a license.<ref name=":1" /> Since its initial publication in 1956, the Essentials of a Modern Medical Practice Act has passed through thirteen updated editions, with the most recent in 2012.<ref name=":1" />
By the beginning of the 20th century most states had implemented licensing laws.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=44}}During the 20th century, medical boards sought to eliminate diploma mills by expanding their requirements for medical schools.<ref name
Today, physicians are
{{Further|Federation of State Medical Boards}}
===Criticism===
{{POV|date=May 2021}}
According to a 1979 article in the ''[[Journal of Libertarian Studies]]'', the enactment of U.S. state medical licensing laws in the late 1800s was for the primary purpose of reducing competition and allowing physicians to make more money.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hamowy |first1=R. |title=The early development of medical licensing laws in the United States, 1875-1900 |journal=The Journal of Libertarian Studies |date=1979 |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=73–119 |pmid=11614768 |issn=0363-2873}}</ref>
The added benefit of public safety made restrictive licensure laws more appealing to both physicians and legislators. Infrequently mentioned in the literature, is that the "public safety" that is created by reducing the number of practitioners only extends to the patients who receive medical care. Thus, the overall effect is more expensive and higher-quality medical care for fewer patients.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Camenisch|first1=Paul F.|date=August 1978|title=On the matter of good moral character|journal=The Linacre Quarterly|volume=45|issue=3|pages=273–283|issn=0024-3639|pmid=11661606}}</ref>
Line 66:
Also, it has been said that because hospitals have had more legal burden placed on them in recent decades, they have more of an incentive to require that their physicians be competent. Thus, the process whereby physicians are reviewed and licensed by the state medical board results in some duplicate evaluations. The physician is evaluated both in the licensure process and then again by the hospital for the purpose of credentialing and granting hospital privileges.<ref name="indepednent2000">{{Cite news|url=http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=266|title=Does Physician Licensing Serve a Useful Purpose? {{!}} Shirley V. Svorny|work=The Independent Institute|access-date=2018-01-04|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104073215/http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=266|archive-date=2018-01-04}}</ref>
Laws in some states prohibit interstate telemedicine without a license to practice in the state where the patient is located. This reduces access to care.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/liberating-telemedicine-options-eliminate-state-licensing-roadblock| title = Liberating Telemedicine: Options to Eliminate the State-Licensing Roadblock {{!}} Cato Institute}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fsmb.org/siteassets/advocacy/pdf/states-waiving-licensure-requirements-for-telehealth-in-response-to-covid-19.pdf
===Patient protection===
State medical boards cannot assure a high standard of care, they do not review physicians on a regular basis, nor do they evaluate clinicians at the point of care. It is provider liability that results in oversight that protects consumers, and even that is imperfect. Before they employ or associate with individual physicians, via credentialing and privileging, providers confirm the training, knowledge and skills needed to take on relevant tasks. They review any sanctions and malpractice claims.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/regulation/2015/3/regulation-v38n1-6.pdf|date=March
== References ==
Line 75:
== External links ==
* [
{{Authority control}}
|