H. B. 2472
(By Delegates Spencer, Mezzatesta,
Fleischauer, Beach, Compton,
Riggs and Leggett)
[Introduced March 10, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Health and Human Resources then Government Organization.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section two, article twenty-six,
chapter thirty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, removing prohibition
that governmental organizations or agencies and nonprofit
organizations cannot be eligible for licensure to fit and
dispense hearing aids.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section two, article twenty-six, chapter thirty of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 26. HEARING-AID DEALERS AND FITTERS.
§30-26-2. Engaging in practice of hearing-aid dealer or trainee
without license prohibited; exceptions.
(a) Except as provided in subsections (b), (c) and (d) hereof no person shall, on or after the effective date of this article,
engage in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids,
either as a hearing-aid dealer, fitter or as a trainee, nor shall
any person advertise or assume any such practice, without first
being licensed or otherwise qualified under the provisions of
this article.
(b) If the applicant is a partnership, trust, association,
corporation or other like organization, the application, in
addition to
such any other information as the board may require,
shall be accompanied by an application for a license for each
person, whether owner or employee, of
such each applicant who
serves in the capacity of a hearing-aid dealer or fitter, or
shall contain a statement that
such the applications for all
such
these persons are submitted separately. No partnership, trust,
association, corporation or other like organization shall permit
any unlicensed person to sell hearing aids or to engage in the
practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids.
(c) This article is not intended to prevent any person who is
not licensed under this article from engaging in the practice of
measuring human hearing for the purpose of selection of hearing
aids, provided
such the person or organization employing
such the
person does not sell hearing aids or accessories thereto, except
in the case of earmolds to be used only for the purpose of audiologic evaluation.
State or local governmental organizations or agencies and
organizations chartered as not-for-profit shall not be eligible
for licensure to fit and dispense hearing aids.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to remove the prohibition
that governmental organizations or agencies and nonprofit
organizations cannot be eligible for licensure to fit and
dispense hearing aids.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that
would be added.