(225 ILCS 50/6)
(from Ch. 111, par. 7406)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
Sec. 6.
Mail order sales.
Nothing in this Act shall prohibit
a corporation, partnership,
trust, association, or other organization, maintaining an established
business
address, from engaging in the business of selling or offering for sale hearing
instruments at retail by mail to persons 18 years of age or older
who have not
been examined
by a licensed physician or tested by a licensed hearing instrument
dispenser provided that:
(a) The organization is registered by the Department prior
to engaging
in business in this State and has paid the fee set forth in
this
Act.
(b) The organization files with the Department, prior to
registration
and annually thereafter, a Disclosure Statement containing the following:
(1) the name under which the organization is doing
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or intends to do business and the name of any affiliated company which the organization recommends or will recommend to persons as a supplier of goods or services or in connection with other business transactions of the organization;
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(2) the organization's principal business address
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and the name and address of its agent in this State authorized to receive service of process;
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(3) the business form of the organization, whether
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corporate, partnership, or otherwise and the state or other sovereign power under which the organization is organized;
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(4) the names of the directors or persons performing
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similar functions and names and addresses of the chief executive officer, and the financial, accounting, sales, and other principal executive officers, if the organization is a corporation, association, or other similar entity; of all general partners, if the organization is a partnership; and of the owner, if the organization is a sole proprietorship, together with a statement of the business background during the past 5 years for each such person;
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(5) a statement as to whether the organization or
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any person identified in the disclosure statement:
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(i) has during the 5 year period immediately
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preceding the date of the disclosure statement been convicted of a felony, pleaded nolo contendere to a felony charge, or been held liable in a civil action by final judgment, if such felony or civil action involved fraud, embezzlement, or misappropriation of property, and a description thereof; or
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(ii) is subject to any currently effective
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injunctive or restrictive order as a result of a proceeding or pending action brought by any government agency or department, and a description thereof; or
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(iii) is a defendant in any pending criminal or
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material civil action relating to fraud, embezzlement, misappropriation of property or violations of the antitrust or trade regulation laws of the United States or any state, and a description thereof; or
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(iv) has during the 5 year period immediately
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preceding the date of the disclosure statement had entered against such person or organization a final judgment in any material civil proceeding, and a description thereof; or
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(v) has during the 5 year period immediately
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preceding the date of the disclosure statement been adjudicated a bankrupt or reorganized due to insolvency or was a principal executive officer or general partner of any company that has been adjudicated a bankrupt or reorganized due to insolvency during such 5 year period, and a description thereof;
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(6) the length of time the organization and any
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predecessor of the organization has conducted a business dealing with hearing instrument goods or services;
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(7) a financial statement of the organization as of
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the close of the most recent fiscal year of the organization. If the financial statement is filed later than 120 days following the close of the fiscal year of the organization it must be accompanied by a statement of the organization of any material changes in the financial condition of the organization;
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(8) a general description of the business, including
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without limitation a description of the goods, training programs, supervision, advertising, promotion and other services provided by the organization;
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(9) a statement of any compensation or other benefit
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given or promised to a public figure arising, in whole or in part, from (i) the use of the public figure in the name or symbol of the organization or (ii) the endorsement or recommendation of the organization by the public figure in advertisements;
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(10) a statement setting forth such additional
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information and such comments and explanations relative to the information contained in the disclosure statement as the organization may desire to present.
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(c) The organization files with the Department prior to
registration
and annually thereafter a statement that it complies with
the Act, the rules
issued pursuant to it, and the regulations of the Federal Food and Drug
Administration and the Federal Trade Commission insofar as they are applicable.
(d) The organization files with the Department at the time
of
registration an irrevocable consent to service of process authorizing the
Department and any of its successors to be served any notice, process, or
pleading in any action or proceeding against the organization
arising out
of or in connection with any violation of this Act. Such service shall
have the effect of conferring personal jurisdiction over such organization
in any court of competent jurisdiction.
(e) Before dispensing a hearing instrument to a resident
of this State, the organization informs the prospective users that they may
need the following for proper fitting of a hearing instrument:
(1) the results of an audiogram performed within the
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past 6 months by a licensed audiologist or a licensed hearing instrument dispenser; and
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(2) an earmold impression obtained from the
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prospective user and taken by a licensed hearing instrument dispenser.
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(f) The prospective user receives a medical evaluation or
the organization affords the prospective user an opportunity
to waive the medical
evaluation requirement of Section 4 of this Act and the testing requirement of
subsection (z) of Section 18, provided that
the
organization:
(1) informs the prospective user that the exercise
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of the waiver is not in the user's best health interest;
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(2) does not in any way actively encourage the
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prospective user to waive the medical evaluation or test; and
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(3) affords the prospective user the option to sign
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"I have been advised by .......... (hearing
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instrument dispenser's name) that the Food and Drug Administration and the State of Illinois have determined that my best interest would be served if I had a medical evaluation by a licensed physician, preferably a physician who specialized in diseases of the ear, before purchasing a hearing instrument; or a test by a licensed audiologist or licensed hearing instrument dispenser utilizing established procedures and instrumentation in the fitting of hearing instruments. I do not wish either a medical evaluation or test before purchasing a hearing instrument."
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(g) Where a sale, lease, or rental of hearing instruments is sold or contracted
to be sold to a consumer by mail order, the consumer may
void the contract or sale by notifying the seller within
45 business days following that day on which the hearing
instruments were mailed by the seller to the consumer and by
returning to the seller in its original condition any hearing
instrument
delivered to the consumer under the contract or sale.
At the time the hearing instrument is
mailed, the seller shall furnish the consumer
with a fully completed receipt or copy of any contract pertaining to the
sale that contains a "Notice of Cancellation" informing the
consumer that he or she
may cancel the sale at any time within 45 business days and
disclosing the
date of the mailing and the name,
address, and telephone number
of the seller. In immediate proximity to the space reserved in the
contract
for the signature of the consumer, or on the front page of the receipt if
a contract is not used, and in bold face type of a minimum size of 10
points, there shall be
a statement in substantially the following form:
"You, the buyer, may cancel this transaction at any
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time prior to midnight of the 45th business day after the date of this transaction. See the attached notice of cancellation form for an explanation of this right."
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Attached to the receipt or contract shall be a completed form in
duplicate,
captioned "NOTICE OF CANCELLATION" which shall be easily detachable and
which shall contain in at least 10 point bold face type the following
information
and statements in the same language as that used in the contract:
"NOTICE OF CANCELLATION
enter date of transaction
.........................
(DATE)
YOU MAY CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION, WITHOUT ANY PENALTY OR OBLIGATION, WITHIN
45 BUSINESS DAYS FROM THE ABOVE DATE.
IF YOU CANCEL, ANY PROPERTY TRADED IN, ANY PAYMENTS MADE BY YOU UNDER
THE CONTRACT OR SALE LESS ANY NONREFUNDABLE RESTOCKING FEE, AND ANY
NEGOTIABLE
INSTRUMENT EXECUTED BY YOU WILL
BE RETURNED WITHIN 10 BUSINESS DAYS FOLLOWING RECEIPT BY THE SELLER OF YOUR
CANCELLATION
NOTICE AND ALL MERCHANDISE
PERTAINING TO THIS TRANSACTION,
AND ANY SECURITY INTEREST ARISING OUT OF THE TRANSACTION
WILL BE CANCELLED.
IF YOU CANCEL, YOU MUST RETURN TO THE SELLER,
IN SUBSTANTIALLY AS GOOD CONDITION AS WHEN RECEIVED, ANY GOODS DELIVERED
TO YOU UNDER THIS CONTRACT OR SALE.
TO CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION, MAIL OR DELIVER A SIGNED
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AND DATED COPY OF THIS CANCELLATION NOTICE OR ANY OTHER WRITTEN NOTICE, OR SEND A TELEGRAM, TO (name of seller), AT (address of seller's place of business) AND (seller's telephone number) NO LATER THAN MIDNIGHT OF ...........(date).
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I HEREBY CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION.
(Date)............
..................
(Buyers Signature)"
The written "Notice of Cancellation" may be sent by the consumer
to the
seller to cancel the contract. The 45‑day period
does not commence until the consumer is furnished the Notice
of Cancellation
and
the address and phone number at which such notice to the seller can be given.
If the conditions of this Section are met, the seller must return to the
consumer the amount of any payment
made or consideration given under
the contract or for the merchandise less a nonrefundable
restocking fee.
It is an unlawful practice
for a seller to: (1) hold a consumer responsible for any liability or
obligation under any mail order transaction if the consumer claims not to have
received the merchandise unless the merchandise was sent by certified mail or
other delivery method by which the seller is provided with proof of delivery; (2) fail,
before
furnishing copies of the "Notice of Cancellation" to the
consumer, to complete both copies by entering the name of the seller, the
address of the seller's place of business, the seller's telephone number,
the date of the mailing, and the date, not earlier
than the 45th
business
day following the date of the mailing, by which the
consumer may give notice
of cancellation; (3) include in any contract or receipt any
confession of
judgment or any waiver of any of the rights to which the consumer is entitled
under this Section including specifically his right to cancel the
sale in accordance with the provisions of this Section; (4)
misrepresent
in any manner the consumer's right to cancel; (5) use any undue
influence,
coercion, or any other wilful act or representation to interfere with the
consumer's exercise of his rights under this Section; (6) fail or
refuse
to honor any valid notice of
cancellation and return of
merchandise
by a consumer and, within 10
business
days after the receipt of such
notice and merchandise
pertaining to such transaction,
to (i) refund payments made
under
the contract or sale, (ii) return any goods or property traded in, in
substantially as good condition as when received by the person, (iii)
cancel and return any negotiable instrument executed by the consumer in
connection with the contract or sale and take any action necessary or
appropriate to terminate promptly any security interest created in the
transaction; (7) negotiate, transfer, sell, or assign any note or
other
evidence of indebtedness to a finance company or other third party prior to the 50th business day following the day of the
mailing;
or (8) fail to provide the consumer of a hearing instrument with written
information stating the name, address, and telephone number of the Department
and informing the consumer that complaints regarding hearing instrument goods
or services may be made to the Department.
(h) The organization employs only licensed
hearing
instrument dispensers in the
dispensing of hearing instruments and files with the Department,
by
January 1 of
each year, a list of all licensed hearing instrument dispensers
employed by it.
(Source: P.A. 89‑72, eff. 12‑31‑95 .)
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(225 ILCS 50/15)
(from Ch. 111, par. 7415)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
Sec. 15.
Fees.
(a) The following are fees to be charged and are not refundable:
(1) The fee for application for a license is $40.
(2) In addition to the application fee, applicants
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for any examination shall be required to pay, either to the Department or to the designated testing service, a fee covering the actual cost of the examination. Failure to appear for the examination on the scheduled date, at the time and place specified, after the applicant's application and fee for the examination has been received and acknowledged by the Department or the designated testing service, shall result in the forfeiture of the fee.
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(3) The fee for a license shall be $115 per 2 year
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licensure period, except that the fee for a license for a person obtaining his or her supervised professional experience as required by subsection (f) of Section 8 of the Illinois Speech‑Language Pathology and Audiology Practice Act shall be $60 per one year licensure period.
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(4) The fee for the reinstatement of a license which
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has been expired for more than 90 days but less than 2 years is $50 plus payment of all lapsed renewal and late fees.
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(5) The fee for the restoration of a license which
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has been expired for more than 2 years is $100 plus payment of all lapsed renewal and late fees.
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(6) The fee for the issuance of a duplicate license,
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for the issuance of a replacement license which has been lost or destroyed or for the issuance of a license with a change of name or address is $10. No fee is required for name and address changes on Department records when no duplicate license is issued.
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(7) The fee for a licensee's record for any purpose
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(8) The fee to have the scoring of an examination
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administered by the Department reviewed and verified is $10, plus any fee charged by the testing service.
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(9) The fee for a wall license shall be the actual
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(10) The fee for a roster of persons licensed as
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hearing instrument dispensers shall be the actual cost of such roster.
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(11) The annual fee for any organization registered
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pursuant to Section 6 is $100. Such fee is in addition to all other fees imposed under this Act.
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(12) A late fee, which shall be in the same amount
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as the license renewal fee, shall be charged to a dispenser whose license renewal fee is received by the Department after the expiration date of the license.
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(13) Sponsors of continuing education courses shall
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provide such information as may be required by rule and shall pay a fee of $150 per course. However, courses certified or approved for continuing education by the International Hearing Aid Society, the American Academy of Audiology, the Academy of Dispensing Audiologists, the American Speech‑Language‑Hearing Association, or any other national organization approved by the Board shall be exempt from such fee and compliance with such course filing requirements as specified by rule.
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(b) The moneys received as fees and fines by the Department
under this Act shall be deposited in the Hearing Instrument
Dispenser Examining
and Disciplinary Fund, which is hereby created as a
special fund in the
State Treasury, and shall be used only for the administration and
enforcement of this Act,
including: (1) costs directly related to licensing of persons under
this Act; and (2) by the Board in the exercise
of its powers and performance of its duties, and such use shall be made
by the Department with full consideration of all recommendations of the Board.
All moneys deposited in the Fund shall be appropriated to the Department
for expenses of the Department and the Board in the administration and
enforcement of this Act.
Moneys in the Fund may
be invested and reinvested, with all earnings deposited in the
Fund and used for the purposes set forth in this Act.
Upon the completion of any audit of the Department as prescribed by the
Illinois State Auditing Act, which audit shall include an audit of the Fund,
the Department
shall make a copy of the audit open to inspection by any interested person,
which copy shall be submitted to the Department by the Auditor General, in
addition to the copies of audit reports required to be submitted to other
State officers and agencies by Section 3‑14 of the Illinois State Auditing Act.
(Source: P.A. 91‑932, eff. 1‑1‑01 .)
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(225 ILCS 50/18)
(from Ch. 111, par. 7418)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
Sec. 18.
Discipline by the Department.
The Department may refuse to
issue
or renew a license
or it may revoke, suspend, place on probation, censure, fine, or reprimand
a
licensee for any of the following:
(a) Material misstatement in furnishing information to the Department
or to any other State or federal agency.
(b) Violations of this Act, or the rules promulgated hereunder.
(c) Conviction of any crime under the laws of the United States or any
state or territory thereof which is a felony or misdemeanor, an essential
element of dishonesty, or of any crime which is directly related
to the practice of the profession.
(d) Making any misrepresentation for the purpose of obtaining a license
or renewing a license, including falsification of the
continuing education
requirement.
(e) Professional incompetence.
(f) Malpractice.
(g) Aiding or assisting another person in violating any provision of this
Act or the rules promulgated hereunder.
(h) Failing, within 30 days, to provide
in writing information in response to a written
request made by the Department.
(i) Engaging in dishonorable, unethical or unprofessional conduct which
is likely to deceive, defraud or harm the public.
(j) Knowingly employing, directly or indirectly, any suspended or
unlicensed person to perform any services covered by this Act.
(k) Habitual intoxication or addiction to the use of drugs.
(l) Discipline by another state, the District of Columbia, territory, or
a foreign nation, if at least one of the grounds for the discipline is the
same or substantially equivalent to those set forth herein.
(m) Directly or indirectly giving to or receiving from any person, firm,
corporation, partnership, or association any fee, commission, rebate,
or other
form of compensation for any service not actually rendered.
(n) A finding by the Board that the licensee, after
having his or her license
placed on probationary status has violated the terms or probation.
(o) Willfully making or filing false records or reports.
(p) Willfully failing to report an instance of suspected child abuse or
neglect as required by the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.
(q) Physical illness, including but not limited to, deterioration through
the aging process, or loss of motor skill which results in the inability
to practice the profession with reasonable judgement, skill or safety.
(r) Solicitation of services or products by advertising that is false
or misleading. An advertisement is false or misleading if it:
(1) contains an intentional misrepresentation of
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(2) contains a false statement as to the licensee's
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professional achievements, education, skills, or qualifications in the hearing instrument dispensing profession;
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(3) makes a partial disclosure of a relevant fact,
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(i) the advertisement of a discounted price of
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an item without identifying in the advertisement or at the location of the item either the specific product being offered at the discounted price or the usual price of the item; and
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(ii) the advertisement of the price of a
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specifically identified hearing instrument if more than one hearing instrument appears in the same advertisement without an accompanying price;
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(4) contains a representation that a product
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innovation is new when, in fact, the product was first offered by the manufacturer to the general public in this State not less than 12 months before the date of the advertisement;
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(5) contains any other representation, statement, or
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claim that is inherently misleading or deceptive; or
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(6) contains information that the licensee
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manufactures hearing instruments at the licensee's office location unless the following statement includes a statement disclosing that the instruments are manufactured by a specified manufacturer and assembled by the licensee.
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(s) Participating in subterfuge or misrepresentation in the fitting or
servicing of a hearing instrument.
(t) (Blank).
(u) Representing that the service of a licensed physician or
other
health professional will be used
or made available in the fitting, adjustment, maintenance, or repair of
hearing
instruments when that is not true, or using the words "doctor",
"audiologist",
"clinic", "Clinical Audiologist", "Certified Hearing Aid Audiologist",
"State Licensed", "State
Certified", "Hearing Care Professional", "Licensed Hearing Instrument
Dispenser", "Licensed Hearing Aid
Dispenser", "Board
Certified Hearing Instrument Specialist", "Hearing Instrument Specialist",
"Licensed Audiologist", or
any other
term, abbreviation
or symbol which would give the impression that service is being provided
by persons who are licensed or awarded a degree or title,
or that the person's service who
is holding the license has been recommended by a governmental agency
or health provider, when such is not the case.
(v) Advertising a manufacturer's product or using a
manufacturer's name
or trademark implying a relationship which does not exist.
(w) Directly or indirectly giving or offering
anything of value to any person who advises another in a professional capacity,
as an inducement to influence the purchase of a product sold or offered
for sale by a hearing instrument dispenser or influencing persons
to refrain from
dealing in the products of competitors.
(x) Conducting business while suffering from a contagious
disease.
(y) Engaging in the fitting or sale of hearing instruments under a name with
fraudulent intent.
(z) Dispensing a hearing instrument to a person who has
not been
given tests
utilizing appropriate established procedures and instrumentation in the
fitting of hearing instruments, except where there is the
replacement of a
hearing instrument, of the same make and model within one year of the dispensing of the
original hearing instrument.
(aa) Unavailability or unwillingness to adequately provide for
service
or repair of hearing instruments fitted and sold by the
dispenser.
(bb) Violating the regulations of the Federal Food and Drug
Administration
or the Federal Trade Commission as they affect hearing instruments.
(cc) Violating any provision of the Consumer Fraud and
Deceptive Business
Practices Act.
(dd) Violating the Health Care Worker Self‑Referral Act.
The Department, with the approval of the Board, may impose a fine not
to exceed $1,000 plus costs for the first violation and not to
exceed $5,000
plus costs for each subsequent violation of this Act, and the rules
promulgated hereunder, on any person or entity described in this Act.
Such fine may be imposed as an alternative to any other
disciplinary
measure, except for probation.
The imposition by the Department of a fine for any violation does
not bar
the violation from being alleged in subsequent disciplinary
proceedings.
Such fines shall be deposited in the Fund.
(Source: P.A. 89‑72, eff. 12‑31‑95 .)
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