OFFICE OFIHE A-~T~RNEY GENERALOFTWAS 

s 

.:. 

. ‘. 

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 

you request the tment ppo~ the above otated qyestion. 

of the Penal code reads: 

ny person to mans 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 

d&manse nm.Qotic drugs to any person upRn a 

vritten prescription of a phyxLoian,.... 2 

and 

. . 

. . 
. - 

C’ - 

.* 880’ 

. 

tlonorable Homer Qsrrisoq, Jr. i Page 2 I’ : r 

Se&Son 7(l) of said Article 725b provides8 

- “A physician or 8 dentist, ln good faith.\ - 

'and in the course of his professional practice 22 

.-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!%ms a person authorized 

by law to practice z?edidLne in this State and 

any other perso;l authorized by lav to treat 

810% and Injured human beings ‘in this State and 

to use narcotic drug5 in conneotion with suoh 

treatment. 

(I 

. . . . . 

'(7) tApo&eoaryt means a lloensed pharmclst 

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~ 

_ . . . . . 

- 

part: 

irtlale 4498a, Vernonta Civil Statutesj’ provides Zn 

. . 

“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 hereafter be licensed for s_uch practice 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 physloians 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 Artlcla 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 &. 

t&on, .we remain 

Trustti~g that this satlsfactorll~ srm&i your queslleq truly 'goyrs 

ATTOi3~Ey GEPIERAL OF !PEXAS 

DBD:AW 

0, Burie Davitt~ 

.: Assistant 

. 

XTTORNEY GENRRAL OB T5iZS 

.