2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY - Examining Boards and Professional Colleges (§§ 1 — 6033) › Chapter 6 - Medical Discipline and Licensure Board Act (§§ 131 — 135j) › Subchapter V - Final Provisions (§§ 135 — 135j) › § 135d - Illegal practice of medicine, violations and penalties

(a) Any person convicted of illegally practicing medicine or surgery, or osteopathy, pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction, punished by imprisonment for a fixed term of three (3) years; if there should be extenuating circumstances, the same may be reduced to a minimum of two (2) years, and if there should be aggravating circumstances, the punishment may be increased up to a maximum of five (5) years of imprisonment, and a fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000).
(b) The Board may request that the Court of First Instance of Puerto Rico issue an injunction to impede the party charged of engaging in the illegal practice of medicine or osteopathy in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, from continuing to engage in the practice of said profession until the matter of such charges is resolved. The Board may file and institute said recourse through its attorneys or through the Secretary of Justice of Puerto Rico.
(c) For the purposes of this chapter, any person shall be considered to be engaging in the illegal practice of medicine and surgery or osteopathy when any such person does not hold a license issued by the Board and engages in one or more of the following actions:
(1) Writing, drafting or publishing a notice or advertisement purporting to be legally qualified to practice medicine or osteopathy.
(2) Offering medicine or osteopathy services through a notice, an advertisement, or by any other means.
(3) Purporting to be qualified to examine, diagnose, treat, operate or prescribe for any disease, pain, injury, deformity, or physical and/or mental condition.
(4) Engaging in or offering any means or methods to examine, diagnose, treat, operate or prescribe for any disease, pain, injury, deformity or physical and/or mental condition, whether or not he/she receives compensation for such services.
(d) For the purposes of the foregoing provisions, a person shall be understood not to hold a license issued by the Board when said license has been suspended or revoked by the Board, even if a proceeding is instituted to review or reconsider the decision of the Board; Provided, That this immediate effect of the decision of the Board may be rendered ineffective by the Circuit Court of Appeals in upholding its jurisdiction when a review recourse is filed therewith, only after minute scrutiny geared toward properly protecting the public interest and the health of the residents of Puerto Rico.
(e) Likewise, any physician shall be deemed to be engaging in the illegal practice of medicine and surgery or osteopathy when such physician is duly licensed by the Board and knowingly and in agreement and common accord:
(1) Accepts a contract, becomes an employee or associates in the practice of medicine together with, or under the supervision of, or supervising persons not holding a license in Puerto Rico for the practice of medicine and surgery or osteopathy.
(2) Conspires to, abets or accepts to engage in the practice of medicine together with, or by any other means assists or enables another person not holding a license therefor by the Board.
(f) Notwithstanding the foregoing, medicine students enrolled in schools of medicine duly authorized to operate in Puerto Rico by the Council on Higher Education, and medicine students domiciled in Puerto Rico who are enrolled in schools of medicine foreigners participating in clinical education programs, may, subject to the conditions established by the Board and under the schooled supervision of a physician authorized to practice medicine in Puerto Rico, conduct tests on human beings, assist in operations, apply anesthesia, handle minor surgery cases and handle birthing cases as part of their studies while attending a school of medicine.
(g) The following practices shall also constitute a felony subject to the punishment established in subsection (a) of this section:
(1) Using the title “Medical Doctor” or the abbreviation “MD”, whether used on its own or in association with other terms, with the purpose of soliciting patients, except in the case of persons who are legally authorized to practice medicine in Puerto Rico.
(2) Advertising as a specialist or practicing as such without being duly certified by the Medical Discipline and Licensure Board, including all matters relative to financial liability, as established in this chapter.
(3) Contracting or hiring any person to act as a physician or osteopath without being duly authorized by the Board or when his/her license has been suspended, revoked or cancelled.
(4) Advertising as or using the title of osteopath, unless he/she is an osteopath duly authorized to practice as such in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(5) Submitting false or fraudulent documents to the Board with the purpose of obtaining a physician’s or osteopath’s license or a certification in a specialty.
History —Aug. 1, 2008, No. 139, § 35, eff. Jan 1, 2009.