MEDICAL SECTION OF THE NATIONAL SPELEOLOGICAL SOCIETY

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I. MEMBERSHIP.

The Medical Section of The National Speleological Society shall have three two categories of membership:

I.1 FULL MEMBERS shall be those individual members of the NSS who have received the degree Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Osteopathy, or Doctor of Dental Surgery, who have signified their desire to become members and further the goals of the Section, who have displayed an interest in the healing arts or medical science as it relates to caving and/ or Speleology, and who have paid their dues for the current fiscal year. Full members may vote on issues and on officers.

I.2 ASSOCIATE MEMBERS shall be individuals who do not qualify for Full Membership yet who have signified their desire to become members, who have paid their dues for the current fiscal year, and who have displayed an interest in the healing arts or medical science as it relates to caving and/ or Speleology.

I.2 HONORARY MEMBERS shall be those individuals who have made a significant contribution to the Medical Sciences as they relate to caving and/ or Speleology and whom the Executive Committee deems worthy of this special recognition. Honorary Members who otherwise qualify for Full Membership may vote on issues and on officers.

I.3 MEDICAL BOARD. A Medical Board shall consist of those members of the Medical Section who have received the degree Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Osteopathy, Doctor of Dental Surgery, or Doctor of Veterinary Medicine or NSS members enrolled full time in an accredited School of Medicine, Osteopathy, Dental Surgery, or Veterinary Medicine. The Medical Board shall be responsible for approving all Medical Policies and opinions proffered by the Section.

I.4 APPROVAL OF APPLICATIONS. Beginning September 1, 1996, approval by majority affirmative vote of the Executive Committee shall be required for membership.

I.5 WAIVER OF MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS. The requirement of holding a degree shall not apply to NSS members enrolled full time in an accredited School of Medicine, Osteopathy, or Dental Surgery, and may be waived by a two-thirds affirmative vote of the Executive Committee.

I.5 DUES shall be ten five Dollars per fiscal year for Full Members and five Dollars per fiscal year for Associate members. Honorary Members shall be exempt from paying dues.

ARTICLE II. EXPULSION OF MEMBERS.

Members may be dropped or expelled from the section for any of the following reasons: 1.Non-payment of dues.

2.Willful misuse of the Section's property.

3.Willful disregard of his/her own safety or the safety of others on activities sponsored by this Section of the NSS or cooperating organizations.

4.Conduct detrimental to the Section.

5.Breach of confidentiality or medical ethics.

Any member subject to expulsion may demand and will be granted a personal hearing before the Executive Committee. A two-thirds majority vote of the Executive Committee is required for expulsion under sections (2) through (5).

Any member expelled for reasons listed in sections (2) through (5) may also be prosecuted under appropriate legal authority, if damage to a spelean resource, to section property, to other property, or to an individual results from the member's action, actions, or inactions.

ARTICLE III. CONFIDENTIALITY AND RELEASE OF DATA. Confidential medical or medically-related material obtained by any member of this Section may not be released to any other person, organization, or third party without the written permission of the person providing the information or material, or, otherwise, as provided by law. Aggregated medical data may be released by the section if no individual can be identified in the material to be released.

ARTICLE IV. FISCAL YEAR. The Fiscal Year for this Section shall be the calendar year.

ARTICLE V. AMENDMENT. These By-Laws may be amended by a two-thirds favorable vote of the Executive Committee at any meeting. Such amendments must be approved by a two-thirds majority vote of the currently dues-paying Full Members who shall be notified by mail, telephone, electronic mail, fax or other appropriate means within thirty days of the change and who must respond within thirty days of the notification being sent.