20.1 Republic Act No. 7431 (Radiologic Technology Act of 1992) & Board Rules

20.1 Republic Act No. 7431 (Radiologic Technology Act of 1992) & Board Rules

Republic Act No. 7431, cited as the "Radiologic Technology Act of 1992", is the board law for the profession in the Philippines. It was a consolidation of House Bill No. 34221 and Senate Bill No. 1873, finally passed by the House on February 7, 1992 and by the Senate on February 6, 1992, and approved on April 22, 1992 by President Corazon C. Aquino. Under Section 30 it took effect one month after publication in any newspaper of general circulation.

Jurisprudence items on the Radiologic Technologists Licensure Examination (RTLE) are written straight from the statute, and the Professional Regulatory Board's Enhanced Table of Specifications lists the very first competency of Professional Ethics and Jurisprudence as "Explain the provision of RA 7431." Because of that, the examination rewards exact section attribution, not paraphrase. Learn the numbers.

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Sections 1-2: Title and Statement of Policy

Section 1 supplies the short title. Section 2 states the policy: to upgrade the practice of radiologic technology in the Philippines in order to protect the public from the hazards posed by radiation, and to ensure safe and proper diagnosis, treatment and research through the application of machines and/or equipment using radiation. Note the two-pronged policy — public protection from radiation and quality of diagnosis, treatment and research.

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Section 3: Definition of Terms

Two distinctions carry item weight. First, radiologic technology covers diagnosis and treatment and expressly includes non-ionising energies (ultrasound and radio frequency), while x-ray technology is limited to x-rays used as a diagnostic aid. Second, Section 3 defines both technologists by registration status, not by degree — the academic requirement lives in Section 19, and quoting Section 3 for the degree rule is a classic distractor.

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Sections 4-5: Practice of X-ray Technology and Radiologic Technology

Sections 4 and 5 define practice as any act by which a person renders, furnishes, or contracts to render or furnish professional service in the field, and add that a person is also in the practice of the profession when the nature and character of the employment requires professional knowledge of that art and science and the position requires the holder to be a technologist.

Both sections carry the same two provisos:

1. Other professionals duly registered with the PRC are not disqualified from performing those acts if the laws governing their own professions allow them to.
2. Title protection — no person may use the title "X-ray Technologist" or "Radiologic Technologist", or any title conveying that impression, without a certificate of registration issued in the manner provided by the Act.

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Sections 6-8: Creating and Staffing the Board

Section 6 — Creation of the Board

The Board of Radiologic Technology is composed of a Chairman and four (4) members, all appointed by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation of the PRC. The Commission recommends:

• three (3) radiologic technologists, from a list submitted by the association of radiologic technologists;
• one (1) radiologist, from a list submitted by the association of radiologists; and
• one (1) medical physicist, from a list submitted by the association of medical physicists.

The nominating associations must be accredited under Presidential Decree No. 223.

Section 7 — Qualifications of Board Members

Every member, at the time of appointment, must:

1. Be a citizen and resident of the Philippines;
2. Be of good moral character;
3. Be at least thirty (30) years of age; and
4. Be neither a faculty member — full time, part time, or lecturer — of any school, college or university where a regular course in radiologic technology is taught, nor hold any pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in such an institution during the term of office.

Then the specific qualifications:

• Section 7(b): three (3) members of the Board, including the Chairman, must be radiologic technologists with at least ten (10) years of practice as radiologic technologists before appointment. The three radiologic technologists of the first Board were deemed automatically registered upon assuming their duties.
• Section 7(c): one member must be a radiologist with at least ten (10) years of practice as a radiologist.
• Section 7(d): one member must be a medical physicist with at least ten (10) years of practice as a medical physicist.

High-yield trap. The Chairman of the Board of Radiologic Technology is a radiologic technologist, not the radiologist member. Section 7(b) says so explicitly ("three (3) members of the Board, including the Chairman"). Any option that seats a physician-radiologist or a medical physicist in the chair is wrong. Board resolutions published by the PRC — including Resolution No. 08 (s. 2023) that adopted the Enhanced Tables of Specifications — are signed by a radiologic technologist Chairman with four members below.

Section 8 — Term of Office

Members hold office for a term of three (3) years from the date of appointment, and until their successors are appointed and duly qualified. The first Board was deliberately staggered: the Chairman for three years, two members for two years, and two members for one year, so that the whole Board would never turn over at once. Vacancies are filled only for the unexpired term. RA 7431 itself does not impose a numerical cap on reappointment; do not invent one.

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Sections 9-14: Powers, Discipline of the Board, and Administration

Section 9 — Duties and Functions of the Board (letters a-h):

The remaining administrative sections:

• Section 10 — Compensation: the same compensation as members of other PRC boards, as provided in the General Appropriations Act.
• Section 11 — Removal of Board Members: by the President, upon recommendation of the Commission, for neglect of duty, incompetence, unprofessional/immoral/dishonorable conduct, or commission or toleration of irregularities in the conduct of the examinations, after an opportunity to defend himself in a proper administrative investigation by the Commission.
• Section 12 — Supervision and Custody of Records: the Board is under the general supervision of the Commission; no record may be removed, altered or examined without prior Board authorisation; all records — examination papers, results, minutes of deliberation, administrative case records — are kept by the Commission.
• Section 13 — Rules and Regulations: subject to Commission approval, the Board sets ethical and professional standards; such standards and rules take effect one (1) month after publication in any newspaper of general circulation.
• Section 14 — Annual Report: submitted to the Commission at the end of each calendar year.

Note carefully what RA 7431 does not contain: it has no section enumerating grounds for revocation and no statutory waiting period for reinstatement. The authority to suspend or revoke lives in Section 9(c) and is exercised "after due investigation"; the substantive grounds and procedure come from PRC-wide rules, the Board's Code of Ethics, and the PRC Modernization Act (RA 8981). Options that quote a specific RA 7431 "grounds for revocation" section number are fabricated distractors.

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Sections 15-17: Practice Requirement and Exemptions

Section 15 bars any person from practising or offering to practise as a radiologic technologist and/or x-ray technologist without the proper certificate of registration, unless exempt under Sections 16 and 17.

Section 16 (exemption from examination in x-ray technology) and Section 17 (exemption from examination in radiologic technology) are transitory grandfather clauses covering the first members of the Board and holders of pre-Act Civil Service, private-sector, chest x-ray, or DOH proficiency examinations. Section 17 additionally exempts visiting or exchange radiologic technologists from countries granting reciprocity, who must first secure a special permit from the Board. Everyone exempted still has to register with the Board after complying with the registration requirements.

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Sections 18-19: The Examination and Who May Sit for It

Section 18 — Examination Required. All applicants for registration as radiologic technologists and x-ray technologists must undergo an examination given once a year by the Board through the Commission, at such time and place as the Commission determines.

Section 19 — Qualifications for Examination. Before admission, an applicant must establish to the Board's satisfaction that he:

1. Is a Filipino citizen;
2. Is of good moral character and has not been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude; and
3. Holds a baccalaureate degree in radiologic technology from a school, college or university recognised by the Government if applying for the radiologic technology examination, or an associate in radiologic technology diploma from a recognised school if applying for the x-ray technology examination.

This is the section that separates the two credentials academically. The RTLE candidate is a BS Radiologic Technology graduate; the x-ray technology examinee holds an associate diploma. The Act does not state the number of years for the associate programme — that comes from CHED policy, not from RA 7431.

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Sections 20-21: Statutory Scope of Examination (and How the Board Changed It)

Both scope sections open with the crucial qualifier "Unless changed or modified by the Board." That phrase is what allows the current Table of Specifications to depart from the 1992 subject list.

Section 21 — Scope of Examination in Radiologic Technology (statutory weights):

Section 20 — Scope of Examination in X-ray Technology uses a different list: Radiation Physics 10%; Radiobiology and Radiation Protection 10%; Equipment Maintenance 10%; Radiographic Positioning 10%; Radiographic Technique 10%; Special Procedures 10%; Anatomy, Physiology and Medical Terminology 15%; Photochemistry and Darkroom Procedures 10%; Film Analysis 5%; Nursing and Department Procedures in Radiology 5%; Professional Ethics 5%. The x-ray technology examination has no ultrasound, radiation therapy, nuclear medicine, pathology, or CT/MRI subjects — consistent with its narrower diagnostic scope.

How today's examination is actually built. Acting under Section 9(g) of RA 7431 and Section 9(h) of RA 8981 (the PRC Modernization Act of 2000), the Board issued Resolution No. 08, series of 2023, adopting the Enhanced Tables of Specifications. It superseded Board Resolution No. 01 (s. 2010) and applies to the December 2023 RTLE and subsequent schedules. The Enhanced TOS reorganises the statutory list into five subjects weighted 20% each, 100 items apiece, with every subject built to a difficulty profile of 30% easy (remembering/understanding), 50% moderate (applying/analysing), and 20% difficult (evaluating/creating) and pegged to PQF Level 6:

1. Radiation Physics, Equipment, Biology, Protection
2. Image Production and Evaluation
3. Radiographic Positioning and Radiologic Procedures
4. Patient Care and Management
5. Radiological Sciences

If an item asks what the examination covers today, answer from the Enhanced TOS. If it asks what RA 7431 provides, answer from Sections 20-21 and remember the "unless changed or modified by the Board" escape clause that reconciles the two.

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Section 22: Report of Ratings, Passing, and Reexamination

This is the single most misattributed section in the whole statute. Passing criteria are in Section 22 (Report of Ratings), not in Section 19.

• The Board must report each candidate's rating to the Commission within one hundred twenty (120) days after the date of completion of the examination; the Commission submits the report to the President of the Philippines for approval.
• To pass: a weighted average of at least 75% with no rating below 60% in any subject.
• Conditioned candidate: an examinee who obtains an average rating of 75% or higher but a rating below 60% in any subject is allowed to take a reexamination in only those deficient subjects, taken as far as practicable at the next scheduled examination.
• The removal standard is higher: to pass the second examination, the examinee must obtain a rating of 75% in each of the subjects repeated — not 60%. This asymmetry is heavily tested.
• If the candidate still fails the reexamination, he repeats those subjects at the succeeding examination. When an applicant fails to qualify after the third examination, he is required to take the entire examination.

Two invented rules to reject on sight: a cap of "one or two conditioned subjects", and a "60% is enough on the removal exam" claim. Neither appears in Section 22. What is true operationally is that the PRC's published requirements for Radiologic Technology list separate fees for a complete examination and for a conditioned/removal examination.

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Sections 23-26: Registration, Fees, and Penalties

• Section 23 — Oath-taking. All successful examinees take a professional oath before the Board, or before a person authorised by the Board, prior to practising.
• Section 24 — Issuance of Certificates of Registration. Issued upon payment of the registration fee. Every certificate contains the registrant's full name, serial number, signature of the Commissioner, date of issuance, and the official seal of the Board. The Board also issues certificates to those exempt under Sections 16 and 17, subject to Commission review.
• Section 25 — Fees. The statutory schedule is P350 application for examination; P250 registration after passing; P250 registration without examination; P100 replacement of a lost or destroyed certificate; P100 re-issuance of a revoked certificate — all prefaced by "unless otherwise fixed by the Commission." That clause is why the fees the PRC actually collects today are higher than the 1992 figures. Quote the statutory numbers for a "what does RA 7431 provide" item and the PRC's current published schedule for a "what will I pay" item.
• Section 26 — Penal Provisions. Upon conviction by final judgment: a fine of not less than P10,000 nor more than P40,000, or imprisonment of not less than one (1) year nor more than six (6) years, or both, at the discretion of the court, for any of six circumstances:
  1. Practising without a certificate of registration;
  2. Presenting or using as his own the certificate of another person;
  3. Using an expired licence, or a suspended or revoked certificate;
  4. Giving any false or forged evidence to the Board to obtain a certificate;
  5. Posing or advertising as a registered radiologic and/or x-ray technologist, or using any means tending to convey that impression; and
  6. Violation of any provision of the Act.

Sections 27, 28 and 30 cover appropriations for Board compensation, the repealing clause for inconsistent issuances, and the effectivity clause (one month after publication).

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RA 7431 Section Map — Memorise This Table

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Frequently Confused Points