krichards

Although I should, I do not know what Texas' requirements are. However, I can tell you what goes on here in the western part of the state.
Our hospital (350+ beds) requires a BS, MT, and 5 years experience. However, many of the smaller nearby hospitals have MLTs as BB supervisors, and there are even a number with MLTs as lab directors. With the shortage of techs, I see this only becoming more common, especially in the more rural areas. In the 10 years that I have lived here, no one has gotten into any sort of trouble because they don't have MTs in these positions...if there are regs, they are not enforced.
Let me also add that I have both an MLT and an MT...and went to school for both. Sad to say, I learned almost everything I know from my MLT program. The MT program added very little, if anything, to my knowledge base. It is the quality of the program, not the number of years it takes to learn it, that makes the tech.
Our lab is staffed almost entirely by MLTs...and that is not an issue, as they are all excellent techs. I have worked with MLTs who knew more about BB than I ever will, and MTs who were incapable of doing the minimal job requirements, and vice versa.
Sorry for the rant; this has been a touchy subject here also.
Karen