Bill > S1151

This bill modernizes optometric patient care by allowing licensed optometrists, who meet specific qualifications and pass an examination, to utilize and prescribe certain therapeutic pharmaceutical agents for diagnosing, preventing, managing, and treating ocular diseases, including glaucoma, and related conditions. This expansion of their practice includes the ability to prescribe topical and oral medications, and to use agents for the percutaneous treatment of anaphylaxis, while explicitly excluding treatment of systemic diseases, invasive surgical procedures, and certain types of injections. The bill also establishes a new examination process for optometrists to demonstrate their competency in prescribing these medications, and requires optometrists to refer patients to physicians for surgical treatment of glaucoma or if a condition arises that is outside the scope of optometric practice. Furthermore, it mandates that optometrists and their insurers report data on patient safety and medical errors to the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety and Medical Error Reduction to help develop best practices for error prevention. The bill also requires the Department of Public Health and the Board of Registration in Optometry to create necessary rules and regulations within 90 days of its enactment.