Saturday, March 23, 2013

TN Ophthalmologists Running Radio Campaign against an OD Bill

The Tennessee Academy of Ophthalmology announced that it is running radio advertisements in response to Senate Bill 220 and House Bill 555. These bills would allow optometrists – who are not medical doctors – to inject anesthesia with a needle into the delicate tissues surrounding the eye for the purpose of performing surgeries on the eyelid to remove lesions, cysts and tumors. The 30-second advertisements are running on radio stations throughout the state and are designed to educate Tennesseans about this dangerous legislation that, if passed, would pose a risk to patient safety and would lower the quality of surgical eye care that Tennesseans currently receive. The Tennessee legislation comes on the heels of a proposal in the California legislature that would give allied health professionals, including optometrists, a greatly expanded scope of practice. If passed, the new law would allow optometrists to perform a multitude of surgical eye procedures. California legislators have cited the federal Affordable Care Act as justification for loosening the state’s quality of health care delivery. Read more.

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