The FSPS and the ACS both strongly oppose HB 1037, and we need your support in letting your Representative know how your feel about letting an optometrist perform surgery with scalpel or laser.
We need your help TODAY! Legislation has been filed that would allow optometrists, non-physicians, to independently perform laser and scalpel surgery without ever going to medical school or a surgical residency (House Bill 1037/Senate Bill 1168). This legislation puts patients in harm’s way and lowers Florida’s standard of care.
The bill HB 1037 is going before its first committee on Wednesday, March 15 and we need all members to contact their Representative today and tell them to vote NO on HB 1037. Even if your Representative is not a member of the committee, they should be speaking with their colleagues about this dangerous bill and its unwarranted increase in scope of practice.
Click Here to send an email to your Representative.
In addition to allowing optometrists to perform surgery without any supervision, the bill would vastly increase their prescribing privileges to allow for ALL drugs except Schedule I narcotics (this would still include opioids and fentanyl), and grant the Board of Optometry the sole discretion to determine an optometrist’s scope of practice.
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE and give them the facts:
* Only a surgeon is trained to perform surgery and there is no substitute for medical school and residency training.
* The eye is one of the most delicate parts of the body and only an ophthalmologist can provide the high quality of care patients need and deserve.
* No patients are more than 30 minutes from an ophthalmologist. There is NO access issue!
For more information contact Ryan Essegian, ressegian@floridafacs.org