A bitter feud between optometrists and ophthalmologists over a new bill to extend optometrists' scope of practice in the American state of West Virginia has been resolved.
The new law coming into effect on July 1 will allow optometrists in the state to inject therapeutic agents near the eye, order diagnostic laboratory tests and prescribe more medications.
However, controversial provisions allowing optometrists to perform certain laser surgery procedures for glaucoma from an earlier draft were removed from the final bill passed by the West Virginia State Legislature.
In an interview with Ocular Surgery News (OSN) Nancy Tonkin, executive director of the West Virginia Academy of Ophthalmology, said: 'We were successful in getting the two major issues out of the bill on the last day, [one of] which was allowing optometrists to perform laser surgery. There's a prohibition now in our law for them to use therapeutic lasers.'
In addition the bill prohibits optometrists performing injections into the eyeball.
Under the new law optometrists can use non-invasive methods to remove foreign bodies. They will also be able to use forceps to perform epilation of the eye lashes, perform closure of the punctum by use of a plug and dilate the lacrimal puncta with or without irrigation, according to OSN.