Purposes for use of topical and therapeutic pharmaceutical agents by optometrists

· Eliminates the provisions of the House-passed version that permitted optometrists to administer or prescribe a drug for purposes related to conditions within or originating from the visual system.

· Provides, instead, that the bill's authorized topical and therapeutic drugs may be used for purposes related to conditions of the visual system.

Classifications of therapeutic pharmaceutical agents

· Removes the House-passed provisions that authorized optometrists to administer and prescribe a drug on the basis of the drug being appropriate for use in the practice of optometry.

· Specifies, instead, the following classifications of oral therapeutic drugs that may be administered, prescribed, and otherwise used by optometrists:

o Anti-infectives, including antibiotics, antivirals, antimicrobials, and antifungals.

o Anti-allergy agents.

o Antiglaucoma agents.

o Analgesics, including only the following:

§ Analgesics available without a prescription.

§ Analgesics that require a prescription but are not controlled substances.

§ Analgesics that are Schedule III controlled substances authorized by rule of the State Board of Optometry.

o Anti-inflammatories, excluding oral steroids other than methylpredisolone.

§ Methylpredisolone may be prescribed only as follows:

--For use in allergy cases.

--For use by an individual who is 18 or older.

--On the basis of an individual's particular episode of illness.

--In an amount not exceeding the amount packaged for a single course of therapy.

o Any other oral drug, if the federal Food and Drug Administration permits the drug to be used for ophthalmic purposes and the drug is specified in rules adopted by the State Board of Optometry in consultation with the State Board of Pharmacy.

Rules for Schedule III controlled substances

· Removes the House-passed provision requiring the administrative rules for optometric use of Schedule III controlled substances to take into account the prescribing standards that are used in other states.

Epinephrine injections for anaphylaxis

· Limits the House-passed provision authorizing optometrists to administer injections of epinephrine by specifying that the drug must be administered in emergency situations.

· Expresses that the administration of epinephrine by injection does not constitute an "invasive procedure," as that term is otherwise used to describe the practice of optometry.

Glucose-monitoring devices

· Removes the House-passed provision that authorized an optometrist to use a device that infiltrates human tissue to test blood glucose levels.

· Provides, instead, that an optometrist may assist an individual in determining blood glucose levels by using a commercially available glucose-monitoring device.

· Specifies that nothing in the laws describing the practice of optometry precludes an optometrist from using any particular type of commercially available glucose-monitoring device.

Contact lenses and other devices used to deliver medication

· Adds a provision authorizing an optometrist to prescribe and dispense contact lenses and other vision-correcting devices that also deliver medication to patients, as long as the drugs are otherwise within the optometrist's scope of practice.

Cosmetic contact lenses

· Adds a provision that expressly requires the Ohio Optical Dispensers Board to regulate the dispensing of cosmetic contact lenses and other forms of contact lenses that may or may not address visual function.

· Specifies in the laws governing optical dispensing that all contact lenses must be dispensed pursuant to a valid prescription, including contact lenses that are cosmetic.

H0149-127.doc/ss 12/10/07