There's peace at last in Florida's eye wars.
After years of lobbying, arguing and eye gouging -- in the figurative, political sense, of course -- the state Senate on Thursday gave final approval to a compromise plan that will allow optometrists to start prescribing oral medications.
"So the eyeballs wars have ended,'' Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said after the Senate voted unanimously to approve the measure.
The compromise was reached between optometrists and ophthalmologists, who long fended off attempts to allow optometrists to go beyond prescribing "topical" medications, such as drops and creams. Ophthalmologists argued, at least in part, that optometrists did not have adequate drug training -- an argument that drew vehement disagreement from optometrists.
With the issue appearing to have momentum this year in the Legislature, the two sides agreed to a bill that will expand prescribing powers, with some limits. The House unanimously approved the measure last month, sending it to the Senate. It now goes to Gov. Rick Scott.
"The passage of this good bill allows Floridians to get the most appropriate treatment for their eye condition from an optometrist, who is trained and qualified to deliver approved oral medications, and also reduces costs to Floridas patients and the state by eliminating the need for duplicative services,'' Ken Lawson, legislative chairman of the Florida Optometric Association, said in a prepared statement.
The bill (HB 239) includes 14 oral drugs that optometrists will be able to prescribe, including certain types of antibiotics and anti-glaucoma drugs. But it also includes limitations, such as barring optometrists from prescribing many types of controlled substances.
What's more, the measure will require optometrists to take a course and an exam before prescribing or administering oral drugs and makes clear optometrists would not be able to do surgical procedures.
Sen. Eleanor Sobel, a Hollywood Democrat who has sided for years with ophthalmologists, said the compromise bill protects patients.
"I hope and believe this compromise will finally bring an end to the eye war," Sobel said.
