President's Editorial

Robert P. Bittel, Jr., O.D.
President of the Pennsylvania Optometric Association

Legislation and board certification activity

It was a busy summer for organized optometry at the state and national level

The summer months have traditionally been a time for the POA Board and staff to regroup and prepare for a flurry of fall activity. The summer of 2009 was no such summer. Those of us at the POA, as well as the leadership of the AOA, have had many issues to deal with since the beginning of June.

The AOA House of Delegates final session on Saturday, June 27, marked the end of a long, arduous board certification process. The POA leadership moved immediately to discussions of PA House Bill 1188 (definition of ophthalmic surgery) in the lobby of the Gaylord National Hotel in Washington, D.C. POA Executive Director Dr. Charley Stuckey, along with POA Legislative Affairs Chair Dr. Carl Urbanski and DEO Dr. Greg Caldwell, were at the center of discussions with POA lobbyists and many past presidents and current POA Board members. I discussed HB 1188 with Dr. Irving Bennett and Dr. Harvey Hanlen in D.C., two of our most distinguished members. Our PCO colleagues, Dr. Tom Lewis, Dr. Jim Caldwell and Dr. Linda Casser have been engaged in legislative activity with the POA all summer. The September POA Board meeting was hosted by the Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University. This is an example of the renewed commitment of the college and the association to represent Pennsylvania optometry in a collaborative fashion.

The AOA’s busy summer also started in Washington, D.C., as over 500 optometrists took to the Hill to voice optometry’s concerns relative to health care reform issues. Optometry is fighting for patient access-based health care reform. As the U.S. Congress was beginning a summer recess, AOA President Dr. Randy Brooks issued a call to action for all AOA members. The AOA is working to insure that optometry is fully recognized in any health care bill that gains momentum and advances. The AOA is working with Senator Tom Hawkins (D-Iowa) and supporting an amendment that seeks to establish a federal provider non-discrimination/patient access law.

Organized optometry must be ever diligent to protect the interests of our patients and our members, both here in Pennsylvania and on the national scene. The challenges seem to come in groups or clusters. You, as POA members, are the advantage that optometry has over all challenges to our profession. AOA President Dr. Randy Brooks said it best, “optometry cannot outspend giant industries with deep pockets, but it can out-work them.”

Here in Pennsylvania we have seen our members step up and donate to POPAC. Our keypersons have mobilized to visit our senators and legislators to ask them to oppose HB 1188. I ask each and every member to re-dedicate your energy to advance our chosen profession. The summer has been very busy, but the work is made easier by the response and the contributions of you, the members. When this profession moves in unison, it is a formidable juggernaut.