Legislative Committee

As you've read in the President's Comments and the Sine Dine report, SB1052 came to an unfortunate and frustrating end. This was due to factors that were completely independent of the bill itself and had virtually nothing to do with the legislation. I know this is politics, but I find it to be an abhorrent example of what can happen in the political system when personal circumstances outweigh what is right and what the majority of the legislative body has shown they want. 

I was so impressed with all our optometrists' hard work during this legislative session. Our 6-1 yes vote count in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee was huge. We had a few legislators that went in there unsure of how they would vote, but after hearing our well-thought-out and truthful testimony, they knew that voting in our favor was the right call. Our 2/3rds majority vote on the floor shows that our legislators could see through our opposition's scare tactics and lies and knew what optometric scope expansion was in the best interest of Idaho. 

The question now is, do we try again this coming session? We have made some incredible gains with our relationships with legislators that would theoretically make this an almost sure thing if we can get past the Moyle hurtle. I think the next step largely depends on whether or not we can trust him not to kill the bill next year, something he has said he will not do (election year and all that). 



I am so thankful that Dr. Adams has so graciously agreed to take charge as the new legislative chair next year. I will be there to help him, but as I promised, this was my last attempt leading the charge. I think fresh energy and less frustration are exactly what we need.

Thank you, 

Lauren Huber, OD

IOP Legislative Committee Chair

Federal Trade Commission Eyeglass Rule

• The FTC recently sent letters to some offices reporting violations of the eyeglass prescription rule.
• Here is a link to the official FTC rule: Complying with the Eyeglass Rule | Federal Trade Commission (ftc.gov).
• There are proposed changes to this rule, which would require offices to document that patients have received a copy of their spectacles Rx (similar to the FTC contact lens Rx rule). 
• The AOA and many other organizations are fighting against this update. 

DEA License Renewal

• Congress passed legislation requiring a one-time, eight-hour training for all Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)-registered practitioners on treating and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders.
• Anyone renewing after June 21, 2023 will be required to attest to having taken this additional training as part of their DEA application or renewal. Doctors have to renew their DEA license every three years. There are currently several free courses available online that will meet the requirements. 
• These courses will count toward your annual Idaho CE requirements. Nine of the 18 required credit hours may be obtained through asynchronous courses; online, periodical, recorded lecture, etc.

Stephen Farris, OD

Insurance Advisory Committee Chair

Greetings from the Idaho Board of Optometry,

We’ve completed our work on Zero Based Regulations as directed by Governor Brad Little. The results of this work are cleaner, easier to read chapters within our Rules. The updated Rules should be available shortly for you to read. 

Also in the works are updated forms for license applications, license renewals, and annual audits. The new forms will be easier to follow and will be coming in July 2023. As a reminder, carryover hours have gone away effective 2023. Starting this year, you must complete all of your CE in the same year. 

As we are at the end of our fiscal year, we also selected a new Chair, Jared Walker, OD. He will be taking the helm effective July 1, 2023.

Lastly, online license renewals are coming your way!!! We are still months away from completion, but it will happen. 

Best wishes for a wonderful summer!!

Terri L. Haley, O.D. 

Board of Optometry Chair

Since our last newsletter, IOP communication committee discontinued its online marketing campaign designed to get our message out to the public during the past legislative session. Although we have discontinued this campaign, our website remains up and active (www.accesseyedaho.com).

We are currently working on our outreach strategy and plan to communicate with our membership body. If you have any knowledge of digital/social media and are interested in helping the IOP use those resources more efficiently, please email or reach out to the any member of the executive committee.

James Bewley, OD

IOP President Elect

Communication Committee Chair

Hello and Happy Summer!

Mid-June, I will be venturing over to Washington DC to scout a new speaker for 2024’s Annual Congress. Optometry’s Meeting has been where previous favorite speakers have been discovered - I, too, am presenting as a speaker - so wish me luck! 

Registration is open for this year’s Congress, don’t miss out on early registration pricing! CE is available for every class in some fashion for those looking to maintain their certifications. 

If you didn’t attend Congress in 2017, Mary Schmidt will be a returning speaker, starting the two days of classes on reminders of how our offices can potentially lose patients, team building, leadership, and triage. Mary will also educate the techs on the second day about anatomy and then address both classes about the professional aspect of your career as a Paraoptometric. I’ll also be jumping in as a speaker on the technician side to go over tools/testing used in an exam, medications that can affect the eyes (it’s actually a ton of them), and a class dedicated to glaucoma.

I’m excited for the true two-track system - opticians will meet Cira Collins, who has put together a great lineup and even created a class specifically for us based on last year’s surveys. Cira’s classes will include frame styling (with science), lens colors, how to pick a quality frame line for your office, a more advanced class on frame adjusting, plus, as mentioned by special request, a class on an appropriate and successful “script” to use for selling.

I hope to see many of you in Boise this October!

Tami Arnett, CPOA, ABOC

IOP Paraoptometric Committee Chair