STATE OF WISCONSIN
OPTOMETRY EXAMINING BOARD
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IN THE MATTER OF RULEMAKING : ORDER OF THE
PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE : OPTOMETRY EXAMINING BOARD
OPTOMETRY EXAMINING BOARD : ADOPTING RULES
: (CLEARINGHOUSE RULE 19-027)
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ORDER
An order of the Optometry Examining Board to repeal Opt 6.02 (1m); to renumber and amend Opt 6.02 (1); to amend Opt 6.01 and Opt 6.02 (3) and (6); to repeal and recreate Opt 6.03 and 6.04; and to create Opt 6.01 (Note 1) and (Note 2), 6.02 (1) (a) to (i), 6.02 (1e), (1n), and (1s), 6.025, 6.025 (Note), and 6.05, relating to diagnostic and therapeutic pharmaceutical agents.
Analysis prepared by the Department of Safety and Professional Services.
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ANALYSIS
Explanation of agency authority:
Section 15.08 (5) (b), Stats., provides examining boards, “shall promulgate rules for its own guidance and for the guidance of the trade or profession to which it pertains …” Section 449.17 (1m) (a), Stats., provides that the “examining board shall certify an optometrist to use topical ocular diagnostic pharmaceutical agents …” Section 449.18 (2) (a), Stats., provides the “examining board shall certify an optometrist to use therapeutic pharmaceutical agents and remove foreign bodies from an eye or from an appendage to the eye …” Related statute or rule:
Chapter SPS 10, relating to the use of pharmaceutical agents by licensed optometrists Plain language analysis:
Section 1 is amended to include s. 961.39, Stats., which outlines the limitations on optometrists in the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. Section 2 adds two notes, one to clarify that Opt 6 is not a chapter for licensure and only applies to those already licensed by Wisconsin, and a second note to cross-reference ch. SPS 10, relating to the use of pharmaceutical agents by licensed optometrists. Sections 3 and 4 amend the definition of “adverse drug reaction,” amending to accommodate the revisions of ch. SPS 10, relating to the use of pharmaceutical agents by licensed optometrists, a concurrent rule project. The definition for “adverse drug reaction” is being repealed from ch. SPS 10, so the content is being moved to ch. Opt 6. Section 5 repeals the definition for “adverse drug reaction referral plan” because the content of the definition, which previously referenced ch. SPS 10, is being recreated as s. Opt 6.025. Section 6 moves three new definitions for “approved institution,” “classroom hour,” and “course of study in pharmacology” into ch. Opt 6, which was previously in ch. SPS 10. Sections 7 and 9 amend the definitions for “DPA” and “TPA” to correct the reference to the revised ch. SPS 10, a concurrent rule project. Section 8 repeals the definition for “100 hours of approved study.” This definition is unnecessary and the content has been directly incorporated into the recreated s. Opt 6.04. Section 10 creates a new section in ch. Opt 6 for the Adverse Drug Reaction Referral Plan, this information is moved from ch. SPS 10. It also adds a note to s. Opt 6.025 to state where a user can get the forms necessary to comply with s. Opt 6.025, Adverse Drug Reaction Referral Plan. Section 11 repeals ss. Opt 6.03 and Opt 6.04 and recreates them. Section Opt 6.03 was a repeat of s. 449.17, Stats. The recreated s. Opt 6.03 distills the statutory language to the process and procedure used by the Optometry Examining Board in certifying optometrists for DPA. Section Opt 6.04 was a repeat of s. 449.18, Stats. The recreated s. Opt 6.04 distills the statutory language to the process and procedure used by the Optometry Examining Board in certifying optometrists for TPA and to remove foreign bodies from eyes. Section 12 moves a section from ch. SPS 10 into ch. Opt 6 for Prescribing Therapeutic Pharmaceutical Agents. Summary of, and comparison with, existing or proposed federal regulation:
The federal government schedules therapeutic pharmaceutical agents through the Controlled Substances Act, which categorizes optometrists as mid-level practitioners under Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 1300.01.
Comparison with rules in adjacent states:
