TPA legislation, usage across the nation

Issue: February 1997

Operation Optometry Prescribe In Arizona, optometrists can use all topically applied drugs. Their 1993 legislation made no specific mention of controlled substances, an omission that "will need clarification," said Alan Levin, OD, executive director of the Arizona Optometric Association (AZOA).

Dr. Levin said Arizona has made plans to expand its therapeutic pharmaceutical agent (TPA) law. "We would like to clarify and include certain schedule drugs for use in the treatment of eye disease and related pain," he said. "We also plan to ask for oral medication privileges."

Optometrists in Arizona have taken to their TPA law quite well, said Dr. Levin. "I think there's widespread usage of therapeutics by the majority of the optometrists who are qualified, and that represents about 95% of the optometrists in the state," he said.

"The experience has been excellent," Dr. Levin continued. "There are no malpractice cases stemming from the improper treatment of a condition in Arizona."

The AZOA has been proactive in helping optometrists prescribe by providing continuing education that focuses on various conditions optometrists can diagnose and treat.

The relationship between ODs and MDs in Arizona has remained "some good, some bad," Dr. Levin said. "The militants continue to oppose us, but I would say that the overall relationship has improved. Most ophthalmologists are interested in a good relationship: cooperating with pre- and postoperative care and willing to lecture."

In Arizona, Dr. Levin said there are more than 400 licensed and more than 350 practicing optometrists. To receive TPA certification, optometrists in Arizona must complete a 120-hour accredited course and pass the national Treatment and Management of Ocular Disease examination.

New Mexico TPA law broad

New Mexico's optometric community enjoys broad TPA privileges. A 1995 amplification to their original 1985 TPA law allows them to use nearly all drugs for treatment of eye diseases, with the exclusion of oral steroids and oral immunosuppressives.

According to New Mexico Optometric Association (NMOA) Executive Director Richard Montoya, "New Mexico optometrists are progressive practitioners and are always interested in broadening the scope of privileges to meet with optometric education."

Mr. Montoya said the NMOA is encouraging optometrists to prescribe to the fullest level, "although we don't have any specific programs."

Seventy percent of optometrists in the state are credentialed to prescribe oral drugs, and the majority of them are using their prescribing privileges, Mr. Montoya said. However, he added that because optometrists in New Mexico have been able to work with orals for only a year and a half, they are still in the learning process: "How much they are prescribing depends on what kind of cases they see and what kind of optometry they're practicing."

Mr. Montoya said there are approximately 210 practicing optometrists in New Mexico and, because the state is quite rural, ODs and MDs there have "for the most part, a good relationship."

For Your Information:
The Arizona Optometric Association can be reached at 3625 N. 16th St., Suite 119, Phoenix, AZ 85016; (602) 279-0055.
The New Mexico Optometric Association can be contacted at Box 227, 10131 Coors Rd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87114; (505) 898-6885; fax: (505) 898-7327.