What's happening
This bill allows trained and supervised individuals over 18 to instill certain eye drops under physician or optometrist oversight.
Why it matters
Expands the pool of individuals eligible to assist with certain eye procedures. , potentially improving efficiency and access to care by allowing trained, non-physician adults to instill specific eye drops under supervision, rather than requiring a physician or optometrist to do it themselves.
Establishes new training and registration requirements. , ensuring that anyone performing these tasks must complete a department-approved curriculum and exam, register with the state, and pay a fee—adding a layer of oversight and standardization to protect patient safety.
May reduce wait times and administrative burdens in eye care settings. , as support staff (over 18 and properly trained) could handle routine administration of dilating and anesthetic eye drops, freeing up doctors and optometrists to focus on more complex patient needs.
Could set a precedent for similar delegation in other medical fields. , highlighting a shift toward team-based care models and the utilization of allied health personnel for specific, lower-risk clinical tasks under professional supervision.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Allow Trained Staff Give Eye Drops
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Signed chap.517
- Delivered to governor
- Returned to senate
- Passed assembly
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.544
- Substituted for A3822D
- Referred to higher education
- Returned to assembly
- Repassed senate
- Amended on third reading 4469b
- Vote reconsidered - restored to third reading
- Returned to senate
Show 9 earlier actions
- Recalled from assembly
- Referred to higher education
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 62–0
- Amended on third reading 4469a
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.695
- Referred to higher education
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Let Trained Staff Give Eye Drops
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor John T. McDonald III
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4469--B Cal. No. 695
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 12, 2019
Introduced by Sens. STAVISKY, SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading -- passed by Senate and delivered to the Assembly, recalled, vote reconsidered, restored to third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the delegation of certain professional responsibilities for instilling mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 25 of section 6530 of the education law, as added by chapter 606 of the laws of 1991, is amended to read as follows:
25. a. Delegating professional responsibilities to a person when the licensee delegating such responsibilities knows or has reason to know that such person is not qualified, by training, by experience, or by licensure, to perform them[;].
b. A person shall be deemed qualified to assist a physician licensed pursuant to article one hundred thirty-one of this title in the care of a patient for the purpose of instilling mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops (hereinafter "dilating eye drops") and anesthetic eye drops in conjunction with such dilating drops to the surface of the eye of a patient, provided that the person instilling such dilating eye drops and anesthetic eye drops is under the on-site supervision of a physician pursuant to such article one hundred thirty-one and such person is over the age of eighteen, successfully completes a curriculum and examination approved by the department demonstrating that such person has the requisite experience to instill dilating eye drops and anesthetic eye drops used in conjunction with such dilating eye drops to the surface of the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00577-08-9
S. 4469--B 2
eye and registers with the department after paying the requisite fee in accordance with the commissioner's regulations;
§ 2. Section 7106 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
4. Notwithstanding subdivision seven of section six thousand five hundred nine of this title, a licensed optometrist may delegate the care of a patient for the specific purpose of instilling mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops (hereinafter "dilating eye drops") and anesthetic eye drops used in conjunction with such dilating eye drops to the surface of the eye of a patient, provided that the person instilling such dilating eye drops and anesthetic eye drops is deemed qualified to assist, and is under the on-site supervision of a licensed optometrist. A person shall be deemed qualified for purposes of this subdivision and shall be permitted to assist a licensed optometrist for the purpose of instilling dilating eye drops and anesthetic eye drops used in conjunction with such dilating eye drops only if such person is over the age of eighteen, successfully completes a curriculum and examination approved by the department demonstrating the requisite experience to instill dilating eye drops and anesthetic eye drops used in conjunction with such dilating eye drops to the surface of the eye and registers with the department after paying the requisite fee in accordance with the commissioner's regulations.
§ 3. This act shall take effect eighteen months after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the education law, in relation to the delegation of certain professional responsibilities for instilling mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops
Purpose or general idea of bill
To authorize ophthalmologists and optometrists to supervise trained personnel to instill dilating eye drops to the surface of patients' eyes.
Summary of specific provisions
Section one amends paragraph 25 of section 6530 of the education law, as added by chapter 606 of the laws of 1991, by naming the existing para- graph as subparagraph a and by adding a new subparagraph b to authorize a physician to delegate and supervise trained personnel to instill mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops (dilating eye drops) and associated anesthetic eye drops to the surface of a patient's eye. Such personnel would be required to be over eighteen, be under the supervision of a licensed professional, complete a curriculum and examination demonstrat- ing the requisite experience to instill the dilating and anesthetic eye drops satisfactory to the department, and register with the department and pay a fee in accordance with commissioner's regulations.
Read the full memo (678 words)
Section two adds a new subdivision four to section 7106 of the education law to authorize an optometrist to delegate and supervise trained personnel to instill mydriatic or cycloplegic eye drops (dilating eye drops) and associated anesthetic eye drops to the surface of a patient's eye. Such personnel would be required to be over eighteen, complete a curriculum and examination demonstrating the requisite experience to instill the dilating and anesthetic eye drops satisfactory to the department and register with the department and pay a fee in accordance with commissioner's regulations.
Section three provides the effective date.
Justification
It is necessary for ophthalmologists (MDs) and optometrists (ODs) to dilate patients' pupils in performance of a comprehensive eye exam. Dilation allows the pupil to widen, letting more light in so that the MD or OD has a better view of the back of the eye. Use and administration of dilation eye drops and occasionally anesthetic drops used in conjunc- tion, is a safe, simple process and it is the standard of care.
This bill would allow the training and authorization of allied eye care providers to instill eye drops without the risk of such delegation being considered professional misconduct or improper delegation. Ophthalmolo- gists and optometrists will supervise the activities of personnel who are trained and registered with the State Education Department to instill dilating and anesthetic drops.
Currently, MDs and ODs often instill the eye drops themselves or hire other medical professionals only for the purpose of instilling these specific dilating agents. These professionals (i.e., RNs and LPNs) are highly trained with a broad scope of practice skills that are underuti- lized when their activities are limited to putting dilating drops in patients' eyes. With widely described health care professional short- ages, it makes sense to maximize each medical professional's expertise and allow them to use their training to the fullest extent possible. Moreover, with the rising costs of health care, it also makes sense to have well trained personnel instill these dilating eye drops at a pay scale commensurate with this job function instead of paying more broadly skilled and trained medical professionals at their normal and compet- itive salaries but to instead use a fraction of their skill set. Again, the instilling of eye drops is a simple process and the personnel will be trained and supervised. This authorization will be safe and helpful for patients. Additionally, enactment of this bill will increase prac- tice and health care team efficiencies as well as adding to patients' convenience by decreasing the average time patients need to spend in ophthalmology and optometry offices.
Prior legislative history
2018- A.10209/S.7614
Fiscal implication
None to the State
Effective date
This act shall take effect eighteen months after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.