Optometrists: home residence permit.

Existing law, the Optometry Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of the practice of optometry by the State Board of Optometry and makes a violation of the act a misdemeanor. Existing law authorizes an optometrist to practice optometry at a health facility or residential care facility, subject to specified conditions, including that the optometrist maintain and disclose patient records in a specified manner. Existing law requires an optometrist to be certified to use therapeutic pharmaceutical agents in order to diagnose and treat specified conditions. This bill would require an optometrist to obtain a home residence permit to engage in the practice of optometry at a home residence, as defined, except for a person engaging in the temporary practice of optometry. The bill would authorize an optometrist who is certified as a therapeutic pharmaceutical agent to obtain a home residence permit by submitting an application to the board and paying applicable fees, and would establish a process for the issuance and renewal of home residence permits, including prescribing application, renewal, and delinquency fees. The bill would require an optometrist engaging in the practice of optometry at any health facility or residential care facility, or home residence to provide each patient with a consumer notice, as specified, prescribed by the board. The bill would require a certified home residence optometrist, before engaging in the practice of optometry at a home residence, to provide the patient with a prescribed consumer notice and an authorization to release the patient's medical information related to the optometrist's provision of optometry services to the board for specified purposes, including investigating complaints and conducting the board's enforcement duties. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.