An act relating to amendments to the scope of practice for optometrists

The effective date was changed from January 1, 2027 to July 1, 2028, delaying when the expanded optometrist scope of practice and advanced therapeutic procedures specialty take effect by approximately 18 months.

Introductory front matter including sponsor names, committee referral information, introduction date (February 11, 2025), subject line, and statement of purpose were removed in the unofficial version, which is standard formatting cleanup between official and unofficial bill versions.

The effective date is shown in the official version as 'January 1, 2027 July 1, 2028,' indicating the bill originally had an effective date of January 1, 2027 which was amended to July 1, 2028. The unofficial version only showed the final date.

The official version adds introductory metadata including the list of sponsoring senators, committee referral (Health and Welfare), introduction date (February 11, 2025), subject classification, and a statement of purpose for the bill.

The session year in the header was corrected from 2026 to 2025, and the header text changed from 'AS PASSED BY SENATE' to 'BILL AS INTRODUCED AND PASSED BY SENATE' to reflect official enrolled bill formatting.

New Section 1a amends 26 V.S.A. 1707 to expand the State Board of Optometry from five members to seven: four optometrists (up from three), one ophthalmologist with at least five years of active practice, and two public members who must be state residents for five years with no financial interest in the profession beyond being a consumer.

Beginning January 1, 2031, at least one of the optometrist members of the Board must hold an advanced therapeutic procedures specialty issued under subchapter 5, ensuring board-level expertise in the expanded scope of practice.

The effective date was delayed from January 1, 2027 to July 1, 2028, giving stakeholders an additional 18 months before the expanded optometrist scope of practice takes effect.

The effective date of the entire act was changed from January 1, 2027 to July 1, 2028, delaying implementation by approximately 18 months.