Physicians file suit over laser surgery
Three medical groups filed suit in Wisconsin to stop the state optometry board from unilaterally declaring laser surgery within the scope of practice of optometrists.
Oklahoma is the only state that allows optometrists to perform laser surgery to treat conditions of the eye. More than a dozen other bills have been proposed over the past several years to allow optometrists to conduct such surgery. All have failed.
In response to the lawsuit, the Wisconsin Optometry Examining Board rescinded its May 12 order. It also asked optometrists who are performing laser surgery to suspend the practice until the dispute is settled, said a spokesman for the State Medical Society of Wisconsin.
"The performance of laser [surgery] by optometrists creates a risk of serious harm to the citizens of Wisconsin because optometrists are not qualified to perform such surgical procedures," said the lawsuit filed by the Wisconsin Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the state medical association.
The optometry board plans to seek legislation that would allow licensed optometrists to perform laser surgery, the state medical association said. The lawsuit, however, also seeks a court ruling on whether state regulatory boards have the jurisdiction to change their scopes of practice without first seeking changes in state law.
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