SQ 793’s potential consequences

Missing in “Oklahoma eye care proposal merits approval” (Our Views, Oct. 12) is a serious examination of the consequences for patient health should this proposal pass. Today, medical standards of care are governed by doctors and medical experts on appointed boards and committees. This is the case in the optometry field, where a Board of Examiners dictates what procedures an eye doctor must perform and what treatment options are available to them. That board exists first and foremost to protect patient safety and health.

State Question 793 would upend that system by explicitly amending the state constitution to give corporations like Walmart the ability to replace the rules outlined by the Board of Examiners with a different set of rules negotiated in a corporate board room. For instance, as an independent optometric physician, I am required to offer comprehensive vision exams that include 10 distinct parts. The goal is not simply to outfit a patient with glasses, it is to diagnose underlying health conditions that may exist, like glaucoma (and occasionally even life-threatening diseases like cancerous melanoma).

SQ 793 would create a special class of doctors — aka “Walmart Doctors” — who would not be beholden to these standards of care and would not be required to diagnose or treat these diseases, leaving them free to focus on profit-drivers like the sale of glasses. That’s a great deal for Walmart, and a very bad one for patients who need real medical care.

Tami Ross, O.D., Oklahoma City