Optometrists are certainly not the villain of this piece

Re Optometrists’ tunnel vision victimizes patients, Oct. 9

Martin Regg Cohn attempts to make Ontario’s optometrists look like villains and the Ontario government like a poor victim caught between a rock (its own OHIP legislation) and a hard place (the optometrists).

The province could easily alter the rules so that, for the duration of this dispute, optometrists’ services would no longer be eligible services under OHIP, as is the case every day in many provinces.

Then, all patients would be free to obtain care from optometrists and optometrists would be free to offer care pro bono whenever that seems appropriate.

It is the government, not the optometrists, holding citizens hostage. The government holds most of the cards in this poker game, and deserves to pay for its adolescent attitude.

Patrick Cowan, North York