As an American Board of Ophthalmology( ABO) certified Ophthalmologist, allowing individuals who have never gone to Medical School to perform LASER eye surgery without training and having used only a model eye is malpractice and a disservice to the citizens of Virginia! The Journal of the American Medical Association published 2 articles 2021 and 2024 stating that patients seen by allied professionals “ ODs, PAs and NPs” MUST have alternating visits with MDs, ie they are not qualified to function without direct medical supervision, is below the standard of care. The OD is not required to have a college degree and Optometry school is in NO WAY COMPARABLE to Medical School. Ophthalmologists complete 12 to 13 years of training and are required to pass a series of rigorous exams for Board Certification. Only the Ophthalmology Boards are certified by the American College of Graduate Medical Education ( ACGME). The Optometry “ Board” certification cannot qualify for ACGME certification because of the paucity of skills and training received in their limited 6 year education that does not include surgical or hospital rotations!

You have only one pair of eyes! There are no eye transplants. Why would you trust the gift of sight to self proclaimed “surgeons” WITHOUT ACGME Board Certification???

PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW WANNABE OD “SURGEONS” to lower the standards of medicine and endanger the sight of generations of  Virginians!! If they want to be EYE Physicians and Surgeons, the prescribed route is MEDICAL SCHOOL a 12 year commitment!!! Not the OD route. This is not a turf war but a reality show that puts the citizens of Virginia at risk!!

The recent 2024 JAMA article states that a physician’s Board Exam scores correlates with the mortality rates of their patients. ODs have NO OBJECTIVE measurement of their knowledge!!

Protect the citizens of Virginia and their sight from ODs who want to overstep Medical School and declare themselves as Laser Eye Surgeons!!! Help!!!