Vermont H. 241: An act relating to the charter of the Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District

Bill Text

BILL AS INTRODUCED H.241
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VT LEG #380443 v.1
H.241 1
Introduced by Representatives Birong of Vergennes, Bartley of Fairfax, 2
Bluemle of Burlington, Bosch of Clarendon, Branagan of 3
Georgia, Burditt of West Rutland, Burkhardt of South 4
Burlington, Canfield of Fair Haven, Cole of Hartford, Critchlow 5
of Colchester, Feltus of Lyndon, Galfetti of Barre Town, Greer 6
of Bennington, Gregoire of Fairfield, Harrison of Chittenden, 7
Harvey of Castleton, Higley of Lowell, Hooper of Randolph, 8
Howland of Rutland Town, Kascenska of Burke, Kleppner of 9
Burlington, Labor of Morgan, Laroche of Franklin, Lipsky of 10
Stowe, Luneau of St. Albans City, Maguire of Rutland City, 11
Malay of Pittsford, Marcotte of Coventry, Morgan, L. of 12
Milton, Morgan, M. of Milton, Morris of Springfield, Morrissey 13
of Bennington, Mrowicki of Putney, Nelson of Derby, Noyes of 14
Wolcott, Oliver of Sheldon, Olson of Starksboro, Page of 15
Newport City, Pritchard of Pawlet, Quimby of Lyndon, Sibilia 16
of Dover, Surprenant of Barnard, Sweeney of Shelburne, Toof 17
of St. Albans Town, Wells of Brownington, White of Bethel, 18
and Winter of Ludlow 19
Referred to Committee on 20
Date: 21

BILL AS INTRODUCED H.241
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VT LEG #380443 v.1
Subject: Professions and occupations; Office of Professional Regulation; 1
health care professionals; optometrists 2
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to revise and 3
further define the scope of practice for optometrists. It would also create an 4
advanced therapeutic procedures specialty that would allow qualified 5
optometrists to perform certain advanced therapeutic procedures. 6
An act relating to amendments to the scope of practice for optometrists 7
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 8
Sec. 1. 26 V.S.A. § 1703 is amended to read: 9
§ 1703. DEFINITIONS 10
As used in this chapter: 11
(1) “Board” means the State Board of Optometry. 12
(2)(A) The “practice of optometry” means any one or combination of 13
the following practices: 14
(A)(i) Examining the human eyes and visual system for purposes of: 15
(i)(I) diagnosing refractive and functional ability; or 16
(ii)(II) diagnosing the presence of eye and adnexa disease or 17
injury, treating the disease or injury with the appropriate therapeutic 18
pharmaceutical agents and procedures in accordance with this chapter, and 19
making referrals to the appropriate health care provider when warranted. 20

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VT LEG #380443 v.1
(B)(ii) Diagnosing and correcting anomalies of the refractive and 1
functional ability of the visual system and the enhancement of visual 2
performance including the following: 3
(i)(I) prescribing and using ophthalmic lenses, prisms, 4
autorefractor or other automatic testing devices, frames, ophthalmic aids, and 5
prosthetic materials as consistent with the health of the eye; 6
(ii)(II) prescribing and employing contact lenses; and 7
(iii)(III) administering visual training, vision therapy, orthoptics, 8
and pleoptics. 9
(C)(iii) Prescribing and administering appropriate therapeutic 10
pharmaceutical agents, as defined in this section, for the diagnosis, 11
management, and treatment of the eye and adnexa. 12
(D)(iv) Removing superficial foreign bodies from the eye and 13
adnexa; epilating the eyelashes, including by electrolysis; and punctal dilation, 14
lacrimal irrigation, and punctal plugs insertion. 15
(E)(v) Managing the following types of glaucoma in patients who are 16
16 years of age or older: 17
(i)(I) adult primary open angle glaucoma; 18
(ii)(II) exfoliative glaucoma; 19
(iii)(III) pigmentary glaucoma; 20
(iv)(IV) low tension glaucoma; 21

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VT LEG #380443 v.1
(v)(V) inflammatory (uveitic) glaucoma; and 1
(vi)(VI) emergency treatment of angle closure glaucoma. 2
(vi) For an optometrist holding an advanced therapeutic 3
procedures specialty issued pursuant to subchapter 5 of this chapter, 4
performing the following advanced therapeutic procedures: 5
(I) surgery to remove lesions from the eye and adnexa and the 6
accompanied restoration of tissue, including only the following: 7
(aa) excision and repair of nonrecurrent chalazia; 8
(bb) excision and biopsy of nonrecurrent lesions of the 9
adnexa without characteristics or obvious signs of malignancy, excluding any 10
lesion involving the eyelid margin, involving the lacrimal supply or drainage 11
systems, deeper than the orbicularis muscle, or larger than five millimeters in 12
diameter; 13
(cc) closure of wounds resulting from removal of a lesion; 14
(dd) repair of an eyelid laceration not larger than 2.5 15
centimeters, not deeper than the orbicularis muscle and not involving the 16
eyelid margin or lacrimal drainage structures; and 17
(ee) corneal crosslinking; 18
(II) the following laser procedures: 19
(aa) laser capsulotomy; 20
(bb) laser peripheral iridotomy; and 21

BILL AS INTRODUCED H.241
2025