ASSEMBLY, No. 5222

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

219th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED JANUARY 7, 2021

 


 

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman  RAJ MUKHERJI

District 33 (Hudson)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Establishes requirements for optometrists to be authorized to administer immunizations.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


An Act concerning optometrists, amending R.S.45:12-1, and supplementing chapter 12 of Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    R.S.45:12-1 is amended to read as follows:

     45:12-1.  Optometry is hereby declared to be a profession, and the practice of optometry is defined to be the employment of objective or subjective means, or both, for the examination of the human eye and adnexae for the purposes of ascertaining any departure from the normal, measuring its powers of vision and adapting lenses or prisms for the aid thereof, or the use and prescription of pharmaceutical agents, excluding injections, except for injections to counter anaphylactic reaction [;] , and excluding controlled dangerous substances as provided in sections 5 and 6 of P.L.1970, c.226 (C.24:21-5 and C.24:21-6), except as otherwise authorized by section 9 of P.L.1991, c.385 (C.45:12-9.11), for the purposes of treating deficiencies, deformities, diseases, or abnormalities of the human eye and adnexae, including the removal of superficial foreign bodies from the eye and adnexae.  The practice of optometry shall include the administration of immunizations by any route or modality, provided that administration of the immunization is consistent with recommendations issued by the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices in the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and complies with the requirements of section 2 of P.L.    , c.    (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

     An optometrist utilizing pharmaceutical agents for the purposes of treatment of ocular conditions and diseases shall be held to a standard of patient care in the use of such agents commensurate to that of a physician utilizing pharmaceutical agents for treatment purposes.

     A person shall be deemed to be practicing optometry within the meaning of this chapter who in any way advertises himself as an optometrist, or who shall employ any means for the measurement of the powers of vision or the adaptation of lenses or prisms for the aid thereof, practice, offer or attempt to practice optometry as herein defined, either on his own behalf or as an employee or student of another, whether under the personal supervision of his employer or perceptor or not, or to use testing appliances for the purposes of measurement of the powers of vision or diagnose any ocular deficiency or deformity, visual or muscular anomaly of the human eye and adnexae or prescribe lenses, prisms or ocular exercise for the correction or the relief thereof, or who uses or prescribes pharmaceutical agents for the purposes of diagnosing and treating deficiencies, deformities, diseases or abnormalities of the human eye and adnexae or who holds himself out as qualified to practice optometry.

(cf: P.L.2017, c.28, s.16)

 

     2.    (New section)  a.  (1)  Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, an optometrist shall not administer immunizations except upon certification from the New Jersey State Board of Optometrists that the optometrist has met any training and qualification requirements as are established by the board by rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).

     (2)   The New Jersey State Board of Optometrists may certify an optometrist to administer immunizations during a public health emergency declared pursuant to the “Emergency Health Powers Act,” P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.), regardless of whether the board has adopted rules and regulations implementing the provisions of P.L.   , c.    (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

     b.    (1)  An optometrist shall not administer an immunization to any patient who is younger than 18 years of age unless administration of the immunization to the patient is authorized by the patient’s parent or legal guardian. 

     (2)   Subject to the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subsection, an optometrist may administer the influenza immunization to any patient who is seven years of age or older, and may administer any immunization to any patient who is 10 years of age or older.  An optometrist shall not administer any immunization to a patient who is younger than seven years of age.

     c.     An immunization administered to a patient by an optometrist shall be reported by the optometrist to the New Jersey Immunization Information System established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.2004, c.138 (C.26:4-134) for inclusion in the patient’s registry.

 

     3.    The New Jersey State Board of Optometrists shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as shall be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

 

     4.    This act shall take effect immediately.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill establishes requirements to authorize optometrists to administer immunizations.  Specifically, an optometrist will be authorized to administer an immunization by any route or modality if the optometrist meets the training and qualification requirements as are established by the New Jersey State Board of Optometry by regulation, and administration of the immunization is consistent with recommendations issued by the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices in the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

     Optometrists who meet these requirements will be authorized to administer any immunization to a patient who is 10 years of age and older, and will be permitted to administer the influenza immunization to any patient who is seven years of age or older.  Optometrists will be prohibited from administering immunizations to patients who are younger than seven years of age.

     In the case of patients who are seven years of age or older but younger than 18 years of age, optometrists will be required to receive authorization from the patient’s parent or legal guardian as a condition of administering an immunization to the patient.

     The bill provides that optometrists may be authorized by the New Jersey State Board of Optometrists to administer immunizations during a public health emergency declared pursuant to the “Emergency Health Powers Act,” P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.), regardless of whether the board has promulgated rules and regulations implementing the provisions of the bill.

     Any immunization administered to a patient by an optometrist is to be reported by the optometrist to the New Jersey Immunization Information System established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.2004, c.138 (C.26:4-134) for inclusion in the patient’s registry.