(Baton Rouge, LA) — In a newly released radio ad, the 60 Plus Association, on behalf of its 110,000 senior citizen supporters in the Bayou State, is holding AARP’s feet to the fire for supporting dangerous legislation in the Louisiana State Legislature that waters down the standards of surgical safety and puts seniors eyesight at risk. HB 1065 and SB 568 would remove the requirement of a medical degree and a license to practice medicine in order to perform a wide variety of eye surgery.  Specifically, this legislation would allow optometrists—eye care professionals who are not medical doctors, not medical school graduates, and who do not have a license to practice medicine—to perform laser scalpel and laser surgery on and around the eye including such surgery as reconstructive eyelid surgery, glaucoma laser surgery, and injections of highly potent pharmaceutical agents into the eyelid and surrounding tissues near the eye.

HB 1065 and SB 568 follow the lead of a similar proposal in California that lawmakers in Sacramento are pushing as a key component to implement Obamacare.  “Unfortunately, it’s no surprise that AARP is throwing its support behind this legislation,” said Jim Martin, founder and Chairman of 60 Plus.  “AARP has a well-documented track record of supporting the big government agenda of their liberal friends in Washington and California.  They’ve partnered with environmental extremist groups to destroy American jobs, they’ve aggressively fought against our Second Amendment rights, and they joined their elitist Hollywood allies to help force Obamacare onto the American people and as a result, cut $700 billion from seniors’ healthcare,” Martin said.  “For 110,000 60 Plus supporters, Louisiana is home.  But to groups like AARP and their liberal allies, it’s just another battleground for the war on Louisiana values,” Martin said.

Martin explained that 60 Plus’ opposition to this legislation was about patient safety and ensuring that citizens of Louisiana continue to be treated by highly trained medical doctors and surgeons when it comes to surgical eye care.  “Optometrists do play an important role in performing vision exams and other basic eye care services,” said Martin.  “But there is no such thing as ‘routine’ surgery on or around the eyes.  That ‘minor lump or bump’ that optometrists want to surgically remove with a scalpel could very well be a cancerous lesion or tumor, which if removed incorrectly could lead to the cancer spreading and a very fatal outcome for the patient. When it comes to any type of surgery, it is vital that the provider have both the medical education and clinical training to immediately handle a dangerous situation should complications arise. That simply cannot be obtained in optometry school or in a weekend add-on course,” Martin said.

As part of its commitment to keeping seniors safe, 60 Plus is urging all of our supporters in Louisiana to call their state legislators and ask them to vote “no” on House Bill 1065 and SB 568.  For more information, Louisiana residents can visit: www.safesurgeryLA.org.