As of February 1, changes to optometry coverage became effective per Alberta Health Service orders.
Dr. Cristy Franco, President-elect of the Alberta Association of Optometrists who is also currently practicing in Airdrie at a comprehensive, primary-care clinic, stated that Alberta Health announced the changes in its Opto 35 Bulletin and said changes include delisting of partial eye exams for children and seniors.
That, Dr. Franco says, means that if during a routine eye exam, the patient is not able to sit through the entire exam due to having more complex visual needs there is no longer any coverage towards a follow-up appointment from Alberta Health.
The second change, Dr. Franco explained, is that Alberta Health Care has removed the coverage, towards a medically necessary appointment on this same day as a routine eye exam for children and seniors, specifically children 18 and seniors 65 and older.
“During the routine eye exam, if an optometrist is seeing the need to dilate the patient to open the pupil up to allow for a more thorough look at the inside of the eye, for example, now that patient needs to come back on a separate day to still have Alberta healthcare coverage towards the appointment,” said Dr. Franco. “The coverage on the same day as the routine eye exam is not there anymore.”
The final change, Franco states, is the reduced frequency of retinal imaging and retinal photography by half. Franco says that procedures like retinal imaging and retinal imaging are more advanced procedures that optometrists are using to monitor and manage chronic conditions including macular degeneration or glaucoma, but they now have half as many people who have coverage from Alberta Health Care towards those procedures. What has not changed, Dr. Franco says, is coverage towards a routine eye exam for those 18 and younger or 65 and older has not changed the coverage towards those exams and Alberta health care also still exists as do the urgent and medically necessary coverage.
“The biggest thing for us in optometry and at the Alberta Association of Optometrists, just like any other doctor or healthcare professional is patient care, and that’s what we don’t want to suffer because of this,” said Dr. Franco. “Our concern is that patients might delay or forego appointments because of these changes, and we think that Albertans deserve the best possible eye care with the best vision throughout their lives. Our concern is that with the reduction in Alberta healthcare coverage we might see with those changes and with that more advanced disease and potentially an increased risk of vision loss.”
Dr. Franco says that patients are encouraged to share any concerns that they might have regarding the changes with their optometrists.
“We really want to make sure that patients talk to their optometrists and make sure that they come up with a plan that works for them, ensures the best possible care and continued care, so we don’t see that risk of vision loss,” said Dr. Franco. “It all comes down to patient care. We know that patients will be impacted by this. It means that there’s maybe a different burden on that person in order to come into their eye exam, and we want to make sure that they continue to get that care that they need and that they deserve. Our biggest feeling is that we really want to do what we can to ensure that patients continue to get proper care. Vision is vital as optometrists in Alberta. As the Alberta Association of Optometrists, this is a huge part of our, our dayto-day lives, and optometrists, as I said, are here for patient care. We want to make sure that patients get the care that they need, that they deserve for the entirety of their lives, and we really want to encourage patients to continue that relationship with their optometrists because all of those things like the routine eye exams, and the medically necessary exams, we still have coverage towards those from Alberta Healthcare, so talk with your optometrist and make sure that you can have come up with a plan that still works for you.”
Heather Cameron,
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Taber Times
