(WAVE) – A fresh batch of test results for eye doctors gets released Friday, including results for one of the Kentucky doctors who was licensed through an illegal testing waiver.
In a few weeks, a state committee will try to sort out how to fix the Kentucky Optometry Board’s licensing scandal, which licensed 30 doctors who had not completed all their tests. Four have now done so.
The board has proposed a number of fixes to address the licensing scandal. It has already banned any of these doctors from performing laser procedures until they pass all their exams. But the latest proposal would still allow a workaround for the third part of the national test, which would substitute a multiple-choice test instead of a simulated in-person doctor visit.
Governor defends board actions
Governor Andy Beshear stands by the latest actions of the Kentucky Board of Optometric Examiners, even as the eye doctors’ national testing organization NBEO has said some of these licensed eye doctors are still failing their national tests.
“I think this came out of COVID, but was maybe in place a little bit longer here than it was otherwise,” Beshear said. “But I have had a commitment from our board that they are going to fully and entirely address this.”
“Now, I do think that they are trying to provide the opportunity for someone to be able to take the test that maybe did not before,” Beshear said. “But I know it’s a specialized area. I know we’ve got some good people working on it. And I hope we get a good resolution.”
National group calls for supervision
More test results will be released on Friday, including for one of the remaining 26 eye doctors in Kentucky who have been licensed without taking all of their tests. NBEO has called for all these doctors to be placed under another eye doctor’s supervision. But Beshear said these doctors should not be blamed for the prior board’s illegal waiver decisions.
“Well, I think that there was a board that allowed them to move forward,” Beshear said. “And now the board is taking the steps.”
Three of the five board members were on the board when it approved these illegal waivers. A state committee will take up the latest proposal in two weeks, as more Kentucky optometrists’ test scores come out in the months ahead.
The Kentucky Academy of Eye Physicians and Surgeons pushed the state to go further, releasing a statement saying:
KAEPS acknowledges that temporary waivers were issued during the COVID pandemic. While some waived optometrists have since passed the full examination, concerning reports show that others were licensed despite failing one or more national licensure exams.
These waivers are unjustifiable. KAEPS maintains that optometrists who have failed any required national licensure examination should not practice. Patient safety demands full competency.
We call on the KBOE to immediately require all waiver recipients to complete the necessary exams or cease practicing until they do so.”
It is not clear what the state will do about two licensed Kentucky eye doctors who cannot take any more tests because they have failed the absolute maximum number of times.