Latest News Dental and Optometric Care Access Act Is Introduced By Staff Friday, August 14, 2015 12:30 AM U.S. Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter. WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Dental and Optometric Care Access (DOC Access) Act (HR 3323) introduced by Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-Ga.) on July 29, 2015, has already resulted in a lot of discussion among optometrists taking sides on the issue. According to a statement from Rep. Carter’s office, the bill was introduced “to provide fairness in contracts between doctors and insurers to increase the quality of care for patients and eliminate anti-competitive practices. The DOC Access Act allows dentists and optometrists to charge a fair and customary amount for the services that are not covered under an insurance plan rather than the insurer’s mandated fee schedule.”The American Optometric Association (AOA), which provided input while the bill was being drafted, has announced its support in an email to its members. The Georgia Optometric Association (GOA) was also instrumental in participating in the writing of the bill. In addition, optometrists on social media platforms are galvanized, with some raising funds to encourage passage of the bill. However, representatives of managed vision care plans have expressed concerns that the bill could result in increased costs and reductions in quality. “Although the true intentions of this bill are unclear, legislation like this can increase out-of-pocket costs for consumers, reduce quality, value, frequency of eyecare and increase administrative costs with no significant upside to eyecare professionals or their patients,” Julian Roberts, executive director of the National Association of Vision Care Plans, told VMail.Carter’s statement explains the impetus for the act as: “Current mandates in insurance provider agreements require doctors to charge patients for services that are not covered under vision or dental plans at unpredictable and unusual rates. The practice is especially troublesome in communities where a limited number of insurance plans control the market share and a provider has no choice but to accept an entire contract even if some terms harm their patients’ care and practice.”In support of the bill, the AOA issued a statement to its members yesterday that said, “The DOC Access Act, receiving joint support from the AOA and American Dental Association, would, among other safeguards, prohibit health insurers and vision and dental plans from: forcing discounts on non-covered services, forcing doctors to participate in a vision or dental plan as a condition for participation in a medical plan, and restricting a doctor's choice of a lab. The DOC Access Act specifically targets plans, such as those organized under the Employment Retirement Income Security Act, that are regulated on a federal level and often are beyond the reach of state law. As such, the AOA is continuing to urge states to advance state-level fixes to plans regulated on the state-level.”Carter added, “With the bill now introduced and our efforts to build new support underway, I'll be staying in close touch with AOA president, Dr. Steve Loomis, and other AOA and GOA leaders in the push to make HR 3323 the patient access priority it needs to be on Capitol Hill.”Loomis said, “Rep. Buddy Carter’s leadership in Congress and his determination to expand access to the essential eye health and vision care doctors of optometry provide will make patients healthier and insurers and plans more accountable. The DOC Access Act, which the AOA is proud to support, was written to ensure that doctors and patients, not insurance and plan executives, are again at the center of important, personal and personalized health care decisions.”