ALEXANDRIA, Va.—The Health Care Alliance for Patient Safety (APS), an organization founded in 2018 to advocate for both patient safety and a strong doctor-patient relationship, has named Alison Teitelbaum, MS, MPH, CAE, as its new executive director. The move became effective earlier this month. APS was instrumental in the recent legislation that delayed implementation of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) new Contact Lens Rule until March 31, as VMAIL has reported. Most recently, Teitelbaum was the executive director of the American Health Quality Association (AHQA) and a vice president at MCI USA (an association management company).

She held the positions simultaneously as AHQA was a client organization of the MCI management company, she told VMAIL.

The move at the Alliance follows a change in the chairmanship of the organization in January, when APS announced that David A. Cockrell, OD, had been named chairman, as VMAIL reported. Cockrell, a practicing optometrist in Stillwater, Okla., succeeded Deanna Alexander, OD, whose term as chairwoman concluded at the end of 2020.

“Under the leadership of inaugural chairwoman Deanna Alexander, OD, the Health Care Alliance for Patient Safety quickly established itself as the leader in advocating for policy that safeguards the millions of contact lens-wearing patients across the U.S.,” Cockrell said at the time.

Alliance members work together to raise awareness and protect public health, the organization noted. Advancing policy and collaboration between leading eye health advocates, vision innovators and trusted voices is essential to elevate patient care.

The Alliance is made up of patient safety advocates, eye doctors, and contact lens manufacturers, including Johnson & Johnson Vision, CooperVision and Alcon. The American Optometric Association (AOA) is also a supporting member of the Alliance.