03/10/2008 05:00 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES

            SB 149-REDISTRIBUTION OF USED EYEGLASSES                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS announced consideration of SB 149.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
DAVID  STANCLIFF, Staff  to Senator  Therriault, said  the Lion's                                                               
Club of Alaska asked the sponsor  to introduce SB 149. The Lion's                                                               
Club had  been providing  eye glasses to  needy persons  in third                                                               
world countries  for many years.  The bill as  originally written                                                               
referenced a  board that no longer  existed, so a CS  was adopted                                                               
in  the  previous  committee.  The  references  to  "board"  were                                                               
replaced  by "department."  Language was  also added  on page  2,                                                               
lines 24-25,  stipulating that the prescription  conforms "to the                                                               
extent  possible"  with  the  individual's  prescription  from  a                                                               
licensed physician or optometrist. The  bill did not require that                                                               
the department  work with  the Lions Club;  it merely  opened the                                                               
door   and  enabled   any  qualified   non-profit  to   begin  an                                                               
association  with  the  State  of  Alaska  to  provide  used  eye                                                               
glasses.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS  noted that this  bill was  heard first in  Labor and                                                               
Commerce,  which heard  some compelling  testimony. She  asked if                                                               
anyone had signed up to testify in this committee.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
5:17:15 PM                                                                                                                    
HOWARD  SCOTT RIXIE,  SR., Lions  Club, Aurora  Borealis Chapter,                                                               
Fairbanks, AK,  thanked the committee  for hearing this  bill and                                                               
said  they looked  forward to  the time  when all  Alaskans could                                                               
enjoy  the  gift of  sight.  He  said he  had  sent  each of  the                                                               
committee members  an electronic  letter with  attachments, which                                                               
he asked to  be entered into the record on  his behalf, and urged                                                               
the committee to pass SB 149 on to the full Senate.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR ELTON noted that in other  types of medicine, there was a                                                               
credo  that all  persons  would be  treated  regardless of  their                                                               
ability  to pay  and asked  Mr. Rixie  whether that  was true  in                                                               
optometry and ophthalmology as well.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MR. STANCLIFF  replied that he  had checked with Jill  Geering at                                                               
the Alaska Vision  Center and was told they did  a fair amount of                                                               
charitable work; but people in many  parts of Alaska did not have                                                               
access to a center offering that type of care.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR ELTON  asked if it  was true  that the eye  glasses would                                                               
not  have   to  be  dispensed   by  a  licensed   optometrist  or                                                               
ophthalmologist.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR.  STANCLIFF answered  that was  correct. If  the state  deemed                                                               
that the Lions Club had the  experience necessary to fill and fit                                                               
a  prescription provided  by  a  doctor, they  would  do that  in                                                               
Alaska with  used eye glasses.  He clarified that this  would not                                                               
prevent  an optometrist  or ophthalmologist  from  doing it,  but                                                               
would  allow  this benevolent  group  to  expand access  to  this                                                               
service in Alaska as they had done in third world countries.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR THOMAS  asked if  page 2,  lines 22-25  was the  area Mr.                                                               
Stancliff was discussing.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MR.  STANCLIFF answered  that the  change he  referred to  was on                                                               
lines 24  and 25 and that  the exact words added  were "to extent                                                               
possible," because  they may  not always  have used  glasses that                                                               
fit  another person's  prescription perfectly.  He stressed  that                                                               
the  department would  have to  build guidelines  into regulation                                                               
and policy to define the  parameters within which the Lions would                                                               
be allowed to  operated with regard to decisions  about whether a                                                               
prescription was close enough.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS  specified that  the committee  was working  off CSSB
, Version \K.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS asked  for further questions or  comments. When there                                                               
were none, she stated that it  was her intention not to hear this                                                               
bill again, but to move it to the next committee of referral.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
5:23:11 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  THOMAS  moved  to  report  CSSB  149,  Version  \K  from                                                               
committee  with  individual  recommendations  and  attached  zero                                                               
fiscal note.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
There being no objections, CSSB 149(L&C) moved from committee.