House Bill 658 would authorize licensed optometrists in North Carolina to provide optometry services through telemedicine to patients located in the state, so long as the optometrist holds a valid and active North Carolina license. The bill makes clear that an optometrist does not have to be physically located in North Carolina, and does not need a license in the state where the optometrist is physically located while treating a North Carolina patient by telehealth.
The bill also preserves the authority of the North Carolina Board of Examiners in Optometry to enforce violations of optometry law against practitioners using telemedicine. It states that telemedicine does not expand or change the scope of optometry practice and that optometrists remain subject to all applicable laws and board rules when treating patients remotely. The Board is directed to adopt implementing rules covering the patient relationship, examination and diagnosis, recordkeeping, prescribing, telemedicine standards of care, and display of licensure and credentials, consistent with the Board’s telemedicine position statement.
HB658 would amend Chapter 90 of the North Carolina General Statutes by adding a new telemedicine provision for optometrists, creating explicit statutory authority for remote optometry care. It would affect licensed optometrists, patients receiving eye care in North Carolina, and the North Carolina Board of Examiners in Optometry, which would be required to adopt rules to implement the new framework. The act would take effect October 1, 2025.
Based on the bill text and available legislative history, the bill appears to have a generally supportive or at least straightforward policy posture, with no recorded votes or committee testimony showing opposition in the provided materials. The measure is framed as a professional practice flexibility bill and was referred to the House Health Committee for consideration, suggesting it is being treated as a health-professions regulatory update rather than a controversial policy change.
The main policy issues raised by the bill are how telemedicine should be regulated for optometrists and how to preserve patient safety and professional standards in remote care. The bill anticipates these concerns by requiring board rules on examination, evaluation, diagnosis, recordkeeping, prescribing, and standard of care. Potential points of contention would likely involve the scope of remote practice, whether an in-person relationship should be required in some cases, and how much discretion the Optometry Board should have in setting telehealth standards, but no specific opposition is shown in the provided record.