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Posts Tagged ‘economy’

Acuvue2 Colours Going Away

David Langford, O.D. on April 16th, 2013 under Optoblog •  Comments Off on Acuvue2 Colours Going Away

Colored contacts are economically impossible to keep in inventory, but now it appears that the manufacturer can’t afford to even produce them.

VISTAKON announced that effective 3-31-2013 doctors will no longer have access to trials of the Acuvue colored contacts, and effective 12-31-2013 VISTAKON will no longer sell the revenue boxes of Acuvue2 Colours to doctors and distributors.

In the memo, the reason cited is “to better align our capabilities to produce more of our most popular and more innovative products, like 1-DAY ACUVUE TrueEye…1-DAY ACUVUE MOIST…and ACUVUE OASYS Brand Contact Lenses.”

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“Use of Optical Scan Machines” H.B. 408 Utah State Legislature 2012

David Langford, O.D. on February 9th, 2012 under Optoblog •  12 Comments

SpecBox

SpecBox Coming Soon?

The Utah Optometric Association is very worried about H.B. 408 which is being introduced for the 2012 legislative session. I know they must be worried because a volunteer optometrist from the association called me, and I’m not even a member of the UOA.

It turns out they are rightfully worried because while the title, “Use of Optical Scan Machines,” might seem innocuous, what is really behind the curtain is pernicious.

While there is currently no text on the le.utah.gov website for H.B. 408, sources say that the bill’s sponsor, Greg Hughes, from Draper, UT (home of 1800Contacts) intends to allow the current prescription law to be changed to allow a person to buy glasses based on the reading of an autorefractor.

Apparently, the plan is for a company, like 1800Contacts, to set up a Glasses Kiosk in a popular store, like Walmart. (By the way, 1800Contacts has been selling glasses for a while.) The person puts their head in the machine, the autorefractor spits out some glasses numbers, a pupilometer measures a p.d., the person selects their frame and lens options, then they slide their credit card and wait for their glasses to arrive in the mail. (Maybe a nicer kiosk would measure the Rx in your current glasses and have you look at an eye chart, and factor those measurements into the numbers the kiosk “prescribes” you.)

If allowed, I predict an unintended consequence will be that no optical will adjust your glasses for free, like they currently do. You will have to show a receipt just to get your glasses adjusted, so everyone buying glasses from kiosks or internet sites will walk around looking like goobers and in pain from poorly adjusted glasses.

Other obvious consequences will be that people will walk around with headaches and blurry vision since autorefractors are notoriously inaccurate and will usually over-estimate nearsightedness and underestimate farsightedness. And say nothing of the fact that many people need prism to see straight/avoid headaches.

But here is the biggest reason to forsake this bill: People need eye exams to ensure good eye health. A refraction is only one piece of a complete eye exam. I’ve already written about the woman who only wanted more contacts, but because she had an eye exam, I saw some worrisome findings and referred her for more specialty care which discovered a brain tumor.

That’s just one patient. I’ve actually done that a couple times with brain tumors. Other times I’ve had patients whom I’ve diagnosed leukemia, diabetes, pituitary adenoma, increased cerebral spinal fluid pressure, glaucoma, macular degeneration, eye infections, allergy eyes, and more all just from a “routine eye exam.” None of these people thought there was something wrong- they just wanted new glasses or more contacts.

We can’t ignore that an eye exam is more than just looking at an eye chart and getting a refractive prescription.

But let’s say you wanted to. Let’s say you are simply a consumer advocate who wants to help people buy glasses. Your idea is to waste everyone’s time and money by making a law to separate the refraction from an eye exam. The consumer who values their eye health will simply also get an eye exam in addition to buying a glasses Rx and purchasing spectacles from a kiosk.

Okay, Utah Legislature, why are you stopping there? What if I’m a business that wants to sell antibiotics cheaper, to more people, than the present system of physicians and pharmacies? I want to set up kiosks that take your temperature. If you have a high temperature, you get vended an antibiotic. Sounds great for consumers, right? Why should eye care providers and opticals be the only ones to suffer? Make physicians and pharmacies suffer as well!

If you want to change the system, change it fairly for everyone. Let’s be just like third world countries which don’t require doctor prescriptions at pharmacies or optical shops. If it’s about consumer advocacy, what could be better, right?

Of course, you will essentially be forcing a large portion of health care providers to change professions. And don’t even mention how news reports will be full of people self treating, taking the wrong medicine for the wrong diagnosis, and dying. It’s a small price to pay for consumer choice, but since I have some libertarian leanings, I wouldn’t mind trying it out as long as every medical profession participates and not just optometrists.

However, if you don’t think that all roads should be toll roads and marijuana should be legal, then let’s continue to require prescriptions for medicines and medical devices, like glasses and contacts.

Choose one, Utah Legislature. Just be consistent across all professions to make the playing field level.

If you have an opinion on 2012’s H.B. 408, then contact your Utah lawmaker.

On a side note, I hope the sponsor of H.B. 408, Greg Hughes, is happy with himself. The UOA is burning tens of thousands of dollars (that it can’t afford) on lobbyists that only work for six weeks to fight H.B. 408. Even if HB408 is defeated this year, who knows if it will come up again next year and they’ll have to spend more money again! Mr Hughes, I’m not sure how you can sleep at night. You are causing poor optometrists to spend tons of money fighting legislation that you introduced only because a big business told you to. Even if you said you were sorry and withdraw the bill, you can’t un-burn the cash you’ve caused to be burned.
Please, lawmakers, try to think outside your wallet when making decisions about bills to consider during legislative sessions. I propose we only allow you to meet every two years in order to provide more stability for us business owners.

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Dear Vendors: Don’t Try to Sell Me On Green

David Langford, O.D. on June 30th, 2011 under Asides, Optoblog •  2 Comments

Dear Vendors,
Don’t try to sell me on green. Don’t try to entice me by telling me how “green” your product is. Don’t give me green bags. Don’t color your merchandising in earth tones.

The jig is up. We all know that anthropogenic global warming is hysterical. I know it’s your job to hoodwink doctoral-level-educated men and women, but this whole “go green” thing is even more of an insult to our intelligence than even the product your are trying to sell us.

Feel free to go back to marketing the old way: showing us how your product is going to help us make money and improve quality of life for our patients.

Please watch this video by Roy W. Spencer, former NASA climatologist and climate expert, and produced by Declaration Entertainment:

Note to to people on the fence: No one is advocating dumping toxic sludge into the river or aquifers.

Note to anthropogenic global warming hysterics: Move to the Amazon, you hippie. Ipso facto, America and all its greatness is not for you.

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It’s a Scary World

David Langford, O.D. on May 3rd, 2011 under Comics, Optoblog •  Comments Off on It’s a Scary World

optoblog-comic-025-Scared-of-Events - Doctor, why are you sitting in the dark, holding a blankie, and sucking your thumb? Because I've been listening to Glenn Beck, and I'm scared of world events.  I don't know if America will recover from too many years of faithlessness.

optoblog comic #25 Scared of Events

Well, I know people have been secretly clamoring for more optoblog.com comics, so…you’re welcome!

Those of you who have been watching news only from the networks probably have no idea why current events are so scary. Those of us not simply listening to press releases straight from the White House and its Czars have learned scary things about hyperinflation, monetizing the debt, Cloward and Piven, communist infiltration in the government of a free republic, radical Muslim’s Caliphate, ATF’s Project Gunwalker, George Soros, the Nanny State, Cass Sunstein, back door gun control, Tax and Spend, the lie of Climate Change, Going Green = going broke, and ad infinitum stuff all designed to take away the God-given rights and liberties of Americans.

America, I am sure that the only way we are going to recover from this great big hole we’ve sleep-walked ourselves into is by returning to God. All of us need to repent and increase our Faith, Hope, and Charity. Only then will we be prepared to receive and accept his will regarding what our actions should be. Only then will He prosper our nation again.

Our government was founded upon faith-based principles. Invite everyone you know to increase their Faith in God, Hope, and Charity so that we can restore our government to the founder’s vision and so that God will bless the United States of America.

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Answers to Your Search Questions Part 3

David Langford, O.D. on December 23rd, 2009 under Optoblog •  Comments Off on Answers to Your Search Questions Part 3

In Answers to Your Search Questions Part 1 and Part 2, I improved by search juice and answered the questions that seem to be on everyone’s mind.

Well, I’ve done it yet again. There seems to be no end to all the inquiring minds out there. Just to review, I know what IP address you have and the URL that was in your address bar just before coming to my website. A search URL contains the search term that you used.

  1. “is Crizal worth the extra expense” – That depends. The original Crizal, Crizal Alize, Crizal Alize’ with ClearGuard, Crizal Avance’ with Scotchgard, or the next one that they come out with 6 months after you buy the one available now.
  2. “satan’s plan” – This search term was by someone from Lagos, Nigeria, Africa. (It directed them to this post.) Lemme splain. In pre-earth life, Jesus wanted us to have the freedom to choose to follow Heavenly Father and obtain Eternal life. Those who don’t obey God’s will and never repent would be lost. Those who disobey (all of us) would need a Savior in order to be worthy enough to enter into God’s presence again. Well, the Son of the Morning didn’t like that. Satan, wanted us all to be forced to choose God and obey His commands so that none of God’s children would be lost. It’s kind of like liberals vs. conservatives when you think about it.
  3. “what scanner should you use with officemate” – If you are going to scan, go big. You will not regret buying a fast document scanner like the Fujitsu 6130. I used to have a slow HP ScanJet N6010. It lasted two years and died. I wasted so much time waiting for files to scan. With my Fujitsu, waiting is a thing of the past. Let’s say you get an EOB that you want to scan into OfficeMate. You pull up the patient’s file, select the eDocuments tab, and then press scan. It will scan duplex, then you hit complete, and you’re done. Fast, fast, fast. Plus mine came with Acrobat 9 Standard.
  4. “nbeo optometry review notes” – I just wanted to bring this up because I’m so glad I’m done with school and boards.
  5. “how to recharge pachmate dgh55” – I’m thinking you should read the owners manual. If you don’t like keeping dead trees around, then scan it into a pdf with your Fujitsu scanner.
  6. “stylish medicaid frames” – NO SUCH THING
  7. “screening acute angle glaucoma with mydriasis with pen light in pcp office” – Yah, so what I think they want to know is before they dilate somebody, what’s the likelihood that they give them an angle closure pressure spike. I believe that should be in the manual for your nifty DigiScope. Someone in Maryland should just refer to their local optometrist.
  8. “best way for optometrist to get FDA job” – I’m pretty sure you can get any government job you want by contributing enough money to the DNC. If you’re not a trust fund child, then I would spend loads of money to attend optometry school, study hard, work hard, graduate, and join the rest of America in the unemployment line.
  9. “optometrists are stupid” – Someone in Alameda, CA was having a bad day.
  10. “crack officemate” – Some web surfer in Indiana needs a crack for Officemate. Let’s see, I’m pretty sure stealing around $6000 for the initial year and ~$1400 per year after that could be considered enough to get you in trouble with the state optometry board. I don’t think it’s worth it. If you can’t afford it, do yourself a favor and try something else. Or, like I’ve said before, if you’re willing to crack expensive, niche software, then why stop there? Robbing banks and pimping can “earn” you boat loads of tax-free money.
  11. “average christmas bonus for optometrist” – Let’s see. Um, try about $0.00
  12. “pronounce similasan” – put the emphasis over the second “i” and then say the rest really fast. sim-IL-uhsahn. Or call their consumer information line, 1-800-240-9780, and they say it on the recorded message.
  13. “Biofinity review” – This is by far the most searched term by people coming to my website from google and yahoo. Seriously, why don’t you just try it for a week or two? If you don’t like it, then try something else! These lenses could work great for you and terrible for someone else- or vice versa. It’s like asking other people if a certain brand or size of orthotic shoe insert works good.

I’m here to help.

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Interesting Wal-Mart OD Stats

David Langford, O.D. on July 2nd, 2009 under Optoblog •  4 Comments

The Optometric Business Academy (OBA) came out with some statistics regarding Walmart O.D.’s revenue growth in 2008.

Walmart practices grew 10% during 2008, on average, as Sam’s Club practices grew 6%.

Growth also varied depending on years at location.

I’ll be interested to see what 2009 stats will say. Anecdotally, my business was up 8% in 2008 while so far for 2009 I currently forecast it to be down over 8% (so back to 2007 levels). So when you think about it, 2009 could see me be down 16-18% from where I wanted to be.

Thanks Obama. That was such a great idea to spend our way out of a recession and have the government take over several private sector industries. Idiot.

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Algore speaks with LDS (Mormon leaders)? What? Why?

David Langford, O.D. on April 3rd, 2009 under Asides, Optoblog •  1 Comment

KSL 5 Eyewitness news in SLC, UT reports that Algore visited with Mormon leaders because, “Since [releasing his movie at Sundance Film Festival in 2006], he often takes the opportunity to meet with civic, corporate and religious leaders around the country talking about the dangers of and solutions to climate change.”

Wow, I guess we Mormons should be thrilled that it took him three years to visit our leaders. And what’s laughable is that the only “solution” to “climate change” that The Left can come up with is increased taxes and higher energy costs. Nice.

Mormons as a whole consistently vote conservative. Personally, I can’t believe our leaders even granted him an audience, and further I can’t believe they turned off the lights at Temple Square for Earff Hour! We stand strong against gay marriage in Kalifornia, but then we appease with leaders of a cloaked fascist movement to take away our God-given rights? I think someone has some ‘splaning to do!!

You’ll notice that he met with our PR dept to give his schpeel. I’ll bet the PR department would meet with Lilburn Boggs if they thought it could remotely help with PR.

Algore, go home. We Mormons already know that we humans, made in God’s image, are the stewards over the Earff. No one is out there saying we should pollute rivers, lakes, and streams or cut down every tree in all the forests! God has provided this earth for our use and enjoyment to further His purposes. All this “green” stuff is a diversion to tax us into communism, and God does not approve of communism. The whole reason we are here on Earth is to exercise our free agency and have joy. The Global Warming-err,..Cooling…I-mean-Climate-Change folks seek to destroy both.

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