I continue to enjoy reading The Bulletin’s editorial page most mornings with a cup of coffee to gain perspectives from our neighbors about their take on local and national issues.

Occasionally, a writer will startle me awake even without coffee. The recent title caught my eye and did just that, “Vision patients need leeway in getting contact lenses while optometrist offices are closed.”

As an eye care professional in Bend, what shocked me was not only the multiple non-truths but that these “concerned” out-of-state lobbyists would offer a federal solution for what they would have us believe is “our” local problem “right here in Oregon,” yet it does not appear that either of these lobbyists live in Oregon.

Quoting from the guest column as printed in The Bulletin, just a few non-truths:

• “There was no way for an optometrist to temporarily extend a patient’s vision prescription if their offices aren’t open and their staffers aren’t answering the phone to answer patients.”

• “Patients could not get copies of their most recent prescription needed to purchase contact lenses”

• “State policies that block ocular telemedicine.”

The authors were correct that most Bend eye care offices followed CDC and Oregon guidelines for public health and safety and were closed for seven weeks during the initial lockdown. Although, in spite of being “closed,” we in the Bend eye care community had the obligation to cover all eye care emergencies in our offices and not burden our hospital emergency room. I can tell you that we were and are always available to our patients for urgent and emergency medical eye care, including our patients with contact lens needs.

Despite the false accusations of our out-of-state lobbyists, we and most of our eye care colleagues in Bend, in spite of our offices being “closed” made special arrangements for contact lens patients:

We extended contact lens prescriptions for up to 6 months for current patients without the annual contact lens visit and made this prescription available to them.

We attempted to contact every contact lens patient who should have been seen for their annual contact lens eye health exam.

We made arrangements to have contact lenses shipped directly to our patients, so they wouldn’t need to come into the office to pick up their supply of lenses.

Further, doctors in our office were available to speak directly to our patients during this time and had numerous telehealth eye visits. And speaking to the out-of-state lobbyist’s “concerns,” they will be happy to know that with today’s technology, most eye care software programs have the option of having patients’ glasses and contact lens prescriptions accessible to them in an online vault wherever and whenever they need.

It continues to be a privilege to serve the eye care needs of Central and Eastern Oregon. As we have recently proven, we will continue to responsibly guard the health and safety of all of our patients and staff while offering eye care services and products even while we are closed, partially open or fully open.

Do you have a point you’d like to make or an issue you feel strongly about? Submit a letter to the editor or a guest column.