BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1840
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1840 (Campos)
As Amended August 22, 2014
Majority vote
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|ASSEMBLY: |56-15|(May 23, 2014) |SENATE: |36-0 |(August 26, |
| | | | | |2014) |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Original Committee Reference: HEALTH
SUMMARY : Authorizes a child's vision to be appraised by using
an eye chart or any scientifically validated photoscreening test
and requires photoscreening tests to be performed, under an
agreement with, or the supervision of an optometrist or
ophthalmologist, by the school nurse or by a trained individual
who meets specified requirements as determined by the California
Department of Education (CDE).
The Senate amendments specify that scientifically validated
tests used to screen a pupil's vision, other than an eye chart,
must employ photoscreening technology, and require tests
performed via photoscreening to be performed under an agreement
with an optometrist or ophthalmologist.
EXISTING LAW requires, upon first enrollment in a California
school district of a child at an elementary school, and at least
every third year thereafter until the child has completed the
eighth grade, the child's vision to be appraised by the school
nurse or other authorized person, as specified, and requires
results of the appraisal to be entered in the health record of
the pupil.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill authorized the use of an
eye chart or any other scientifically validated test to be used
for pupil vision screening performed in schools.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, childhood vision disorders
are a prevalent and significant public health problem, yet there
is a significant lack of public awareness about the importance
of eye care in children and the inability of children to
AB 1840
Page 2
recognize their own vision problems. The author asserts these
problems are heightened in families from economically
disadvantaged backgrounds by financial hardship and lack of
access to appropriate medical care. The author states that this
bill will help broaden the accessibility to vision screenings
because any trained individual can utilize digital technology to
screen students, the results are immediate and digital, and the
results indicate whether or not a child would need a follow up
eye exam. More students in low-income, urban, and rural areas
would have access to this new digital technology to provide
accurate and quick results.
Photoscreening. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics
(AAP) policy statement, Use of Photoscreening for Children's
Vision Screening, photoscreening is a vision screening technique
used to screen for amblyogenic factors such as strabismus (lazy
eye) and significant refractive errors in one or both eyes in
children. Using a camera or video system, images of the
pupillary reflexes (reflections) are obtained. Other than
having to fixate on the appropriate target long enough for the
photoscreening, little cooperation is needed from the child.
Data is then analyzed by the evaluator. Children who do not
pass the test may be referred for a complete eye examination.
Photoscreening does not represent a single technique or piece of
equipment. Different optical systems can be used for
photoscreening. Each photoscreening system may have its own
advantages and disadvantages, and it appears that results
published in the literature for one system are not necessarily
valid for others. Studies performed by different investigators
using the same photoscreening apparatus may yield a wide range
of results. Likewise, it is not certain that data gathered
about different groups of children or different settings can be
extrapolated to other groups or settings. The AAP favors
additional research of the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of
photoscreening as a vision screening tool.
Vision screening in California's schools. A guide developed by
the CDE titled, A Guide for Vision Testing in California Public
Schools, states that the people authorized to conduct vision
tests include the following:
1)Medical practitioners, including a nurse, physician,
ophthalmologist, or optometrist who holds both a license from
the appropriate California board or agency, and a health and
development credential, a standard designated service
AB 1840
Page 3
credential with a specialization in health, a health services
credential as a school nurse, or a school nurse services
credential;
2)Certificated school district or county employees who hold a
teaching credential and are qualified by training, including
satisfactory completion of six hours of vision testing, or an
accredited college or university course in vision testing of
at least one semester unit; or,
3)Contracting agents who have met the training requirements
specified above and who have been authorized by the county
superintendent of schools in which the district is located to
perform the tests.
This bill was substantially amended in the Senate, in which much
of the subject matter was not heard in Assembly policy committee
this legislative session.
Analysis Prepared by : Lara Flynn / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097
FN: 0005477