In late August, Judge A. Howard Matz, of the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California, released his final ruling in favor of the American Board of Optometry (ABO) in the false advertising lawsuit brought by the American Optometric Society (AOS).

At issue: The AOS alleged that the ABO’s use of the term “board certification” is “false, misleading, confusing, deceptive or unfair.” In its suit, the AOS argued that the ABO’s use of board certification “convey[s] the false impression that an ABO-certified optometrist has extensive specialized education and training beyond optometry school and beyond that required for licensure.”

In his decision, though, Judge Matz ruled that the AOS failed to prove the “falsity, deception, materiality and injury” of ABO’s use of board certification.

Following the judge’s ruling, the ABO claimed victory in the case.

“The Judge’s ruling unambiguously states that our use of the term board certified is not confusing to the public,” said ABO Chairman of the Board Paul Ajamian, O.D. “The AOS’s attempt to put a cloud over our program has failed. This ruling ends a bitter chapter in the history of optometry. We are moving ahead, and look forward to continuing to serve the profession with a credible board certification program.”

The AOS, meanwhile, accepted the ruling on the false advertising litigation, but did not back down from its stance against board certification in general. Specifically, the AOS argued, the judge’s ruling did not alter an earlier injunction that prohibits the ABO from claiming its program represents competence above and beyond optometric licensure.

“Judge Matz did not address whether or not the ABO is a legitimate board certification program,” said AOS President Pamela Miller, O.D., J.D. “While an injunction would have been preferable, there is still no evidence that a misleading general board certification program in optometry is necessary or will be required by third-party payers or the government’s Medicare and Medicaid programs. As the AOS has been saying for over two years, there’s simply no value in the ABO’s program, and certainly no reason to pay them $1,800.”

FDA Approves Lucentis for Diabetic Macular Edema

The FDA has approved Genentech’s Lucentis (ranibizumab injection) for the treatment of diabetic macular edema. Two Phase III clinical studies showed that 34%-45% of patients treated with monthly Lucentis (0.3mg dose) gained at least three lines of vision. In comparison with patients who did not receive Lucentis, only 12%-18% had the same result.

Call for Unity
Following the judge’s ruling, many optometrists on both sides of the issue bemoaned the divisiveness that this lawsuit—and the civil war over board certification—has caused for the profession, as well as the time and money it has taken away from tackling other important problems.

In an editorial in the e-newsletter Optometric Physician, Art Epstein, O.D., a founding member of the AOS (who has since resigned from the AOS board to avoid possible conflicts with his role with the American Board of Clinical Optometry), wrote, “Mere words will not be enough to heal the deep wounds or narrow what is a still-growing divide. The only way is to sit down and work through them together—face-to-face. We need a summit where all stakeholders can openly explore real pathways toward reconciliation and discuss their future vision for our profession.”

He added, “Continuing conflict is a cancer that, if left unchecked, will consume our organizations and eventually our profession. Ultimately, we must find a way back to unity. We have no other choice.”

AOA President Ronald Hopping, O.D., M.P.H., stated, “Now we have much bigger challenges ahead of us. We can wallow in this board certification turmoil while the rest of the world moves forward or, if we are going to be successful, we can move on. We must move on … I welcome the participation of every optometrist in moving our profession forward. Our future now depends on what we all do together.”

How exactly will the profession move forward together? Perhaps a brand new board should be created just for that.