History of Registered Opticians in Texas!
The Registered Opticians Association of Texas has it's roots from the Opticians Association of Texas. Texas opticians were in danger of losing all claim to professional status in 1981 and nothing was being done to stop it. A handful of opticians including Bruce Richardson and Sammy Timpa concluded that there was no alternative but to form a new association to deal with legal and legislative issues. Opticians Association of Texas Inc. (OAT) was formed and the result was the  passage of the Opticians Registry Act in 1991. It is the plan of our association to go back to the OAT name as soon as we are ready to once again go for mandatory licensure of Opticians in Texas. We are targeting the 2013 legislative session for this effort.

It’s déjà vu.  Today we face a similar danger, because nothing has been done effectively since OAT became inactive in 1995. As a result, in June 2001 three Opticians dedicated to improving the status and future of all Opticians formally announced the creation of the Registered Opticians Association of Texas, Inc. (ROATx). Today there are over one-hundred members and over two-hundred affiliates that participate in the activities and training provided through ROATx.  The purpose of ROATx is to aggressively promote the academic, legal, and legislative interests of all opticians in Texas and to expand the scope of practice of Registered Opticians. In 2001, the officers of ROATx were: Sam Johnson serving as President, Sammy Timpa (OAT Past-President) serving as Vice-President, and Bruce Richardson (OAT Past-President) serving as Executive Director. In 2005 the Executive Board of Directors of the Registered Opticians Association of Texas was expanded to five members by the addition of two additional members. Robert Van Cleave from Abilene, Texas and Benjamin J. Rust from Fort Worth, Texas were added to the Executive Board and are currently serving in Vice President positions. 

During the 77th, 78th, 79th, 80th, and 81st session of the Texas Legislature in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011  ROATx was the only organization representing opticians. We stood alone! We testified before the Public Health and State Affairs committees of the House. We represented Opticianry in discussions with the Chairman of the Public Health committee and other interested groups. We have invested many hours in conversations with legislators, staff people, and representatives of other groups about our issues. Between now and the next session of the Texas legislature in January 2013 there is much work that must be done. 

This site offers you the opportunity to learn more about the Registered Opticians Association of Texas, Inc. (ROATx), renamed in 2001(formerly known as the Opticians Association of Texas - "OAT"). Most of the officers of ROATx have served Texas opticians as their "legislative voice" since 1980 when they founded and also served as the leadership of the Opticians Association of Texas (OAT). It was their leadership of OAT that made it possible to establish the Art and Science of Opticianry as an independent profession in Texas regulated by the Texas Department of Health (1991) and they were also successful in removing Registered Opticians from being regulated by the Texas Optometry Board (1995).

During the last six sessions of the Texas legislature (2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011), ROATx was the ONLY professional association in Texas to represent the opticians of Texas and to participate in the legislative hearings that concerned the future status of opticians in Texas. 

We encourage all Opticians to make every effort to earn the professional designations available through ABO/NCLE and complete the additional Continuing Education requirement necessary to become Registered with the Texas Department of Health as a Registered Dispensing Optician and a Registered Contact Lens Technician. Upon completion of earning both registrations, You will have earned the right to use the designation of ROATx Dual Registered Optician. A ROATx Dual Registered Optician WILL be recognized industry wide as a fully trained professional in the Art and Science of Opticianry. For more information about how to become a Registered Optician go to the Texas Department of State Health Services link http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/optician/default.shtm or contact us at info@ROATx.org. 


At the national OAA annual business meeting in California, the officers of ROATx discussed with the ABO/NCLE board members, that were present, the possibility of treating Texas Department of Health Registered Opticians who have kept their Texas Registry current during the three year term of their ABO/NCLE certifications be treated the same as Licensed Opticians in other states. This would require that Texas Registration License (a voluntary license) be accepted the same as any other licensed state's documentation as proof of completing the necessary requirements for the renewal of the ABO and NCLE certifications. This proposal by ROATx was accepted by the board of the ABO/NCLE at the August 2001 board meeting. This means that a Texas Department of Health Registration will be treated the same as Licensure in other states in regard to renewal of certification. As a purely practical matter, a Texas "Registered Optician" will need to maintain proof of continuous registration with the Texas Department of Health, but will now need only to provide a copy of one registration document during the three years to the ABO/NCLE certification organization (this may be faxed in or mailed in to ABO/NCLE at any time during the three year period). No longer will Registered Opticians in Texas be required to send in a collection of numerous documents and forms as previously required. ROATx has made it easier to maintain national certification with the ABO/NCLE if you are a Texas Department of Health Registered Optician than if you are a non-registered optician in Texas and only entry level certified. The Registered Opticians Association of Texas (ROATx) promises to continue representing the needs of all Registered Opticians in Texas. 

In 2008 ROATx established a state wide community service program that began targeting preventable blindness in children between the ages of one through four years.  During our first three years of operation (2009, 2010, & 2011) ROATx Certified Screeners screened nearly 3,000 children and we were able to identify 480 children that needed to be referred to a pediatric vision specialist. Due to the professional experience of the Registered Opticians that were performing the screenings, Twenty of the Four Hundred - Eighty were detected even though the PediaVision computerized equipment they were using did not detect a problem. During 2010 and 2011, we have detected nearly 400 children who needed a referral to a Pediatric Ophthalmologist for serious eye health conditions or to an Optometrists who specializes in children eye exams. 

As of the the first of January 2012, the Registered Opticians Association of Texas will now be known as the "Opticians Association of Texas". This change in name is called for because of the new and more focused direction of Texas's only state wide Opticians professional society. Our society has gone back to our roots. From 1981 through 2001 ROATx was known as the Opticians Association of Texas. During the last 10 years ROATx  has been know for it's efforts to encourage the Opticians of Texas to become voluntarily Registered with the Texas Department of State Health Services. With the increased focus of the society to make mandatory licensure of Opticians for the health and safety of the citizens of Texas a reality, it is felt that the name change will help this noble effort.

      The new name was chosen to make our professional society more inclusive of and for all the Opticians practicing in Texas. It is felt the many Opticians may have thought that ROATx was formed for Registered Opticians only. With the new association name, it is hoped that all individuals that call themselves Opticians will feel that they have a professional society that is working for them.

    The new and more focused direction of "OAT" is based on the the earlier efforts of ROATx to "Raise the Bar" of Education, establishing higher Credentialing Standards, and increasing Legislative Activity which will lead to Mandatory Licensure of Opticians in Texas. All Opticians who desire to "Raise the Bar" for Opticians in Texas are invited to join in these noble efforts. It is also felt that the new name "Opticians Association of Texas", being more inclusive, will serve our profession better at the state legislature during future legislative sessions.


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