---
title: O.C.G.A. § 43-30-13. Construction of chapter.
collection: code
id: 43-30-13
cite_as: O.C.G.A. § 43-30-13 (2025)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/43-30-13
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/43-30-13.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/43-30-13/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/document/docs/default-source/joint-features-document-library/t43-ch1-32-(v30)-pdf.pdf?sfvrsn=94981bdc_0#page=249
date: 2025
status: active
corpus_version: 2025-supplement-89aa39ab3c68
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publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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version: the only printed version
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current_through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly
heading_path: PROFESSIONS AND BUSINESSES / OPTOMETRISTS
---

# O.C.G.A. § 43-30-13. Construction of chapter.

(a) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply to physicians and surgeons duly licensed to practice medicine; to prevent persons from selling spectacles or eyeglasses on prescription from any duly qualified optometrist or physician; to prevent any person from selling glasses as articles of merchandise or from using test cards in connection with the sale of such glasses at a permanently located place when not trafficking or attempting to traffic upon assumed skill in optometry; or to authorize any registered optometrist to use, dispense, sell, prescribe, or administer drugs except as permitted by law, to practice medicine or surgery in any manner as defined by the laws of this state, or to use the title of “M.D.” or any other title mentioned in Code Section 43-34-21 or 43-34-22.

(b) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to imply liability, either civil or criminal, on the part of a pharmacist who is duly licensed under Title 26 and who in good faith fills a prescription presented by a patient pursuant to this chapter. The pharmacist shall presume that the prescription was issued by a duly licensed optometrist under this chapter who has qualified under this Code section to prescribe pharmaceutical agents. The pharmacist shall also presume that the pharmaceutical agent prescribed by the optometrist is an approved pharmaceutical agent, unless the pharmacist has actual or constructive knowledge to the contrary.

## History

Ga. L. 1916, p. 83, § 9; Code 1933, § 84-1108; Ga. L. 1988, p. 34, § 3; Ga. L. 2009, p. 859, § 13/HB 509; Ga. L. 2025, p. 588, § 3/SB 140, effective May 13, 2025.

## Amendments

The 2025 amendment, effective May 13, 2025, in subsection (a), substituted “; to prevent” for “, nor to prevent” twice, substituted “or to authorize” for “nor shall anything in this chapter be construed to authorize”, substituted “to use, dispense, sell, prescribe, ” substituted “law, to practice” for “law or practice”, and for “to prescribe”, substituted “state, or” for “state; nor shall this chapter be construed to authorize any such person”.