[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1454 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1454

  To require the Federal Trade Commission to issue a trade regulation 
  rule which requires the release of prescriptions for contact lenses.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 6, 1995

  Mr. Stark introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Federal Trade Commission to issue a trade regulation 
  rule which requires the release of prescriptions for contact lenses.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Contact Lens Prescription Release 
Act of 1995''.

SEC. 2. PRESCRIPTIONS FOR CONTACT LENSES.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Trade Commission shall amend its trade 
regulation rule on ophthalmic practice published at 16 C.F.R. 456 to 
require the prescriber to offer to release a copy of the prescriber's 
prescription for contact lenses--
            (1) after the contact lens fitting process is completed, or
            (2) in the case of a renewal of a prescription, immediately 
        if there is no change in the prescription's specifications,
regardless of whether or not the patient requests a copy of the 
prescription. Such a prescription shall expire 2 years from the date of 
its issue unless the prescriber otherwise specifies based upon the 
medical judgment of the provider.
    (b) Definitions.--For purposes of subsection (a):
            (1) The term ``prescription'' means the specifications 
        necessary to obtain contact lenses and includes data on the 
        refractive status of patient's eyes and clearly notes that the 
        patient is suitable for contact lenses.
            (2) The term ``prescriber'' means an ophthalmologist or 
        optometrist who performs eye examinations under a license 
        issued by a State.
            (3) The term ``contact lens fitting process is completed'' 
        means the process which--
                    (A) begins after the initial eye examination and 
                includes an examination to determine what the lens 
                specifications should be, the purchase of lenses, and 
                an initial evaluation of the fit of the lens on the 
                patient's eyes and follow-up examinations, and
                    (B) is completed when the prescriber is satisfied 
                that a successful fit has been achieved.

SEC. 3. EFFECT ON STATE LAW.

    The prescription release requirement of section 2 does not affect 
any State law which permits the release of prescriptions for contact 
lenses on terms which are not more restrictive than the terms of 
section 2 or regulates who is to be legally permitted to fit contact 
lenses.
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