[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 235 (Friday, December 8, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 57889-57891]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-26445]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 315


Public Workshop Examining Contact Lens Marketplace and Analyzing 
Proposed Changes to the Contact Lens Rule

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Public workshop and request for public comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is 
holding a public workshop relating to its December 7, 2016 Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (``NPRM'') announcing proposed changes to the 
Contact Lens Rule. The workshop will explore issues relating to 
competition in the contact lens marketplace, consumer access to contact 
lenses, prescription release and portability, and other issues raised 
in comments received in response to the NPRM.

DATES: The public workshop will be held on March 7, 2018, from 9:00 
a.m. until 5:00 p.m., at the Constitution Center Conference Center, 
located at 400 7th Street SW., Washington, DC. Requests to participate 
as a panelist must be received by January 5, 2018. Any written comments 
related to the agenda topics or the issues discussed by the panelists 
at the workshop must be received by April 6, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment or a request to 
participate as a panelist online or on paper, by following the 
instructions in the Filing Comments and Requests to Participate

[[Page 57890]]

as a Panelist part of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. 
Write ``Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR part 315, Comment, Project No. 
R511995'' on your comment and ``Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR part 315, 
Request to Participate, Project No. R511995'' on your request to 
participate as a panelist. File your comment online at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/contactlensworkshop by following the 
instructions on the web-based form. File your request to participate as 
a panelist by email to: [email protected]. If you prefer 
to file your comment or request to participate on paper, mail your 
comment or request to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, 
Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite CC-5610 
(Annex F), or deliver your comment or request to the following address: 
Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 
400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex F), Washington, DC 
20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elizabeth Delaney, Attorney, 202-326-
2903, or Alysa Bernstein, Attorney, 202-326-3289, Federal Trade 
Commission, Division of Advertising Practices, Bureau of Consumer 
Protection, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    In 2003, Congress enacted the Fairness to Contact Lens Consumers 
Act.\1\ Pursuant to the Act, the Commission promulgated the Contact 
Lens Rule (``Rule''), which went into effect on August 2, 2004.\2\ The 
Rule promotes competition in retail sales of contact lenses by 
facilitating consumers' ability to comparison shop for contact lenses. 
When a prescriber completes a contact lens fitting, the Rule requires 
that the prescriber provide the patient with a copy of her 
prescription. The Rule also requires that the prescriber verify or 
provide such prescriptions to authorized third parties, such as contact 
lens sellers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 7601-7610 (Pub. L. 108-164).
    \2\ Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR 315.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In addition, the Rule places certain requirements on sellers. It 
mandates that sellers dispense contact lenses only in accordance with a 
valid prescription that is either presented to the seller or verified 
by direct communication with the prescriber.\3\ Sellers may not alter a 
prescription, but for private label contact lenses, may substitute 
identical contact lenses that the same company manufactures and sells 
under a different name.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ 16 CFR 315.5(a).
    \4\ 16 CFR 315.5(e).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As part of its ongoing regulatory review program, the Commission 
published a Request for Comment in September 2015 seeking comment on: 
The economic impact of, and the continuing need for, the Rule; the 
benefits of the Rule to consumers; the burdens the Rule places on 
entities subject to its requirements; the impact the Rule has had on 
the flow of information to consumers; the degree of industry compliance 
with the Rule; the need for any modifications to increase its benefits 
or reduce its burdens or to account for changes in relevant technology; 
and any overlap or conflict with the Rule and other federal, state, or 
local laws or regulations.\5\ The comment period closed on October 26, 
2015, and the Commission received 660 comments.\6\ Virtually all 
commenters agreed that there is a continuing need for the Rule and that 
it benefits consumers and competition. The majority of commenters 
recommended some modifications to the Rule in order to maximize the 
benefits to consumers and competition, decrease the burden on 
businesses, protect consumers' eye health, or improve overall 
compliance with the Rule's existing requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ Contact Lens Rule, Request for Comment, 80 FR 53272 (Sept. 
3, 2015).
    \6\ The comments are posted at: https://www.ftc.gov/policy/public-comments/initiative-621.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    After reviewing the comments, the Commission published a Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (``NPRM'') proposing to amend the Rule to require 
that prescribers obtain a signed acknowledgment after releasing a 
contact lens prescription to a patient, and maintain each such 
acknowledgment for a period of not less than three years.\7\ The 
Commission also proposed to strike the words ``private label'' from 
Section 315.5(e) of the Rule to conform the language of the Rule to 
that of the Act. The Commission sought public comment on these proposed 
amendments as well as several other issues, including: The use of 
patient portals to provide prescriptions; the provision of additional 
copies of a prescription to a patient; the amount of time required for 
a prescriber to respond to a request for a copy of a prescription; and 
additional information on possible modifications to the Rule that could 
address issues raised about automated telephone calls. The Commission 
received over 4,100 comments in response.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ Contact Lens Rule, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request 
for Comment, 81 FR 88526 (Dec. 7, 2016).
    \8\ The comments are posted at: https://www.ftc.gov/policy/public-comments/2016/10/initiative-677.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

II. Issues for Discussion at the Workshop

    As part of the Contact Lens Rule rulemaking, the FTC is hosting a 
public workshop to explore issues relating to competition in the 
contact lens marketplace, consumer access to contact lenses, 
prescription release and portability, and other issues raised in 
comments to the NPRM. The workshop will cover topics including: (1) 
Consumers' ability to comparison shop for contact lenses; (2) the use 
of electronic health records, patient portals, and other technology to 
improve prescription portability; (3) the interaction between the 
Contact Lens Rule and emerging telehealth business models; (4) the 
potential for new technology to improve the prescription verification 
process; and (5) modifications to the Contact Lens Rule to foster 
competition and maximize consumer benefits, including benefits to eye 
health.
    A more detailed agenda will be published at a later date, in 
advance of the scheduled workshop.

III. Public Participation Information

A. Workshop Attendance

    The workshop is free and open to the public, and will be held at 
the Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., Washington, DC. It will be 
webcast live on the FTC's Web site. For admittance to the Constitution 
Center, all attendees must show valid government-issued photo 
identification, such as a driver's license. Please arrive early enough 
to allow adequate time for this process.
    This event may be photographed, videotaped, webcast, or otherwise 
recorded. By participating in this event, you are agreeing that your 
image--and anything you say or submit--may be posted indefinitely at 
www.ftc.gov or on one of the Commission's publicly available social 
media sites.

B. Requests To Participate as a Panelist

    The workshop will be organized into panels, which will address the 
designated topics. Panelists will be selected by FTC staff. Other 
attendees will have an opportunity to comment and ask questions. The 
Commission will place a transcript of the proceeding on the public 
record. Requests to participate as a panelist must be received on or 
before January 5, 2018, as explained in Section IV below. Persons

[[Page 57891]]

selected as panelists will be notified on or before January 19, 2018.
    Disclosing funding sources promotes transparency, ensures 
objectivity, and maintains the public's trust. If chosen, prospective 
panelists will be required to disclose the source of any support they 
received in connection with participation at the workshop. This 
information will be included in the published panelist bios as part of 
the workshop record.

C. Electronic and Paper Comments

    The submission of comments is not required for participation in the 
workshop. If a person wishes to submit paper or electronic comments 
related to the agenda topics or the issues discussed by the panelists 
at the workshop, such comments should be filed as prescribed in Section 
IV, and must be received on or before April 6, 2018.

IV. Filing Comments and Requests To Participate as a Panelist

    You can file a comment, or request to participate as a panelist, 
online or on paper. For the Commission to consider your comment, we 
must receive it on or before April 6, 2018. For the Commission to 
consider your request to participate as panelist, we must receive it by 
January 5, 2018. Write ``Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR part 315, Comment, 
Project No. R511995'' on your comment and ``Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR 
part 315, Request to Participate, Project No. R511995'' on your request 
to participate. Your comment--including your name and your state--will 
be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including, to the 
extent practicable, on the public Commission Web site, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.shtm.
    Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to 
heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit 
your comments online, or to send them to the Commission by courier or 
overnight service. To make sure that the Commission considers your 
online comment, you must file it at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/contactlensworkshop, by following the instructions on the web based 
form. When this Notice appears at http://www.regulations.gov/#!home, 
you also may file a comment through that Web site.
    Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible FTC 
Web site at https://www.ftc.gov, you are solely responsible for making 
sure that your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential 
information. In particular, your comment should not include any 
sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social 
Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state 
identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number, 
financial account number, or credit or debit card number. You are also 
solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include 
any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment 
should not include any ``trade secret or any commercial or financial 
information which . . . is privileged or confidential''--as provided by 
Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 
16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)--including in particular competitively sensitive 
information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, 
patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is 
requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). In particular, 
the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the 
comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and 
must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from 
the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in 
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has 
been posted on the public FTC Web site--as legally required by FTC Rule 
4.9(b)--we cannot redact or remove your comment from the FTC Web site, 
unless you submit a confidentiality request that meets the requirements 
for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and the General Counsel 
grants that request.
    Requests to participate as a panelist at the workshop should be 
submitted electronically to [email protected], or, if 
mailed, should be submitted in the manner detailed below. Parties are 
asked to include in their requests a brief statement setting forth 
their expertise in or knowledge of the issues on which the workshop 
will focus as well as their contact information, including a telephone 
number and email address (if available), to enable the FTC to notify 
them if they are selected.
    If you file your comment or request on paper, write ``Contact Lens 
Rule, 16 CFR part 315, Comment, Project No. R511995'' on your comment 
and on the envelope and ``Contact Lens Rule, 16 CFR part 315, Request 
to Participate, Project No. R511995,'' on your request and on the 
envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex F), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex 
F). If possible, submit your paper comment or request to the Commission 
by courier or overnight service.
    Visit the Commission Web site at http://www.ftc.gov to read this 
Notice and the news release describing it. The FTC Act and other laws 
that the Commission administers permit the collection of public 
comments to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. The 
Commission will consider all timely and responsive public comments that 
it receives on or before April 6, 2018. The Commission will consider 
all timely requests to participate as a panelist in the workshop that 
it receives by January 5, 2018. For information on the Commission's 
privacy policy, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, 
see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

V. Communications by Outside Parties to Commissioners or Their Advisors

    Written communications and summaries or transcripts of oral 
communications respecting the merits of this proceeding, from any 
outside party to any Commissioner or Commissioner's advisor will be 
placed on the public record. See 16 CFR 1.26(b)(5).

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-26445 Filed 12-7-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6750-01-P