Members of Congress introduce bill to improve contact lens safety
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Members of the House and Senate introduced bipartisan legislation intended to improve online contact lens sale practices.
The Contact Lens Prescription Verification Modernization Act (HR 3352), introduced by U.S. Representatives Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.), Michael C. Burgess, MD (R-Texas), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) and David B. McKinley (R-W.Va.), would make purchasing contact lenses online easier and safer, ban the use of robocalls to verify patient information and ensure that protected medical information sent over email is encrypted, according to a press release from Rush’s office.
Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and John Boozman, OD (R-Ark.), introduced the Senate companion legislation (S 1784), according to a press release from the Health Care Alliance for Patient Safety (APS).
“With this bill introduction by Senator Duckworth and Senator Boozman, there is a recognition by members of both parties in both chambers of Congress that action must be taken to enhance patient safety mechanisms,” APS Chairman David Cockrell, OD, said in the release.
The bills will contribute to increasing patient safety by prohibiting prescription verification via robocall and instead requiring email, live phone call or fax confirmation of prescriptions, according to the release. The bill also requires that online sellers develop HIPAA-compliant methods by which patients can electronically transmit their contact lens prescriptions.
American Optometric Association President William Reynolds, OD, said in Rush’s press release that it is time to fix the robocall loophole that undermines quality care and puts patient health at risk.
The Contact Lens Prescription Verification Modernization Act is supported by the AOA, APS and the American Academy of Ophthalmology, according to the release.
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