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This article was written by the Consumers Union Southwest Regional Office.
This report is also available in PDF Format
The Southwest Regional Office of Consumers Union originally conducted a survey of optometrists and ophthalmologists ("eye doctors") in 1995 to determine whether consumers could get their prescription from their eye doctor and use it to purchase lenses from the dispenser of their choice. At that time, CU found that most eye doctors would not release the prescription to the patient, forcing consumers to purchase their lenses from the eye doctor who provided the exam. Consumers Union also determined that the price of such lenses varied considerably, and the practice of withholding the prescription limited the consumer's ability to shop for the best price.
Consumers Union supports HB 196, which increases competition by giving consumers the right to get their contact lens prescription from the eye doctor and use it to purchase replacement lenses from the lowest cost outlet. |
In light of legislation introduced this session to improve competition in the contact lens market by giving consumers access to their prescriptions, Consumers Union again surveyed optometrists in the same nine Texas cities: Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Houston, Laredo, Midland/Odessa, San Antonio, and Tyler.
Our March 1997 survey, designed to recreate the actual experience of a consumer shopping for the best buy in contact lens care, confirmed that many Texas optometrists still withhold prescriptions for contact lenses from their patients--forcing the consumer to purchase replacement lenses from their eye doctor, usually at much higher prices than other outlets offer.
Current Texas law presents a double bind for consumers who want to compare contact lens products, prices, and services. Texas law prohibits the selling of contact lenses without a "fully written prescription" from an optometrist or ophthalmologist. At the same time, the law does not explicitly require the professional who writes the prescription to give it to the patient. While many eye doctors readily give the prescription to their patients, more than half do not.
The refusal to give a prescription to a contact lens customer appears to be aimed primarily at protecting the profit margins of eye doctors. Texas consumers, meanwhile, often spend much more than the least cost alternative for a prepackaged, shrink wrapped supply of lenses (identical to the package they would purchase from any other distributor) simply because they are unable to shop for the most competitive price for contacts.
House Bill 196, introduced by Representative Glen Maxey, gives consumers the right to get their contact lens prescription from their eye doctor and have it filled by the dispenser of their choice.
