Please read the FTC announcement to ensure your practice is in compliance. The announcement lists the following changes, which go into effect September 24, 2024:

The changes announced require that prescribers, after providing the prescription, request that their patients sign a statement confirming they received their prescription and keep a record of such confirmation for at least three years. These new confirmation requirements—which mostly mirror those already in place for contact lens prescriptions—only apply to optometrists and ophthalmologists who have a financial interest in selling prescription eyewear.

Other changes to the rule:

• allows prescribers, with a patient’s verifiable affirmative consent, to provide the patient with a digital copy of a prescription in lieu of a paper copy; if the patient refuses the digital copy, the prescriber must provide a paper copy; 

• explicitly specifies that, whether the patient consents to digital delivery or opts for a paper copy of their prescription, the prescription must be provided immediately after the examination is completed (not after the patient has been sold glasses, for instance). A patient must have their prescription before any offer to sell them glasses; 

• clarifies that presentation of proof of insurance coverage shall be deemed to be a payment for the purpose of determining when a prescription must be provided; 

• changes the term “eye examination” to “refractive eye examination” throughout the text and emphasizes the need for prescribers to educate consumers that there can be a difference between an eye health examination and a refractive eye examination. This is because the automatic release of prescriptions is only required following a refractive eye examination.