As the summer grinds on, lawmakers in Washington should be focusing their energies on enacting additional tax relief and setting better spending priorities to help the nation recover from the health and economic effects of coronavirus. Instead, last week Americans were treated to a show trial of tech CEOs in the House of Representatives, as Members of Congress levied various accusations that tech had grown too “big” and “biased.” Such rhetoric has led to destructive proposals that NTU has warned about here and here, even though (as an NTU ad pointed out) tech has been a vital element in keeping our economy and society connected during the COVID crisis.
Unfortunately, Congress’s strange disconnect from the real-world concerns of everyday Americans goes much further, even affecting how we have been able to access eye care services. As our readers know all too well, NTU has joined with consumer advocates across the spectrum to fight for consumer choice in vision exams and eyewear purchasing.
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Contact Lens Rule has been an exemplar of what NTU calls “deregulatory rulemaking” – utilizing FTC’s authority to increase competition in the marketplace by clearing away outdated restrictions on how products and services can be offered. The Contact Lens Rule, recently updated by the FTC, will help millions of Americans get better access to their contact lens prescriptions so they may purchase what they need not only from their optometrist, but also from other retailers and online outlets. The development of this purchasing model, along with the rise of online eye exam technologies, has meant big potential savings for taxpayer-backed public health and government employee insurance programs too.
When the updated Rule was issued in late June, NTU applauded the move but issued a warning: “What's important now is that Congress not intervene to muddy up an area of consumer regulation that … finally, has some clarity.” Fast forward six weeks and House and Senate lawmakers on key committees are under pressure to tinker with FTC’s Contact Lens Rule update by further delaying or defunding its implementation. After nearly five years of thoughtful deliberation, hearings, stakeholder input, drafting, and re-drafting on FTC’s part, Congress needs to leave what’s well enough for taxpayers alone. Those who argue that “storefront” optometrists can’t handle implementation of the rule, ought to focus on the tax and regulatory burdens that more heavily affect these small businesses, such as HIPAA dictates and multistate licensure schemes (which have been eased in many areas of health care recently).
When ideologically disparate entities like Citizen Outreach and Consumer Reports all agree that the Contact Lens Rule update ought to take effect without another artificially-imposed delay, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle should feel secure that they need not intervene. This is especially important, however, to an NTU-led coalition of limited-government organizations, who see the updated rule as an embodiment of how regulatory agencies should carefully go about their missions instead of straying into manipulation of free markets.
Today the Senate Commerce Committee is holding a routine oversight hearing on FTC’s activities. This is a perfect opportunity for pro-taxpayer Members of Congress to enthusiastically support the updated Contact Lens Rule and allow it to take effect. Such support can demonstrate that especially during these tough times, Washington won’t get in the way of safe, affordable health care options that serve taxpayers as well as they do consumers.