CLindustry backs plano plans

As reported last week (News, February 20), the DoH plans to regulate non-prescription lenses and will be seeking public opinion when it releases the document in April.
The Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers is a staunch supporter of the proposal, claiming the current situation Ð which allows unregulated outlets such as body piercing parlours and fashion accessory shops to sell the lenses Ð is putting wearers at 'unnecessary risk of infection and other complications'.
General secretary Simon Rodwell said: 'It has also resulted in unfair competition which disadvantages reputable and highly regulated manufacturers of prescription contact lenses.
'All reputable manufacturers sell their products only through registered practitioners. As there is no difference between plano and prescription contact lenses from the point of view of their effect on the eye, bypassing this safeguard potentially puts the wearer at risk.'
Rodwell made reference to the DoH's 1999 move to stop the re-use of multi-use trial contact lenses because of fears they could transmit new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
'Unregulated plano lenses are outside the umbrella of this safeguard, and yet four years later it continues to be regularly reported that they are ÒswappedÓ by young people who are ignorant of the health aspects. The ÒfunÓ element of lens wear can be overstated by unregulated outlets and the paramount need to prevent infection is often ignored.'
The ACLM would be interested to hear from practitioners who have dealt with eye problems as a result of the unregulated supply of contact lenses.
samantha.daltonrbi.co.uk