Calif. Court says Pearle Vision Broke the Law

Optometric Management, Jul 2006

OPTICIANS CAN'T EMPLOY O.D.S

The California Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Pearle Vision, a unit of Luxottica, violated a state law that limits relationships between the providers of eye wear and those who provide eye exams. Pearle Vision had argued that the Knox-Keene Act of 1976 allowed its optometry company, Pearle VisionCare, to operate as an HMO free of any such restrictions. The VisionCare optometrists work in the same stores as opticians employed by Pearle Vision.

The court ruled that the KnoxKeene Act allowed optometrists and other health professionals to work for HMOs, but did not repeal earlier laws that prohibit opticians from employing optometrists, maintaining them on or near the premises, or having landlord-tenant relationships with O.D.s. The ruling upholds an injunction by state Attorney General Bill Lockyer that prohibits Pearle Vision from advertising eye exams. Mr. Lockyer sued the company in 2002 in San Diego, claiming it falsely advertised that optometrists located in or near its retail outlets were independent of the company. This latest ruling was a result of Pearle Vision's appeal and allows the lawsuit to proceed towards trial.

"Consumers have less protection when the firm selling eyewear also controls the doctor writing the prescription. Today's ruling upholds Californians' insistence that when it comes to their health, those with the credentials should make the decisions," says Mr. Lockyer in a statement released after the ruling.

Luxottica's North American retail division issued a statement noting the court had not yet resolved the legality of the relationship between the optician and optometry subsidiaries, an issue to be addressed in the San Diego suit. The outcome could change the way ECPs do business in California.