Seeking to establish central optical devices quality control and vision care regulation a private member bill has been introduced in Parliament recently. The proposed bill, introduced by MP Ajeet Madhavrao Gopchade, seeks to offer remedy to the alleged vulnerability of consumers who according to the bill are in a “no-man’s land” between the manufacture of a lens and its delivery.
“While the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021 regulates the professional, and the Drugs and Cosmetics Act regulates the “device” at the factory level, there is zero specific legislative oversight at the retail point-of-sale. This gap allows unscrupulous elements to operate testing clinics and retail shops without any technical accountability, leading to widespread medical negligence,’ it notes.
The spectacles as a spectacle
The MP, last month, in a question raised in Rajya Sabha sought information from the Union Health Ministry on whether it is aware that a substantial section of India’s population relies on spectacles and contact lenses for daily activities, thereby making accurate vision correction a critical public safety and public health concern and whether the absence of a uniform national regulatory mechanism for optometric services, covering eye testing, prescription accuracy, lens quality, fitting practices and professional accountability, may adversely affect vision health and contribute to road accidents. He also asked if the Government proposes examining the best international practices and considering establishing a statutory National Optical Regulatory Board to ensure quality?
