Court: State Can Enforce ‘1-800 Contacts’ Law

The case is about minimum retail pricing policies.

Utah can enforce its law regulating retail pricing of contact lenses, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Alcon Laboratories Inc., Bausch & Lomb Inc. and Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Inc. had sought to prevent the law from being enforced while they sue the state, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.

At issue is Utah legislation that “prohibited lens makers from enforcing their minimum retail pricing policies in this state,” according to the newspaper.

The latest decision comes from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. It allows for the law to be enforced while the litigation is ongoing.

The three manufacturers have claimed that the law is unconstitutional. They argue that by regulating interstate transactions, it violates the Commerce Clause.

According to the Tribune, the law is colloquially referred to as the 1-800 Contacts law “because the online retailer is located in Utah and its representatives lobbied for its passage.”

Read more at the Salt Lake Tribune