Doc doesn't have to give
contacts prescription

QUESTION: My eye doctor will not give me my prescription for my contacts, which means I have to get the contacts from him.

His prices are high. If I had the prescription, I could get cheaper lenses from another company.

Can I force him to give me the prescription?

ANSWER: No, you can't force him. Federal requirement only requires an eye doctor to release eye glass prescriptions.

Verna Oda, executive officer for the Board of Examiners in Optometry, said contact lenses are not covered by the federal requirement.

Many doctors aren't willing to release contact lens prescriptions because of liability problems.

"It's their option," she said.

Other Kokua Line items in
today's Star-Bulletin:

How to get a permit to transport a body elsewhere for burial
State law concerning shift changes at work
Mahalo and Auwe

Need help with problems? Call Kokua Line at 525-8686, fax 525-6711, or write to P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802. Email to kokualine@starbulletin.com