Iowa Code Title IV. Public Health [Chs. 123-158] § 147.108. Contact lens prescribing and dispensing

1. A person shall not dispense or adapt contact lenses without first receiving authorization to do so by a written, electronic, or facsimile prescription, except when authorized orally under subsection 2, from a person licensed under chapter 148 or 154. The board of optometry shall adopt rules relating to electronic or facsimile transmission of a prescription under this section.

2. After contact lenses have been adequately adapted and the patient released from initial follow-up care by a person licensed under chapter 148 or 154, the patient may request a copy, at no cost, of the contact lens prescription from that licensed person. A person licensed under chapter 148 or 154 shall not withhold a contact lens prescription after the requirements of this section have been met. The prescription, at the option of the prescriber, may be given orally only to a person who is actively practicing and licensed under chapter 148, 154, or 155A. The contact lens prescription shall contain an expiration date, at the discretion of the prescriber, but not to exceed eighteen months. The contact lens prescription shall contain the necessary requirements of the ophthalmic lens, and the prescription validation requirements as defined by rules adopted pursuant to this section. The prescription may contain adapting and material guidelines and may also contain specific instructions for use by the patient. For the purpose of this section, “ophthalmic lens” means one which has been fabricated to fill the requirements of a particular contact lens prescription, including pharmaceutical-delivering contact lenses as defined in section 154.1, subsection 3.

3. A person who fills a contact lens prescription shall maintain a file of a valid prescription for a period of two years.

4. Notwithstanding section 147.86, a person who violates this section is guilty of a simple misdemeanor for a first violation. Subsequent violations are governed by section 147.86.