South Carolina Justices Uphold Automated Eye Exam Restrictions

Eye doctors in South Carolina can’t prescribe eyeglasses and contact lenses based on the results of automated tests that measure refractive error, after the state’s top court upheld a law banning the practice.

The Eye Care Consumer Protection Law didn’t violate the state constitution’s equal protection or due process clauses, the South Carolina Supreme Court said Wednesday in a case dating back to 2016. The provision bore a reasonable relationship to the state’s legitimate interest in protecting public health, Justice John Cannon Few said for the unanimous court.

Then-Gov. Nikki Haley (R) had vetoed the bill as an example of ...