Louisiana Contact Lens Wearer Sues Manufacturers

"A woman has brought an anti-trust lawsuit against several major optical suppliers, alleging unfair trade practices dating to 2013," reports the Louisiana Record. "Jennifer L. Crose filed a class action complaint against CooperVision Inc. of Pleasanton, Calif.; Alcon Laboratories Inc. of Fort Worth; Bausch and Lomb Inc. of Bridgewater, N.J.; Johnson and Johnson Vision Care Inc. of Jacksonville, Fla.; and ABB/Con-Cise Optical Group LLC (a.k.a. ABB Optical Group) of Coral Springs, Fla., in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Louisiana on March 31. According to the lawsuit, the defendants engaged in conspiratorial behavior to artificially control the price of contact lenses. Seeking to represent herself and class members who purchased contact lenses sold by the defendants collectively, Crose alleges that the manufacturers, who allegedly control more than 97 percent of the market, sought to fix, raise, maintain and/or stabilize the product prices by imposing price floor policies (PFPs) originating in mid-2013." Read more.