The Optometry Act (驗光人員法), which stipulates that optical retailers must have an optometry clinic to perform vision tests, is to be enacted in 2026, but there is still a shortage of about 900 optometry clinics compared with optical retailers.
The act was passed in 2016 and has a 10-year grace period, so starting from Jan. 6, 2026, optical retailers must have an optometry clinic with a licensed optometrist to perform vision tests for customers or they may be fined.
However, although there is only about a year left until the act is enacted, there is still a shortage of more than 900 optometry clinics compared to optical retailers, and the national exam passing rates for optometrists and optical technicians have fallen.
Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times
Licensed optometry clinics have increased yearly, from less than 2,000 in 2019 to 3,271 last year, or a growth rate of more than 60 percent in four years, statistics from the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Department of Medical Affairs showed.
However, Ministry of Finance data in September showed that there are only 4,185 registered optic retailers nationwide.
Meanwhile, the number of optometrists in practice increased from 42 in 2017 to 3,779 last year and the number of optical technicians rose from 20 to 4,061 in the same period, the data showed.
However, the passing rates for the national exam for optometrists fell from 24.71 percent in 2017 to 22.66 percent last year, and from 46.57 percent to 28.52 percent in the same period for optical technicians.
Those who pass the exam still have to train and accumulate practical experience, so some eye clinics are also competing in the recruitment of optometrists.
Optometrists must pass the national examinations to perform vision tests and perform refraction tests to determine whether a patient needs a prescription for myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism or presbyopia eyeglasses and contact lenses, the act states.
Optical retailers must also obtain a license within the 10-year grace period or they might face a fine of between NT$30,000 and NT$150,000 (US$926 and US$4,628) for performing vision tests and giving prescriptions without a license.
Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀) said the act accelerates the professionalization of the industry, which is required, as optical prescription involves measuring the diopters, assessing eye accommodation ability and actual visual demands, and non-professional optometrists might make the wrong judgement or are unable to detect other visual issues.
Many optical retailers have already done optometrist training in the 10-year grace period, she said.
Optometrist Society of Taiwan president Huang Chun-chen (黃群宸) said Taiwan has more optometrists than many neighboring countries, but there is a big difference between the numbers in urban and rural areas.
There are 7,840 optometrists and optometric technicians in Taiwan — an average of one per 2,935 people, which is higher than the one per 3,260 people in Hong Kong, one per 5,600 people in Singapore and one per 10,670 people in Malaysia, he said.
On average, there is one optical retailer per 3,210 people in Taiwan, so in that crowded and unhealthy competitive environment, some retailers do not want to hire an optometrist and establish an optometric clinic due to the extra cost, but they would be eliminated from the market if they cannot overcome the challenge, Huang said.
The overall optometry manpower is stable, and they should focus on improving service quality to ensure a healthy development for the optical market, he said.
Most optometrists are working in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taichung and other big cities, while Taitung County, Penghu County, Lienchiang County and other remote rural areas often have insufficient optometrists, Huang said, adding that the government should offer tax breaks to encourage more professional optometrists to work in those areas.
A fourth public debate was held today about restarting the recently decommissioned Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant, ahead of a referendum on the controversial issue to be held in less than two weeks. A referendum on Aug. 23 is to ask voters if they agree that “the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operations upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns.” Anyone over 18 years of age can vote in the referendum. The vote comes just three months after its final reactor shut down, officially making Taiwan nuclear-free. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) represented
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
Scoot announced yesterday that starting in October, it would increase flights between Taipei and Japan’s Narita airport and Hokkaido, and between Singapore and Taipei. The low-cost airline, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, also said it would launch flights to Chiang Rai in Thailand, Okinawa and Tokyo’s Haneda airport between December and March next year. Flights between Singapore and Chiang Rai would begin on Jan. 1, with five flights per week operated by an Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, Scoot said. Flights between Singapore and Okinawa would begin on Dec. 15, with three flights per week operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, the airline said. Services between Singapore
‘ANGRY’: Forgetting the humiliations and sacrifices of ‘the people of the Republic of China’ experienced disqualified Lai from being president, Ma Ying-jeou said Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday criticized President William Lai (賴清德) over what he called “phrasing that downplayed Japan’s atrocities” against China during World War II. Ma made the remarks in a post on Facebook on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. Ma said he was “angry and disappointed” that Lai described the anniversary as the end of World War II instead of a “victory in the war of resistance” — a reference to the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). The eight-year war was a part of World War II, in which Japan and the other Axis
RSS