Question
My eye doctor recently recommended that I use Opti Free multi purpose solution rather than Equate multipurpose solution. She said that Equate multipurpose solution was not regulated by the FDA. Is that true?
I have been using Equate multipurpose solution without incident for yrs now. Opti free multipurpose solution costs roughly $14 vs Equate which costs roughly $4.
Answer
Yes, that is true in the sense that Equate is not a particular chemical formula.
What the repackagers do, from what I understand, is take bids from the various manufacturers to supply them with large batches of one of their older contact lens formulas. (these are older products that of course at one time met FDA standards but have been replaced by the newer formulas that represent the latest advancements in technology and are sold under the brand names.) Whoever gives the repacker the best price that year (or whatever span of time is in question) is the manufacturer that gets the contract (this time) and that formula is what is sold as "Equate" or whatever "big box" brand.
But the problem is, for those who are allergic, or if there is a problem with that solution, as there was a few years back with several of the products, there is no simple way to be sure which product is in the Equate bottle.
The next time the bidding goes out, another manufacturer may win the bid and THEIR product is then sold as "Equate," in fact a different product under the same name.
For someone who is allergic to one of these formulas, this can cause uncomfortable consequences. The solution manufacturers like to claim 1 or 2% allergy rates to their products, which is probably one reason this repackaging process is permitted. But in practice I have always suspected the rate of people who are intolerant (cannot use a certain solution due to poor reactions that are not exactly the same as allergy) to be much, much higher.
For this reason, if you always use a certain name brand, and if you have a problem, your doctor can easily direct you to a solution that will solve the problem. Not so if you have been using a generic product of uncertain origin and chemical formula.
