FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION • FTC.GOV 

SPEAKER BIOS

Panel 1: Prescription Release

Sara D. Brown, MPA has served as the Director of Government Affairs for Prevent Blindness since April 

2017. Prior to her current role, Sara managed communications projects at a public affairs firm for the 

Defense Health Agency. Sara has also represented the interests of medical group practice managers 

before Congress and the Administration as an Associate Director, Government Affairs with the Medical 

Group Management Association. She also previously worked as a Manager with NRC Health, advising

hospital executives on best practices to improve patient experience. She began her career in 

government and public policy working with two Members of the U.S. Senate for over 6 years. A 

Nebraska native, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and political science from the University of 

Nebraska-Kearney and a master’s degree in public administration from Walden University.

Wallace W. Lovejoy is an independent eye care consultant at Lovejoy Eyecare Consulting, a position he 

has held since 2012. He is also the Chair of the National Association of Retail Optical Companies 

(NAROC), formerly the National Association of Optometrists and Opticians (NAOO), a trade association 

for retail optical companies with co-located eyecare, and co-chair of the American Telemedicine 

Association Ocular Telehealth Special Interest Group. He is also on the Board of Lumina Vision 

Partners, a management service organization operating a network of optometry offices, and is an 

advisor to several eyecare related companies, including 20/20Now, Toku Eyes, IbisVision, Spect and 

OcuDoc Mobile. He was previously the Senior Vice President, Eye Care Development at Luxottica Retail 

North America. In this role, he oversaw support for optometrists and opticians in North America 

affiliated with LensCrafters, Pearle Vision, Sears Optical, Target Optical and EYEXAM of California, a 

licensed vision health care service plan. He also had a leadership role in network management for 

EyeMed, a Luxottica vision care plan. Prior to his role as Senior Vice President, he was Vice President in 

various legal, regulatory, and operational roles with LensCrafters and Luxottica Retail beginning in 

1986. He was an attorney at Pearle Vision focusing on ophthalmic regulation and franchising from 1983 

to 1986. He was a staff attorney at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 1977 to 1983. He has 

been a consultant to many of the major optical retailers in the US and several managed vision care 

companies. Mr. Lovejoy has a J.D. from the University of Texas, a M.A. (economics) from 

Northwestern, a B.A. (economics) from SMU and is a licensed attorney in Ohio.

Dr. Jeffrey Michaels, OD, FAAO is co-owner of a private group practice in Glen Allen, Virginia, and is 

currently Chair of American Optometric Association (AOA) Federal & Regulatory Policy 

Communications. He is Past President of the Virginia Optometric Association and past Chair of the AOA
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Quality Improvement Committee that created and administered the Measures and Outcomes Registry 

for Eye Care (AOA MORE). Dr. Michaels has been honored as the AOA Optometrist of the Year and is a

two time recipient of the Virginia Optometrist of the Year Award and two time recipient of the Virginia 

Distinguished Service Award. He also received the President’s Award from the AOA twice. Dr. Michaels 

has spent the last several years educating optometrists about the relationship between optometry and 

quality improvement; pay for performance; MIPS; maintenance of certification; and value-based 

purchasing. Dr. Michaels graduated from the Michigan College of Optometry and is residency trained 

from Johns Hopkins University. He is appearing at the suggestion of the AOA.

Felecia P. Neilly is a Georgia resident, and a lifelong consumer of prescription eyeglasses and contact 

lenses.

Dr. Andrew Stivers, PhD is an Associate Director in the Antitrust Practice of National Economic 

Research Associates Economic Consulting (NERA), specializing in the economics of consumer 

protection and privacy. Prior to joining NERA, Dr. Stivers was Deputy Director for Consumer Protection 

in the FTC’s Bureau of Economics, where he oversaw economic analysis of consumer protection and 

privacy matters. Prior to the FTC, Dr. Stivers served as Director of the Division of Public Health 

Informatics and Analytics at the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied 

Nutrition, overseeing the Center’s statistical, epidemiological, and consumer research groups. His 

regulatory work included providing economic and behavioral analysis to consumer nutrition labeling 

initiatives. Before serving in federal government, Dr. Stivers was an assistant professor of economics at 

Oregon State University, where he examined the regulation of information. In March 2023, Dr. Stivers 

submitted a comment in response to the FTC’s Eyeglass Rule Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, for which 

he was sponsored by the American Optometric Association (AOA). The views expressed in his 

comment, and at today’s workshop, are those of Dr. Stivers and do not necessarily represent the views 

of NERA or the AOA, and Dr. Stivers is not appearing on the AOA or NERA’s behalf.

Panel 2: Examining the Confirmation Requirement and Lessons Learned 

from the Contact Lens Rule

Dr. Mahsa Masoudi, OD practices at Marietta Eye Clinic in the greater Atlanta area. She was appointed 

to the American Optometric Association (AOA) Education Center Committee in 2019, for which she 

continues to serve today. Dr. Masoudi completed clinical rotations through Walter Reed National 

Medical Center, Alameda Health Systems, as well as multiple Veterans Affairs Hospitals in North 

Carolina and Oklahoma. Back in her hometown of Atlanta, Dr. Masoudi completed her Ocular Disease 

residency at Omni Eye Services. During that time, she was also appointed nationally to the Optometry 

Cares Foundation Board of Trustees, for which she now serves as Secretary/Treasurer. Additionally, she 

volunteers as a Federal Advocacy Representative (FAR) and sits on various committees including the 

Optometric Historical Society & National Optometry Hall of Fame. Dr. Masoudi has won several awards 

including the Berkeley Optometry Ambassador of the Year, the California Bay Area Optometric Council 

Leadership Award, the COA Young Advocate Award, the national AOSA Trustee of the Year, and the 

Rick Bay Foundation Student Innovator Award for her project regarding the Contact Lens Rule. Dr. 

Masoudi graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor’s in political science and obtained a 

second Bachelor’s in science from Portland State University. She graduated from UC Berkeley, School 

of Optometry in 2021. She is appearing at the suggestion of the AOA. 
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Dr. Stephen M. Montaquila, OD, FAAO is a graduate of The New England College of Optometry and 

current president of West Bay Eye Associates, a primary eye care group optometric practice in 

Warwick, RI. He is a Fellow in the American Academy of Optometry and a Diplomate of the American 

Board of Optometry. He practices full scope primary eye care and serves as a clinical investigator for 

ophthalmic drug and device companies as well as an industry advisor. He is senior strategic advisor to 

Radius XR. He also provides continuing education lectures on topics such as ocular disease and contact 

lenses and is a member of the speaker’s bureau for Bausch and Lomb. He Chairs Rhode Island Primary 

Care Physicians Corporation’s Eye Care group and holds the position of Optometric Medial Director for 

Centene. He was an adjunct faculty member at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health 

Science teaching classes in the history of Optometric Practice and Optometric practice management. 

He is the immediate past Chair of the American Optometric Association (AOA) Third Party Center 

Executive Committee and currently serves as Chair of the Rhode Island Optometric Association 

Legislative Committee and as a member of the AOA Federal Relations Committee. He is the Rhode 

Island federal keyperson to Senator Jack Reed. Dr. Montaquila was a past president of the Rhode Island 

Optometric Association, and his other previous appointments include AOA Presidents Council Steering 

Committee, and RIOA Third Party Committee, as well as the Rhode Island Health Reform Commission. 

Dr. Montaquila is appearing at the suggestion of the AOA.

Joseph B. Neville is the Executive Director of the National Association of Retail Optical Companies

(NAROC), formerly the NAOO. NAROC is a nationwide organization representing the retail optical 

industry whose members offer the availability of eye examinations co-located with optical 

dispensaries. Prior to assuming that role, he served as an officer and director of the organization during 

over 30 years in the optical industry. Mr. Neville’s experience includes working as Associate General 

Counsel for Luxottica Retail North America focusing on government relations and health law matters as 

well as professional and contractual relations with optometrists and opticians affiliated with the 

company. He was also Chief Regulatory Counsel for Pearle Vision and previously worked as an attorney 

in private practice. Mr. Neville served as Chairman of the Pearle Vision Foundation while at Pearle and 

then as a member of the Foundation’s Board while at Luxottica. He has a J.D. and B.S. from Southern 

Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. His firm, JBN Consulting LLC, also provides consulting services to 

many of the top optical retailers in the U.S. and Canada.

Dr. Michael X. Repka, MD, MBA is professor of ophthalmology and professor of pediatrics at the Johns 

Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Repka currently serves as Vice-chair for Clinical Practice of 

the Wilmer Institute and Division Director of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Adult Strabismus. He also 

serves as the Medical Director for Governmental Affairs for the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Pete Sepp is President of the non-profit, non-partisan National Taxpayers Union, and leads NTU’s 

government affairs, public relations, and development activities. Pete also oversees strategic planning 

for NTU and its staff, and supervises the research and educational operations of the National Taxpayers 

Union Foundation. Since beginning his service with NTU in 1988, Pete has written and edited numerous 

policy papers, informational publications, and activist manuals, as well as studies on topics such as 

Congressional perquisites, citizen-initiated tax revolts, antitrust and competition regulation, and 

Pentagon spending. He has testified before Congress on matters ranging from Government-Sponsored 

Enterprises in lending to Medicare and federal pension reforms, and from small business taxpayer 

concerns to tax dispute resolution mechanisms. He has lectured in the U.S. and abroad on tax 

administration issues, and has participated in IRS hearings on various rulemakings, such as those 

affecting the Independent Office of Appeals. Most recently, he advocated for the Taxpayer First Act 
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(TFA) of 2019 and served as a stakeholder-advisor in the production of the 2021 TFA Report to 

Congress. He has also provided public comments to the FTC on rulemakings where consumer and 

taxpayer interests intersect, such as the Contact Lens Rule and the Eyeglass Rule. Pete graduated cum 

laude from Webster University in St. Louis, MO with a degree in history and political science. Before 

coming to NTU, Pete served with the St. Louis County Board of Elections and with a U.S. Senate 

campaign.

Panel 3: A Focus on Other Proposed Rule Changes

Dr. Aarlan Aceto, OD is currently a Board Member of the Opticians Association of America, serving on 

the legislative committee and Uniting Vision Care committee, as well as the current President of the 

National Federation of Opticianry Schools. Dr. Aceto is currently the Program Coordinator and an 

Associate Professor of the Ophthalmic Design and Dispensing (Opticianry) program at Middlesex 

Community College in CT. Dr. Aceto has previously served on faculty accredited Optometry programs 

(MCPHS University and the Midwestern University Chicago College of Optometry) in the areas of 

Ophthalmic Optics, Contact Lenses, Business Management and Service Learning. He has been very 

involved in Organized Opticianry (COA), and Organized Optometry (IOA and CAO), has served as the 

chair of the Ophthalmic Optics SIG for the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO). He 

has also served in other volunteer organizations. He is a graduate of the New England College of 

Optometry, graduated magna cum laude from the University of Connecticut, and earned a degree in 

Ophthalmic Design and Dispensing program at Middlesex Community College. 

Dr. Artis Beatty, OD, MS has been the Chief Medical Officer for MyEyeDr. since January 2017. Dr. 

Beatty sets both current and future clinical direction for the MyEyeDr. practices and leads a team of 

doctors, clinical directors and clinical support staff in delivering the finest vision care and in-office 

experience for patients. Dr. Beatty joined MyEyeDr. in 2014 after being part of a regional practice in 

North Carolina for nearly 10 years. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina, Nova 

Southeastern College of Optometry, and the Wayne Huizenga School of Business at NSU where he 

earned his M.S. in health services administration. He has previously served as President of the North 

Carolina Optometric Society’s Eastern District, as the state society’s 3rd party committee co-chair, and 

as a member of state society’s legislative committee. He has also contributed to the industry via 

membership in several speaker’s bureaus, advisory panels, and has published articles in Review of 

Optometry and Optometry Times among other professional and industry publications. Dr. Beatty is 

appearing at the suggestion of the American Optometric Association.

Rebecca Hyder is Vice President of Governmental Affairs for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. 

She leads that division, which is responsible for advancing federal, state and health policy advocacy 

priorities on behalf of 18,000 U.S.-based ophthalmologists. She began her tenure at the Academy in 

2009, serving as the manager for public health. In 2011, she was promoted to Director of Federal 

Affairs and was responsible for advancing the organization’s federal legislative and regulatory 

priorities. In this role, she also oversaw the Academy’s political and advocacy programs. Prior to joining 

the Academy, she spent 21 years on Capitol Hill, serving as chief of staff and in other senior positions 

for members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. 

During her time on the Hill, she worked on numerous legislative initiatives that were signed into public 

law.