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House passes ‘Vision Care for Kids’ legislation
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The “Vision Care for Kids Act of 2009,” H.R. 577, passed in the House of Representatives with a vote of 404-17, the Vision Council announced in a press release.
Sponsored by Gene Green (D-Texas), John Sullivan (R-Okla.), Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), Elliot Engel (D-N.Y.) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), the bill will provide children with the follow-up care needed after being identified with a potential vision problem by a comprehensive eye exam or vision screening.
The bill was supported by the alliance of the Vision Council, the American Optometric Association, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus and Prevent Blindness America. Also supporting the bill are the National Association of School Nurses, National Association of Vision Care Plans, National Head Start Association, Opticians Association of America, Reading Is Fundamental and Vision Service Plan.
“Millions of children in the United States suffer from vision problems, many of which go undetected because of the lack of access to and the affordability of proper eye care,” John Sullivan, lead minority sponsor of the bill, said in the release. “This legislation will bridge a chief gap in vision care and allow children to receive treatment for their vision problems before it is too late.”
The Vision Council encourages everyone in the vision community to contact their state senators and ask them to support this legislation.
For more information:
- For more on the “Vision Care for Kids Act of 2009,” visit www.2020advocacy.com.