Poor Vision Okay, Says Health Secretary

States are running out of money and governors are looking to cut budgets. In an effort to help, Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of health and human services, gave governors carte blanche to cut Medicaid payments of good vision: “While state Medicaid programs must cover hospital and doctors’ services, Ms. Sebelius said, many other services are classified as optional. The optional services, she said, include prescription drugs, physical therapy, respiratory care, optometry services and eyeglasses, dental services and dentures,” according to NYTimes.

Source: Centers for Disease Control

You might want to write to your local state representatives and your governor, noting that poor vision in the U.S. costs the economy (excluding eye care costs) $8 billion. That number also does not factor in the economic impact of poor performance because children cannot see well. A conference at Harvard noted "the epidemic proportions of visual problems in urban poor children. ...53% of the children tested at the Mather School had visual problems that could affect their ability to read."