Ed Greene to Receive Prevent Blindness Person of Vision Award

Ed Greene, retired CEO of The Vision Council, will receive the 2015 Prevent Blindness Person of Vision Award at a dinner on March 19, 2015 at Gotham Hall, New York City, during Vision Expo East. The award recognizes an individual for leadership and dedication in the vision health field. Greene became president and CEO of Titmus Optical in 1989. After nine years, he became president and CEO of Carl Zeiss Optical, Inc., and later vice president of business development. In 2006, Greene became CEO of The Vision Council. He served as a board member of Prevent Blindness in 1987 and became chair from 1992 to 1995. He again served on the Board from 2004 to 2006. He also served on various Prevent Blindness committees including Strategic Planning (chair), Nominating, Developmentand Centennial Celebration. Read more.

ESA and Vision Council Merge

The European Sunglass Association (ESA) and The Vision Council announced their intent to merge. Both parties signed a comprehensive Joint Operating Agreement – effective immediately – with the goal of fully merging the ESA into The Vision Council within 12 months. Read more.

AOA and OAA Form the Sun Alliance to Protect Patients Eyes

The American Optometric Association (AOA) and the Opticians Association of America (OAA), with sponsorship from Luxottica and The Vision Council, have formed a Sun alliance that reportedly will provide training and information needed to educate and prescribe appropriate sun protection for patients.

Beginning in April, the following COPE- and ABO-approved educational series, "Protect, Prescribe and Present," will be delivered digitally on the AOA website (AOA.org) and the OAA website (OAA.org):

• Part 1 • Protect describes the health issues resulting from UV and High Energy Visible (HEV) radiation exposure.
• Part 2 • Prescribe develops an action plan for the optometrist and the optician. For the doctor, this course delivers examples of how to discuss the reasons for sun protection. For the optician, this segment clearly defines how to set goals and identify the best protective products.
• Part 3 • Present teaches the language and methods to visually merchandise outdoor eyewear to every consumer/patient. 

Read more.

Almost Half Internet Glasses Have Wrong Rx

In conjunction with the Optical Laboratories Association and The Vision Council, the American Optometric Association (AOA) has published the results of a months-long study investigating the level of compliance of prescription eyewear ordered online for compliance with optical tolerance and impact resistance requirements. The study was published in the September issue of Optometry: Journal of the American Optometric Association. While patients may believe that ordering prescription glasses online is an easy way to save money, the study discovered that about half of all glasses (44.8 percent) ordered through the Internet had incorrect prescriptions or did not meet physical parameters to provide sufficient protection to the wearer.  Read more.