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Managing America: Health

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Week Ending October 19, 2007

H.R.507  To establish a grant program to provide vision care to children, and for other purposes.

Titled the Vision Care for Kids Act of 2007, the bill authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide comprehensive eye examinations by a licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist for children under the age of nine in particular who have been referred by a licensed doctor or vision screener. Treatment should correct any vision problems. The bill also provides for the development and distribution of educational materials on recognizing signs of visual impairment in children.

The need for the bill is based on findings that millions of children in the US have vision problems and many go unattended. The problems range from “common conditions such as refractive errors, amblyopia, strabismus, ocular trauma, and infections, to rare but potentially life- or sight-threatening problems such as retinoblastoma, infantile cataracts, congenital glaucoma, and genetic or metabolic diseases of the eye.”

The care would be carried out through grants to States based on a review process of State efforts for providing comprehensive eye exams, providing treatment and disseminating educational materials to parents, teachers, and health practitioners. States must apply for the grants and must explain existing Federal or other grants for children’s vision programs, a plan for using the funds, a plan to determine if eligible children have been identified and who are not eligible under any State compensation program.

The exams can include general medical observation, external and ophthalmoscopic examination, visual acuity, ocular alignment and motility, refraction and other exams performed by an optometrist or ophthalmologist.

Sponsor:  Rep. Gene Green (D-TX-29^th)

Vote: Passed House by voice vote October 15, 2007

Cost to the taxpayers: Such sums as may be necessary are authorized.

Earmark Certification:   Not applicable to this bill.

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MORE INFORMATION

Congress makes the following findings:

(1) Millions of children in the United States suffer from vision problems, many of which go undetected. Because children with vision problems can struggle developmentally, resulting in physical, emotional, and social consequences, good vision is essential for proper physical development and educational progress.

(2) Vision problems in children range from common conditions such as refractive errors, amblyopia, strabismus, ocular trauma, and infections, to rare but potentially life- or sight-threatening problems such as retinoblastoma, infantile cataracts, congenital glaucoma, and genetic or metabolic diseases of the eye.

(3) Since many serious ocular conditions are treatable if identified in the preschool and early school-aged years, early detection provides the best opportunity for effective treatment and can have far-reaching implications for vision.

(4) Various identification methods, including vision screening and comprehensive eye examinations required by State laws, can be helpful in identifying children needing services. A child identified as needing services through vision screening should receive a comprehensive eye examination followed by subsequent treatment as needed. Any child identified as needing services should have access to subsequent treatment as needed.

(5) There is a need to increase public awareness about the prevalence and devastating consequences of vision disorders in children and to educate the public and health care providers about the warning signs and symptoms of ocular and vision disorders and the benefits of early detection, evaluation, and treatment.

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