As part of the community outreach program Focus on America®, Davis Vision (and its sister company, Eye Care Centers of America) teamed up with EyeMasters stores today, September 23, to provide free vision care to uninsured and underinsured students in Jefferson Terrace Elementary School. Students received free comprehensive eye examinations, and, if needed, local EyeMasters retail locations will provide a voucher for a free comprehensive exam and then eyeglasses for any student participating and in need of follow-up care. The process was conducted by EyeMasters representatives, nurses with Health Centers in Schools and student nurses in training.
Pre-K student Timothy Carrier (first photo), age 4, pointed to what he saw on an eye chart as a nurse pointed to another eye chart several feet away. The nurse, Connie Jenkins (second photo), gave the Pre-K students a little extra encouragement during the vision screenings.
To date, the Focus on America Program has provided almost 17,000 children nationwide with free vision care. About one in every three children in the program has been determined to need follow-up eye care. This is the program’s first visit to Baton Rouge. A pair of eyeglasses can mean the difference between academic struggles or failure, and eyewear can cost $300 or more. On average, one-quarter of school-age children have a vision problem affecting learning, about 75 percent of school dropouts report reading problems and only one in 10 children with vision problems wears eyeglasses, according to David Vision.
Davis Vision is part of the HVHC Inc. group of companies, which also includes Viva International Group and Eye Care Centers of America. Davis Vision has been providing comprehensive vision benefits for nearly 50 years, and it currently serves more than 55 million members nationwide through a network with over 34,000 points of access, including independent optometrists and ophthalmologists, as well as many premier national retailers. For more information, visit http://www.davisvision.com/Focus-On-America/.
EyeMasters is an Eye Care Centers of America company, a leading provider of eye care services with over 400 locations in 36 states. EyeMasters features a large display of optical frames and offers the widest selection of kids’ frames in the optical industry. Each EyeMasters store offers the convenience of state-of-the-art laboratories that produce most eyeglasses in one hour, while licensed optometrists who provide comprehensive eye exams, contact lens evaluations and fittings, and other primary eye care needs are available next door. For more information, visit www.eyemasters.com.
