Allergan said on Tuesday it wants to commit to working on preventable blindness in the USA.
The company said that it will work with See America to prioritize vision health for all Americans, while increasing awareness of the diseases that can cause preventable blindness.
After National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), declaring eye health a public health imperative in a report in September, 2016, Allergan saw the opportunity to engage in the action.
NASEM called for engagement, encouraging all of America to prioritize proactive eye care.
Without a nationwide intervention, cases of preventable blindness and visual impairment are projected to double by 2050. At this rate, one American will experience partial or complete loss of sight every four minutes- costing the U.S. economy trillions of dollars over the next thirty-four years.
Through See America and Allergan will partner with the nation’s leading volunteer eye health and safety organization, Prevent Blindness, to champion better access to vision care. Through a series of vision-screening events in various cities, sponsored by Allergan, attendees will receive free one-on-one professional eye exams, follow-up treatment plans and education about the most common diseases affecting people’s vision. In addition to sponsoring Prevent Blindness, Allerganwill look to partner on programs from like-minded organizations that support the goals of See America.
Many people are not aware of the perils associated with neglecting their vision. Currently, 61 million Americans are at risk of severe vision loss–more than the populations of California and Florida combined. Yet, only half of those at risk visited an eye doctor in the last year.