WASHINGTON, D.C.—Vision 2020 USA, an organization formed to help coordinate the efforts of the many groups working in the field of blindness prevention, will host a Capitol Hill luncheon briefing Thursday, Oct. 13, in conjunction with World Sight Day. The focus of the briefing will be the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Health and Medicine Division (NASEM) report, “Making Eye Health a Population Health Imperative: Vision for Tomorrow.”

The report includes recommendations for public health strategies to reduce visual impairment and promote eye health in the U.S.

Jeff Todd, chief operating officer of PreventBlindness.org and chairman of Vision 2020 USA, will moderate a panel discussion at the briefing. The Capitol Hill briefing is an annual event held on World Sight Day in “an effort to raise attention about vision and eye health among members of Congress and their staffs,” Todd told VMail in an email note.

Attendees include Congressional staff members, as well as vision community organizations, he said, and noted that in the past there have been times when “one or two members of Congress will stop by and say a few words.” About 50 people are expected to attend. Scheduled panelists include: Lori Grover, OD, PhD, senior vice president for health policy, King-Devick Test, Inc.; Eve Higginbotham, SM, MD, Vice Dean, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania; and Meg McCoy, JD, MPH, senior program officer at NASEM.

The one-hour briefing is scheduled to begin at noon at the Rayburn House Office Building, Room B-369.

Looking ahead, Todd said he expects that the recommendations in NASEM’s report are ones that “will not occur overnight, and will take months and years of effort to advance.” He also noted that on Wednesday, Oct. 12, Prevent Blindness and the Alliance for Eye and Vision Research will meet with the four co-chairs of the Congressional Vision Caucus, who are: Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas), Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), Rep. David Price (D-N.C.) and Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio) to discuss how the report and its recommendations might be used “to energize the Congressional Vision Caucus around vision and eye health.”

He added, “We are hopeful that following the election, we will be able to begin working with the new Congress to take steps toward advancing the recommendations. Both the Centers for Disease Control and [NASEM] are tentatively making plans to hold meetings in early 2017 to further discuss the recommendations and strategize around moving them forward.”

The sponsors of the Vision 2020 briefing include Alliance for Eye and Vision Research, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Optometric Association, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Casey Eye Institute, Helen Keller International, International Eye Foundation, Lighthouse Guild, Lions Club International Foundation, Optometry Giving Sight, Prevent Blindness, Seva Foundation and Vision Impact Institute.

Nearly 40 organizations have come together under the VISION 2020 USA umbrella since its launch in April 2009.