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NEW YORK—Nationally, optical sales experienced little change over this past week (Dec. 14-20) as coronavirus cases continued to rage throughout the U.S., according to the Jobson COVID-19 Practice Performance Tracker. Contact lenses were up 2 index points, exams/refractions and lens pairs were each down 1 index point, and gross revenue and frame units showed no change whatsoever. Optical sales remaining effectively flat last week coincided with COVID-19 cases continuing to rise throughout the U.S.—over the last seven days, COVID cases increased at a rate of 9.2 percent to a total approaching 18 million, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

Regionally, optical sales declined the most in the Northeast and increased the most in the West. Declines in the Northeast of either 7 index points for gross revenue, exams/refractions, frame units or -6 index points in the lens pairs and contact lenses categories were likely due to a major snowstorm that closed roads to traffic for a couple of days.

Increases in the West were up 3 index points for gross revenue and frame units while lens pairs and contact lenses were up 2 index points. The South and Midwest were either flat or up 1 index point across the board, except for a decrease of 3 index points for lens pairs in the Midwest. Contact lenses continued following their own direction, up 2 points in both the Midwest and West, up 4 points in the South, and down 6 points in the Northeast. New COVID cases in each state also varied, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

The Jobson COVID-19 Practice Performance Tracker data is compiled by Jobson Research from GPN and ABB Analyze data. Another element of the report illustrates Consumer Sentiments about the COVID-19 response and purchasing intentions, with data supplied by The Vision Council. 

This index baseline was developed by Jobson Research from total sales from an average 7 days in the first quarter of 2019.

Click here to view the complete Jobson COVID-19 Performance Tracker