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Ohio Residents Head to Washington Advocate for Support for Programs

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For more information:

Prevent Blindness

Whitney Anderson

Phone:  (800) 301-2020 ext. 105

Email address: [email protected]

 
               Ohio Residents Head to Washington to Advocate for Support for Programs, Research to Save Sight

 

Columbus, OH (June 20, 2017) – Ohio Delegates Kathy McGinnis (Worthington), Sherry Lewis (Orient), Dr. Dean VanNasdale (Columbus), Marcus Molea (Columbus) and Sherry Williams (Bexley) will join delegates from across the country for the eleventh annual Prevent Blindness “Eyes on Capitol Hill” advocacy day on Tuesday, June 27, 2017, in Washington, D.C.  Since 2006, the Ohio Affiliate of Prevent Blindness and its national office have brought citizens from across the country to meet with members of the House and Senate, and their staff, to discuss the importance of vision and eye health programs and research.

“We are proud to continue to work with members of government through our Eyes on Capitol Hill event, as well as other local and national advocacy efforts, to help protect the gift of sight and continue to bring Americans to quality, affordable eye care,” said Sherry Williams, President & CEO of Prevent Blindness, Ohio Affiliate.

This year’s Eyes on Capitol Hill meetings have been scheduled to specifically ask elected officials to:

  • Provide $3.3 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 to strengthen vision and eye health efforts of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

  • Support the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s (MCHB) National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health (the Center) in developing a public health infrastructure to promote and ensure a continuum of vision and eye health care for children. 

  • Protect “essential health benefits” as defined under the Affordable Care Act, which includes children’s comprehensive eye exams and vision screenings and preventive services for chronic diseases, in any Senate legislative companion to the House-passed American Health Care Act.

  • Provide $800 million to the National Eye Institute in FY 2018.

  • Provide at least $3,294,000 for the Glaucoma Project at CDC in FY 2018.

On June 28, all Eyes on Capitol Hill delegates will attend the sixth annual Prevent Blindness Focus on Eye Health National Summit at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

For more information on Eyes on Capitol Hill, or Prevent Blindness and its advocacy initiatives, please call 800-331-2020 or visit www.pbohio.org.

About Prevent Blindness

Founded in 1908, Prevent Blindness is the nation’s leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight. The Ohio Affiliate of Prevent Blindness is Ohio’s leading volunteer nonprofit public health organization dedicated to prevent blindness and preserve sight. We serve all 88 Ohio counties, providing direct services to more than 800,000 Ohioans annually and educating millions of consumers about what they can do to protect and preserve their precious gift of sight. For more information or to make a contribution, call 800-301-2020.  Or, visit us on the web at www.pbohio.org or facebook.com/pbohio and Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/PB_Ohio.

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