110 HRES 848 IH: Recognizing and honoring Prevent Blindness U.S. House of Representatives 2007-12-06 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 848 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 6, 2007 Ms. Schakowsky (for herself and Mr. Kirk) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Recognizing and honoring Prevent Blindness America for its 100 years of dedication to preventing blindness and preserving eyesight.

Whereas in 1908, the New York State Committee on Prevention of Blindness, now known as Prevent Blindness America, led by Dr. Park Lewis and social and public health leader, Louisa Lee Schuyler, fought for and helped pass Federal legislation that virtually eliminated ophthalmia neonatorum, then a leading cause of blindness in infants; Whereas thanks to that effort, newborns around the country were protected from lifelong vision loss, and the association that eventually became Prevent Blindness America was born; Whereas for the past 100 years, Prevent Blindness America has been the leading national organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving vision through education, advocacy, vision screener certification, research grants and community based programs; Whereas Prevent Blindness America is the only national organization with a certification programs for vision screeners, training approximately 2,500 new screeners each year, and providing 20,000 vision screening personnel with the skills they need to help people in their communities; Whereas Prevent Blindness America’s vision screenings help identify preschoolers at risk of vision loss from lazy eye, school children who depend on good vision for learning, and adults threatened by glaucoma and other serious vision problems; Whereas in 2006, Prevent Blindness America screened more than 2,300,000 children and adults for potentially blinding eye diseases, referring more than 200,000 to eye doctors for follow-up professional care; Whereas Prevent Blindness America is leading the effort to bridge the gap between vision screenings and follow up care and treatment, to ensure positive outcomes; Whereas half of all blindness can be prevented through early detection, intervention, and treatment; Whereas the work of Prevent Blindness America is increasingly important, as the incidence of blindness is expected to double in the next 20 years with the aging adult population; and Whereas Prevent Blindness America has set visionary goals for the year 2020 to address these issues by working to ensure that every child receives appropriate eye care prior to entering school, to double the number of adults, especially adults over 40, visiting the eye doctor, and to reduce eye injuries: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)recognizes the invaluable contributions and positive impact of Prevent Blindness America, and its affiliates and divisions, to individuals in communities and to all Americans; and (2)congratulates and commends Prevent Blindness America for 100 years of preventing blindness and preserving sight.