| John receives the 2004 “Visionary
Award” for his outstanding efforts toward the advancement
and availability of quality eye care from the American Academy
of Ophthalmology in April 2004. |
|
Elderly Health Care
• “The Medicare Vision Rehabilitation
Services Act”
Approximately 6.6 million seniors across America have some degree
of vision impairment, despite the use of glasses or contact lenses,
and more than 700,000 seniors are legally blind. Due to these limitations,
enormous expenses from debilitating injuries such as falls and burns
in the home can result. These accidents can be prevented by providing
at-home assistance and training on spatial orientation and mobility
by vision rehabilitation specialists – services that unfortunately
are difficult for seniors to afford, and are not currently covered
by Medicare.
John is committed to helping visually impaired seniors in New Hampshire
and across the country live more safe and independent lives. This
dedication has resulted in a five-year vision rehabilitation services
demonstration project approved by the United States Senate and underway
in New Hampshire and five other locations across the country.
Modeled after the “Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Services Act of
2003,” which he introduced on May 21, 2003, the initiative takes
steps toward standardizing national coverage under Medicare for
vision rehabilitation services provided in the home by physicians,
vision rehabilitation professionals, and occupational therapists.
The five-year Medicare low-vision rehabilitation services demonstration
program began on April 1, 2006, and will run through March 31, 2011;
it consists of six demonstration sites – New Hampshire, North Carolina,
Kansas, Washington state, New York City, and Atlanta. At these locations,
low-vision rehabilitation services will be provided in the home
by vision rehabilitation professionals under the supervision of
a physician. At the conclusion of the demonstration, the Department
of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services will produce a report based on the data collected during
the study to determine whether low-vision rehabilitation services
should be covered nationwide for all Medicare recipients across
the country.
John’s initiative has been recognized by Lighthouse International
and the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and has been endorsed
by several organizations for the blind and visually impaired including:
• New Hampshire Association for the Blind;
• New England College of Optometry;
• New England Eye Institute;
• American Optometric Association;
• American Council for the Blind;
• The Glaucoma Foundation;
• National Council on Aging; and
• National Vision Rehabilitation Cooperative.
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