RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The VSP Mobile Eyes(R) program traveled the nation in 2008 providing over $1.8 million in charitable eyecare services and education outreach, including response services to four major disasters. The introduction of a second mobile clinic in June 2008 provided an additional channel to provide for those in need.
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The mobile clinics traveled to 62 locations nationwide providing charitable eyecare services to more than 6,500 low-income, uninsured and underinsured individuals and families. Over 75 VSP eye doctors volunteered their time and 57 VSP employees trained and volunteered up to two weeks of their time to work on VSP's Mobile Response Team (MRT).
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"The mobile eyecare clinics are a reflection of our desire to join with VSP doctors to provide services to those in need," said Gary Brooks, VSP Vision Care president. "By providing eyecare services to underserved communities and being available at a moments notice to provide disaster relief, the mobile clinics are an example of our commitment to the community and the support we provide our doctors."
VSP's Mobile Eyes program began as an extension of relief efforts following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. The program, which allows VSP to respond to disasters immediately, includes two mobile eyecare clinics and 10 sets of portable ophthalmic equipment. Both clinics feature two state of the art comprehensive eye exam rooms and a full dispensary to provide exams and materials to people in need.
Partnering with VSP eye doctors, the mobile clinics responded to four major disasters throughout the United States in 2008, providing charitable eyecare such as eye exams and replacement eyewear to those affected by Hurricane Ike in Texas and MRT support and supplies for the Super Tuesday tornadoes which ravaged Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Kentucky. The mobile clinic and VSP eye doctors also provided relief and eyecare to fire crews battling wild fires in both Northern and Southern California.
About the VSP Family of Companies
VSP(R)'s family of companies includes the largest not-for-profit vision benefits and services company in the United States with 55 million members; VSP Labs, industry leaders in new technologies, production processes, service and logistics; Marchon(R) Eyewear Inc., one of the world's largest manufacturers, designers and distributors of quality fashion and technologically-advanced eyewear and sunwear, distributing its products to more than 100,000 customer locations in more than 100 countries; Eyefinity(R)/Officemate(R) which offer innovative solutions and the premier management software and technology to improve overall practice management and the patient experience.
Since 1997, VSP has provided more than 490,000 low-income, uninsured children with free eyecare. Through relationships with the American Diabetes Association, Prevent Blindness America and the Center for Health Transformation, VSP promotes the importance of annual eye exams for maintaining eye health and overall wellness.
SOURCE Vision Service Plan
