Half of U.S. Parents Skip Crucial Back-to-School Eye Exams for Their Children
Dr. Mary Anne Murphy, VSP Network Optometrist
(Sacramento, CA, Tuesday, August 8, 2017) – Today, VSP Vision Care, the largest not-for-profit vision benefits provider in the United States, and market research agency YouGov released new findings on how parents see eye health, particularly as it relates to sending their kids back to school.
The survey of 1,000 U.S. parents found discrepancies between attitudes and actions since 80 percent of respondents say it is important to take their child for an annual eye exam with an optometrist before school starts, while only 50 percent of parents actually do it.
The survey also found that:
- Less than 10 percent of parents knew that 6 months old is the recommended age for a child’s first comprehensive eye exam with an optometrist.
- One in four parents surveyed didn’t take their kids to the eye doctor until they were at least five years old. One in ten still have not taken their children to the eye doctor after the age of five.
- Among parents who did not bring their children for an annual eye exam, 37 percent of moms said it was because their kids already get a school eye exam. This is a concern because school exams only test for distance vision – potentially overlooking 70-80 percent of other vision problems, as estimated by the Colorado Optometric Association.
To schedule an annual eye exam and find a VSP eye doctor near you, visit https://www.vsp.com/find-eye-doctors.html