Member Spotlight: Vision 2020 USA

In 2008, a dedicated group of US organizations, led by Dr. Louis D. Pizzarello, came together to form a Vision 2020 USA body, focusing on public health eye care in the United States. The group’s consultative and research efforts resulted in the official launch of Vision 2020 USA on April 30, 2009, at the Stone House on the campus of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, USA. 33 representatives from 29 organizations, including IAPB, USAID, CDC, and the National Eye Institute, were in attendance. Vision 2020 USA has since played a role in advocacy and coalition-building among US stakeholders in eye health.  From 2009 to 2019, Vision 2020 USA held its annual meeting in conjunction with the Focus on Eye Health Summit and has been coordinating an annual World Sight Day Congressional Vision Caucus Briefing in October. 

In 2019, key advocacy work was done by Dr. Mitchell Brinks, Dr Sandra Block, and others to bring the issue of vision and eye health as a public health issue to the Surgeon General’s Office. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic’s consumption of the Nation’s and World’s public health priorities, Vision 2020 USA kept moving forward in its coalition-building and advocacy work and was officially incorporated on August 14, 2020, in the State of Oregon. In 2023, a letter signed by Vision 2020 USA members was sent to the US UN Ambassador requesting their support for a UN Envoy for Vision and Eye Health.  

Vision 2020’s mission is to advocate for population-based equitable vision and eye health promotion and care to end preventable and treatable blindness and vision loss. Vision 2020 USA is the only United States based national coalition of leaders among ophthalmology, optometry, non-government and governmental organizations, and industry championing vision health and eye care globally. Learning from our members and partners and disseminating this knowledge is essential to our mission.
 

Under the leadership of Dr. Rajeev Ramchandran and Dr. Dean VanNasdale in 2024, Vision 2020 USA has focused on addressing health disparities and establishing health equity in eye care. The group has been active at the Global Ophthalmology Summit, in collaboration with the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and is currently showcasing what each of its members are doing around the US to address health disparities at the population and public health levels through monthly webinars and online discussions. As Vision 2020 USA continues to grow its membership in 2025, it remains dedicated to highlighting the importance of vision health surveillance, addressing barriers to eye care access, and standardizing program evaluation metrics to support policy changes for achieving eye and vision health equity in the US. 

Contributions from Victoria Sheffield, former President and CEO, International Eye Foundation; Rajeev S. Ramchandran, Chair of Vision 2020 USA 2023-2025; and Jeff Todd, President and CEO Prevent Blindness.