To establish a grant program to provide comprehensive eye examinations to children, and for other purposes.

May 20, 2003

Mr. PASCRELL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

To establish a grant program to provide comprehensive eye examinations to children, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Children's Vision Improvement and Learning Readiness Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds as follows:

(1) Eighty percent of what children learn is acquired through the visual processing of information.

(2) Visual impairment is one of the 10 most common causes of disability in America. In children, visual impairment is associated with developmental delays and the need for special education, vocational, and social services. At least 20 percent of children with learning disabilities have been found to have prominent visual information processing problems.

(3) It is estimated that more than 10,000,000 children (from birth to age 10) suffer from vision problems, with one in 20 preschoolers and one in four school aged children affected.

(4) It is estimated that only 14 percent of children under the age of 6 receive a comprehensive eye examination. Only one-third of all children have had an eye examination or vision screening prior to entering school.

SEC. 3. GRANTS REGARDING COMPREHENSIVE EYE EXAMINATIONS FOR CHILDREN.

(a) IN GENERAL- The Secretary of Health and Human Services (referred to in this section as the `Secretary' may make grants to States for the purpose of--

(1) providing comprehensive eye examinations for children identified or considered at high risk of vision impairment, with priority given to school-based programs for children who are under the age of 9;

(2) providing subsequent treatment or services necessary to correct vision problems; and

(3) developing and disseminating, to parents, teachers, health care practitioners, and the public, educational materials on recognizing signs of visual impairment in children, and the State's vision improvement initiatives.

(b) CRITERIA AND COORDINATION-

(1) CRITERIA- The Secretary, in consultation with appropriate professional and consumer organizations including individuals with knowledge of age appropriate vision services, shall develop criteria--

(A) governing the operation of the grant program; and

(B) for the collection of data related to vision assessment and the utilization of followup services.

(2) COORDINATION- The Secretary shall, as appropriate, coordinate the program under subsection (a) with the program under section 330 of the Public Health Service Act (relating to health centers), the program under title XIX of the Social Security Act (relating to the Medicaid program), the program under title XXI of such Act (relating to the State children's health insurance program), and with other Federal or State program that provide services to children.

(c) APPLICATION- A grant may be made under subsection (a) only if an application for the grant is submitted to the Secretary and the application is in such form, is made in such manner, and contains such information as the Secretary may require, including--

(1) information on existing Federal, Federal-State, or State-funded children's vision screening programs;

(2) a plan for the use of grant funds, including how funds will be used to compliment existing State efforts;

(3) a plan to determine if a grant eligible child has received an age appropriate vision screening; and

(4) a description of how funds will be used to provide items or services only as a secondary payer to--

(A) any State compensation program, under an insurance policy, or under any Federal or State health benefits program; or

(B) by any entity that provides health services on a prepaid basis.

(d) EVALUATIONS- A grant may be made under subsection (a) only if the State involved agrees that, not later than 1 year after the date on which amounts under the grant are first received by the State, and annually thereafter while receiving amounts under the grant, the State will submit to the Secretary an evaluation of the operations and activities carried out under the grant, including--

(1) an assessment of the utilization of vision services and the status of children receiving these services as a result of the activities carried out under the grant;

(2) the collection, analysis, and reporting of children's vision data according to guidelines prescribed by the Secretary; and

(3) such other information as the Secretary may require.

(e) DEFINITION- For purposes of this section, the term `comprehensive eye examination' includes an assessment of a patient's history, general medical observation, external and ophthalmoscopic examination, visual acuity, ocular alignment and motility, refraction, and as appropriate, binocular vision or gross visual fields, performed by an optometrist or an ophthalmologist.

(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- For the purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2007.

END