OneSight and Deloitte Announce Startling Finding: 1.1 Billion People Need Glasses, but Lack Access

#HelpTheWorldSee with OneSight this World Sight Day

CINCINNATI–(BUSINESS WIRE)–OneSight,
an independent nonprofit committed to eradicating the global vision care
crisis, today announced the findings from The Global Need for Glasses
Study, which was conducted in collaboration with Deloitte. They revealed
1.1 billion people around the world need glasses, but don’t have access
to vision care.

The study, which sought to determine how accessible vision care and
quality eyewear are around the world, also found:

• Of the 2.5 billion people in the world that need glasses, 1.1 billion
  people lack access to glasses. That means 1 in 7 people around the
  world can’t see clearly because they do not have access to a simple
  pair of glasses.
• The crisis is most acute in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. In
  certain countries up to 44% of the population needs glasses but lacks
  the access to get them.
• There are 239 million children globally who need glasses, but lack
  access.

The study defined visual impairment by a child’s ability to perform well
in school and an adult’s ability to be productive at work; access was
defined by glasses being available at a price that people can afford.
The study found that the ability to forgo wages for a day, pay for
transportation and ultimately pay for vision care was a greater barrier
than just the cost of glasses themselves.

OneSight’s mission is to eradicate the global vision care crisis in our
lifetime through sustainable and charitable solutions. OneSight provides
a comprehensive eye exam and the highest quality eyewear (from the
OneSight Collection) made to each person’s prescription. This week,
OneSight is operating charitable clinics in Detroit, Michigan; Richmond,
Virginia; and Cuzco, Peru, providing these communities with much needed
eye exams and free glasses.

“Clear vision can fundamentally change someone’s world and help unlock
their full potential. Yet, for 1 in 7 people around the world, clear
vision is not accessible. We can begin to solve this issue by bringing
awareness to the global vision care crisis,” said Jason Singh,
O.D., OneSight Executive Director. “We know the difference a simple pair
of glasses can make in a person’s life. A child may be able to see the
blackboard clearly for the first time. A parent may be better able to
support their family by producing more at work, all thanks to clear
vision. The immediate and long term impact is powerful.”

On World Sight Day (October 8, 2015), OneSight is asking people to help
give a voice to the 1.1 billion people who need glasses, but lack access
by:

• Sharing a photo of yourself using your hands as glasses (i.e., hand
  glasses) with the hashtag #HelpTheWorldSee on your social media
  channels
• Donating $1 to help 1 billion people get access to glasses at www.onesight.org/worldsightday
• Watching and sharing a video about how access to glasses can impact
  the world at www.onesight.org/worldsightday

Leading sport performance brand, Oakley, has rallied behind the
#HelpTheWorldSee campaign, enlisting several of their athlete
ambassadors to help spread awareness. Ambassadors participating in the
program include alpine skier Lindsey Vonn, professional skateboarder
Ryan Sheckler and cyclist Chas Christiansen. Sunglass Hut’s global brand
ambassador, Georgia May Jagger, is showing support of the campaign by
posting her hand glasses photo on her social media channels.

For more information on OneSight and the #HelpTheWorldSee Campaign,
visit www.onesight.org/worldsightday.
Join the conversation with the hashtag #HelpTheWorldSee.

About World Sight Day

World Sight Day is a global day of awareness to focus attention on
blindness and visual impairment. It is coordinated annually by the
International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). On World
Sight Day, IAPB raises public awareness of blindness and vision
impairment as major international health issues.

About OneSight

OneSight, a global nonprofit 501(c)(3) sponsored and founded by
Luxottica, is dedicated to providing sustainable access to a
comprehensive eye exam and quality eyewear to those in need around the
world. In 27 years, OneSight has helped 9 million people in 41 countries
and 47 states see clearly and leading innovative programs and
partnerships to help millions more.

About The Global Need and Access to Glasses Study

Deloitte used a refined top-down approach layering population estimates
with visual impairment parameters followed by access proxies in order to
estimate the global need for glasses. The approach took the 2015
population estimate and age distribution by country, and utilized a
visual impairment definition of “clinically significant myopia of < -1D
or Hyperopia of >3D,” while also assuming presbyopia for all adults over
the age of 50, and for a percentage of the younger mature population.
Finally, the approach layered on a financial access proxy by looking at
the percentage of the population living on less than $2 a day or the
percentage of the population living below the National Poverty Line,
whichever was higher. This dynamic model allowed both a global estimate
of the size of the need for glasses, while also allowing Deloitte to
pinpoint which areas where the crisis was most severe.

Contacts

Citizen Relations for OneSight
Molly Crabill, 949-614-6156
molly.crabill@citizenrelations.com
or
OneSight
Laura
Lewis, 513-765-6133
llewis3@onesight.org