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For the first time, vision objectives have been included in Healthy People 2010, a national disease prevention initiative that identifies opportunities to improve the health of all Americans.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Healthy People identifies the most significant preventable threats to health, and establishes national goals to reduce these threats. The chapter on vision addresses visual impairment due to eye disease and refractive error; regular eye examinations for children and adults; vision screening for pre-school children; injury prevention; and vision rehabilitation. Most states and many localities use the Healthy People framework to guide local health policies and programs.
Healthy People 2010 Midcourse Review
Founded on data that enable progress and trends to be tracked, Healthy People 2010 provides a set of 10-year evidence-based objectives for improving the health of all Americans. Midway through the decade, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services conducts a midcourse review to assess the status of the national objectives. Through the Midcourse Review the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Federal agencies, and other experts assess the data trends during the first half of the decade, consider new science and available data, and if appropriate, revise the objectives to ensure that Healthy People 2010 remains current, accurate, and relevant to public health priorities. The Midcourse review for the vision and hearing objectives can be found at http://www.healthypeople.gov/data/midcourse/default.htm#pubs.
Midcourse Review on Vision and Hearing, PDF
Baseline Data and Targets Available for Vision Objectives
Baseline data are now available for all of the vision objectives with the exception of Objective 28-3, impairment due to refractive errors. Data on this objective is expected by the end of December 2004. Most of the data are from the 2002 National Health Interview Survey. With the release of this data, the vision objectives have now been moved from "developmental" to "measurable" status. A target for 2010 has been set for all objectives that have baseline data. These data and targets can be found under each objective.
An operational definition is also provided for each objective. These definitions are provided to assist in the interpretation of the data presented for each Healthy People 2010 objective and to facilitate comparable measurement of these objectives by researchers from the national, State, and local government agencies as well as those from private organizations.
Systematically collecting, analyzing, interpreting, disseminating, and using health data is essential to understanding the health status of a population, to assessing progress, and to planning effective prevention programs.
Data Summary Tables
The purpose of Progress Reviews is to provide a venue for Federal agencies to report on progress toward achieving the Healthy People 2010 goals and objectives for each of the 28 focus areas. The review is a mechanism by which the lead agencies for a particular focus area brief the Assistant Secretary for Health on the latest data for the objectives and on advances made toward the targets. It presents an opportunity for HHS and other Federal agency representatives to discuss barriers that stand in the way of achieving the targets and challenges them to explore strategies for moving the Nation closer to meeting the goals for 2010. The Vision and Hearing Progress Review was held on October 20, 2004.
Healthy Vision Consortium
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