Lighthouse International Expands Vision Health Services for all New Yorkers
Aging baby boomers will be a factor in a million New Yorkers that are expected to have significant vision loss by 2015

New York, NY - March 31, 2009 - Responding to the growing number of New Yorkers who will need vision services, Lighthouse International, the104 year-old trusted leader in vision health, opened VisionMax today, a comprehensive new vision healthcare center for all New Yorkers. VisionMax offers complete vision exams, prescriptions, contact lenses, designer frames and sunglasses as well as prevention and educational information.

According to Tara A. Cortes, PhD, RN, President and CEO of Lighthouse International, “Vision health and prevention of vision loss are core to the work of the Lighthouse. This new service extends our reach to the many New Yorkers who will need our expertise as baby boomers age and more people have diabetes and other diseases that affect their eyesight.” She adds, “Vision health is more than a pair of eyeglasses. It encompasses everything from a comprehensive eye exam to the lighting you read by, how much work you do on the computer, the foods you eat and the exercise you get. VisionMax provides services and information to help New Yorkers maximize their vision for life.“ According to Lighthouse International, about one million people (45 years and older) in the greater New York area will have will have vision loss by 2015.

Much more than an Optical Store
Conveniently located at 111 East 59th Street in midtown Manhattan, VisionMax provides one-stop shopping for all eyecare needs, including the popular Lighthouse Store. Offering a wide range of useful products from talking clocks and watches to high-tech items like CCTVs, cell phones and voice recorders, the store’s products make life easier for everyone. In addition, VisionMax offers free seminars on diabetes and other vision-related diseases and provides vision health tips and other vision health information.

VisionMax offers frames from such top designers as: Armani Exchange, Giorgio Armani, Banana Republic, Hugo Boss, Liz Claiborne, Claiborne for Men, J Lo, Marc Jacobs, Chesterfield, Max Mara, Gucci, Dior, Fossil, Nine West, Kate Spade, Jimmy Choo, YSL, Juicy Couture and more! Prices are competitive, and for a limited time, VisionMax is offering new customers 15% off of frames and store items.

As part of their comprehensive approach to vision healthcare, VisionMax experts will have access to the state-of-the-art diagnostic tools, such as the OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography), which looks through the retina and produces cross sectional images, as well as a Fundus camera, which takes an image of the whole interior and back of the eye.

Adds Dr. Cortes, “We will be providing this new service in partnership with area optometrists and ophthalmologists to complement and/or extend the care of their patients. We would like to thank our sponsors Manhattan Media and TD Bank. We also thank Dr. Donald D’Amico, Chairman of Ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Hospital for his assistance and Valerie Smaldone, well-known New York media personality and woman’s health advocate, for recording our public service announcements.”

We gratefully acknowledge the generous donation of the JEMS Foundation in memory of Shirley Wegman. The donation enabled us to purchase a new state of the art diagnostic tool.

VisionMax at Lighthouse International is located at 111 East 59th Street, New York City (between Park and Lexington Avenues). Hours: Eye exams and eyewear boutique: Monday to Friday, 9am – 5pm. For information and to make an appointment call 212-821-9620. The Lighthouse Store is open: Monday to Friday, 10am – 6pm. 212-821-9384.

Founded in 1905, Lighthouse International is a leading non-profit organization dedicated to fighting vision loss through prevention, treatment and empowerment. It achieves this through clinical and rehabilitation services, education, research and advocacy. For more information about vision health or vision loss and its causes, contact Lighthouse International at 1-800-829-0500 or visit www.lighthouse.org <http://www.lighthouse.org/> .