People with diabetes who are on Medicare can now receive a medical eye exam and a year of treatment at no cost, thanks to an unprecedented partnership between the Health Care Financing Administration, the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and the American Optometric Association. Dr. William Tasman, an expert in ophthalmology and diabetes, discussed the new national initiative at a Jan. 18 media briefing on diabetes sponsored by the American Medical Association.

The program's goals are to increase awareness of the connection between diabetes and blindness and to remove the barriers to care, which have been identified as cost and transportation. Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults.

As many as one in four people with diabetes can develop diabetic retinopathy, a condition which may progress to blindness if not treated. Diagnosed early, however, it is treatable. Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes may call EyeCare America, National Eye Care Project, at 800-222-3937 for a referral to an ophthalmologist, or the American Optometric Association's Diabetes Hot Line at 800-262-3947 for a referral to an optometrist.

Source:  AMA. National initiative to help prevent blindness for people with diabetes. Jan. 18, 2001.