ORIGINAL PAPER Unmet need for corrective eyeglasses: results from a Los Angeles County Hospital survey Jesse L. Berry • Lloyd M. Cuzzo • Simon R. Bababeygy • Peter A. Quiros Received: 5 December 2011 / Accepted: 25 March 2012 / Published online: 10 April 2012 Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012 Abstract To investigate the socioeconomic chal- lenges encountered by patients from Los Angeles County Ophthalmology Clinic, California, United States, in obtaining prescription eyeglasses. A retro- spective survey study. Patients sent for refraction in June 2009 were asked to rate their satisfaction with their eyeglasses. If they did not obtain eyeglasses, they were asked the reason e.g., cost, lost prescription, etc. Fifty-five percent (54/99) of patients who received a prescription did not obtain eyeglasses. The most common reason was cost (67 %). Eighty-eight percent of patients had some form of health insurance; however, 100 % were lacking eyeglasses coverage. The mean visual acuity pre-refraction was 20/80 versus 20/30 post-refraction (p \ 0.001). It is well known that refractive error is a major cause of blindness world- wide, which negatively impacts the patient and their community. However, it is infrequently addressed that these conditions persist in parts of the develop world, including the United States. Los Angeles County Hospital is an example of an environment with many low-income patients in need of refractive correction who are limited mainly by cost in attaining eyeglasses. Furthermore, insurance organizations that cover low- income patients provide minimal or no coverage for prescription eyeglasses. Keywords Prescription Á Eyeglasses Á Uninsured Á Low-income Á Socioeconomic Á Healthcare Á Insurance Introduction Uncorrected distance refractive error is the most common cause of vision impairment and the second most common cause of blindness worldwide [1, 2]. Approximately 153 million people are visually impaired from uncorrected refractive errors, 8 million of whom are legally blind [3]. Refractive error is a preventable cause of poor vision that is responsible for a reduction in quality of life among people in all strata of society. It negatively affects school performance in children, compromises the employability and productivity of adults, and threatens the independence of the elderly [1, 4]. Poor vision due to refractive error is a large burden on society that can be remedied simply with increased access to low-cost eyeglasses. In 2006, Vitale et al. [5] used data collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to approxi- mate the prevalence of visual impairment from refrac- tive error in the United States. They found that approximately 11 million individuals [ 12 years of age J. L. Berry Á L. M. Cuzzo Á S. R. Bababeygy Á P. A. Quiros Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA J. L. Berry (&) Á S. R. Bababeygy Á P. A. Quiros Department of Ophthalmology, Doheny Eye Institute, 1450 San Pablo Street, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA e-mail: jesse.berrymd@gmail.com 123 Int Ophthalmol (2012) 32:245–250 DOI 10.1007/s10792-012-9561-1