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April 23, 2006 at 04:00 PM
Adding vision care benefits is a great way to perk up a boring benefits package.
Vision care benefits can increase worker productivity, and they appeal to most employees.
Perhaps more important, many talented employees who have come to think of employer-paid major medical, group dental and life insurance as routine still think of vision care benefits as a valuable extra.
Jobson Optical Group, New York, reports that eye conditions affected six in 10 Americans–more than 175 million people. As a result, 72% of adults 18 years and older require some form of vision correction.
The National Eye Institute says the cost of eye and vision disorders is a staggering $68 billion a year, not including the impact on jobs and productivity. What’s more, the number of Americans with age-related eye disease and visual impairment is expected to double over the next three decades.
Employers are starting to take note.
The percentage of employers offering some type of vision benefits increased to 77% in 2005, from 50% in 1997, according to Hay Group, Philadelphia, a personnel consulting firm.
