With 8 in 10 adults needing some type of vision correction, employees are much more likely to go for an annual vision exam than to schedule an annual physical with their primary care physician. Over the years, study after study has shown numerous diseases can be detected through an eye exam. For example, a VSP study of 120,000 of its members found that, over a four-year period, eye doctors were the first to detect signs of diabetes 34% of the time. For hypertension it was 39%, and for cholesterol it was 62% of the time, according to Dan Schauer, SVP and general manager at VSP Vision Care.
But what happens to all the health data collected by vision providers is quickly becoming the next frontier in comprehensive health care.
