Eyeglasses for the poor

What does the government of the state of Washington have against the downtrodden? The first thing they do is gut the safety net that supports them. Recently, there was an article talking about cutting more social programs for the poor so that some city official could have an assistant. And now the Washington Board of Optometry has decided to prohibit dispensing used eyeglasses to the poor.

The Union Gospel Mission has for years dispensed secondhand eyeglasses to those who would otherwise not have had any glasses at all. Now the Washington Board of Optometry finds that it has nothing better to do than to interpret an obscure federal law that prevents used glasses from being redistributed to those who could otherwise go without. Chairman Michael VanBrocklin, in a response to Lions International, said, “Nevertheless, we find the dispensing of used prescription lenses very problematic and cannot condone a lower standard of care for the less fortunate.”

What does VanBrocklin think is going to happen? The poor will go to a first-rate optometrist? No, they will do without the gift of better vision.

Fritz Howard

LaCrosse, Wash