Along with 18 global vision and diabetes advocacy organizations, the Foundation is leading efforts to raise awareness of how people living with diabetes can avoid vision loss
CAMBRIDGE, MA — The Angiogenesis Foundation announced today the official launch of its Vision Bill of Rights for the Diabetes Community — a solution-forward global initiative raising awareness about protecting vision within the diabetes community. The Vision Bill of Rights unites the advocacy efforts of vision and diabetes groups all over the world and the ultimate goal is to improve vision outcomes for people living with diabetes.
“The Vision Bill of Rights is a pivotal alliance of the world’s preeminent vision and diabetes advocacy groups,” said Dr. William W. Li, President and Medical Director of the Angiogenesis Foundation. “The risk of vision loss from diabetes is often minimized and the world community needs to make diabetic eye health a higher priority so people living with diabetes can reach their full health potential.”
The Angiogenesis Foundation worked with 35 diabetes and low vision advocacy groups to tailor and refine the bill of rights to reflect the complexities of the world’s health systems and to identify the key obstacles preventing people living with diabetes from receiving the best possible vision care.
In 2017, at the Euretina Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and at the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, the Angiogenesis Foundation first introduced the Vision Bill of Rights and doctors, health workers, and advocates from 76 countries signed on to support the initiative.
The following eighteen vision and diabetes groups from around the world have signed on as official partners of the initiative: Abalon Trust (UK), Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians (Canada), American Macular Degeneration Foundation (US), BrightFocus Foundation (US), Canadian Ophthalmological Society (Canada), CNIB (Canada), Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (US), European Blind Union (Europe), Hadley (US), Helen Keller Services (US), International Association of Audio Information Services (US), International Federation on Ageing (Canada), LMC Diabetes and Endocrinology (Canada), Lumbini Eye Institute (Nepal), MD Support (US), Prevent Blindness (US), World Blind Union (Canada), World Services for the Blind (US). To learn more about this global alliance to protect the vision of people living with diabetes, please visit www.visionbillofrights.org.
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Established in 1994, the Angiogenesis Foundation’s mission is to improve global health through angiogenesis-based treatment and prevention. For more information, visit angio.org.