- Bausch + Lomb Corporation appointed Brent Saunders as CEO and chair of the board of directors, effective March 6. Concurrent with this appointment, and as previously announced, Joseph C. Papa will step down from his roles as CEO and director. Additionally, effective upon Mr. Saunders’ appointment as chair of the board, Thomas W. Ross Sr. will become the lead independent director of the board. Mr. Saunders returns to Bausch + Lomb after having served at the company as CEO from 2010 to 2013. He brings more than 25 years of leadership in health care, having served as president, CEO, and chairman, among other roles, at several global pharmaceutical and health care companies, including Schering-Plough Corporation, Forest Laboratories Inc., Actavis plc, Allergan plc, and The Beauty Health Company.
- Citing the significant public and economic impact posed by an aging population, along with increased visual impairments and blindness in the U.S., the American Optometric Association (AOA) has issued its revised, research-based clinical practice guideline to assist ODs in providing eye and vision examinations for adults and highlighting the importance of annual in-person exams for all Americans. View AOA’s second edition of the Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline for the Comprehensive Adult Eye and Vision Examination at bit.ly/clt323aoa .
- Art Optical Contact Lens Inc. expanded its recently launched Specialty Contact Lens Travel Grant program to include new optometrists. In an effort to introduce more young ODs to the benefits of fitting specialty lenses, program eligibility has been expanded to include eyecare professionals who have been in practice fewer than three years. The Travel Grant Program allows optometry residents, third- and fourth-year students, and now, newly practicing ODs who have an interest in specialty lens fitting, to apply for a $750 grant to be used toward travel and registration expenses at professional specialty contact lens meetings. Additional qualification details and grant applications are available at artoptical.com/travelgrant .Separately, Art Optical has introduced a new Rx lens marking system for its MoonLens orthokeratology/myopia management lenses. A unique set of numbers is now engraved on each lens and will correspond to a matching number on the lens invoice. This lens/invoice identification system will allow the practitioner to track lens parameters more easily during the fitting process and in the event of patient handling mix-ups between eyes or sets of lenses.
- Aubry Tackett, a fourth-year optometry student, is the recipient of the Dr. Frank D. Fontana Memorial Scholarship. Ms. Tackett, who attends Northeastern State University, Oklahoma, College of Optometry, received $4,250 toward her education and a $750 travel grant to attend the Heart of America Eye Care Congress Conference in February 2023. VSP Vision, in partnership with the Heart of America Eye Care Congress, awards the scholarship annually. The scholarship is named in honor of Dr. Frank D. Fontana, also known as Uncle Frank, who practiced optometry for nearly 70 years and passed away in 2018. After graduation, Ms. Tackett plans to complete her residency with an emphasis in cornea and contact lens care.
- BostonSight announced that Lensy, an animated scleral lens, will be its ambassador. Daniel C. Brocks, MD, BostonSight’s chief medical officer, drew Lensy for his young children to explain his work. His 2D drawing was transformed into a graphic and has been brought to life as a 3D plush toy. Lensy’s goal is to assist in educating young patients about scleral lenses and PROSE devices. Lensy is a quadrant-specific scleral lens that has lens applicators for arms and legs. With input from Anna Maria Baglieri, OD, of Boston Children’s Hospital, and Gail Windmueller, who is affiliated with Boston Children’s Hospital, BostonSight developed “Lensy: A Scleral Lens Story,” a picture book about the basics of scleral lenses. BostonSight is also running a fundraising campaign: Give (or Get!) the Gift of Lensy. A limited number of Lensy plushies and printed books are available for donation to pediatric patients at PROSE Network sites via the campaign. To Give (or Get!) the Gift of Lensy, visit bostonsight.org/give-lensy . The book is also available for digital download at the link.
- Registration is open for Love Your Lenses Week 2023, with this year’s campaign promising to “put contact lenses firmly in the public eye.” The awareness campaign, organized by the British Contact Lens Association, will be held Sept. 4-10. The first 200 U.K.-based practitioners to register for this year’s Love Your Lenses campaign will receive both a printed and online resource pack, including T-shirts, pens, stickers, posters, and digital assets to help them spread the word both in person and online via social media and their website. International practitioners can also be part of the campaign and will receive digital assets to help show their support. For more details and to register for your free resource packs, visit loveyourlensesweek.com/register-now .
- More than a dozen eyecare community leaders have been named as Contact Lens Institute 2023 Visionaries. The diverse group represents a range of practice settings, research interests, and specializations, with members based in cities and towns across the U.S. 2023 Visionaries include: Shelby Brogdon, OD, McFarland Eye Care; Andrew Bruce, LDO, ABOM, NCLE-AC, ASB Opticianry Education Services; Ariel Cerenzie, OD, Charlotte Contact Lens Specialists; Angelica Cifuentes, OD, Blinking Owl Eyecare, Marino Eye Care and Bye Dry Eyes; Jade Coats, OD, McDonald Eye Associates; Sabrina Gaan, OD, Eyes on Plainville; Lisa Hornick, OD, Stanford Ranch Optometry; Klaus Ito, OD, Ocean Park Optometry; Mila Ioussifova, OD, South Waterfront Eye Care; Essence Johnson, OD, Black Eyecare Perspective; Inna Lazar, OD, Greenwich Eye Care & Pro Eye Care; Jennifer Lyerly, OD, TrueVision Eye Care; Diana Mejia, Bellaire Family Eye Care; Patrick Sayo, Drs. Farkas, Kassalow, Resnick and Associates P.C.; Mark Schaeffer, OD, MyEyeDr; Dana Shannon, OD, Vision Salon Eye Care Associates; Jennifer Tsai, OD, Line Of Sight.In other news, a new, one-minute video series from The Contact Lens Institute (CLI) is helping the eyecare community better communicate healthy, comfortable wear and care behaviors with contact lens patients. The “EASY Does It” series is now available as a YouTube playlist at bit.ly/EASYDoesIt . Each video spotlights an optometrist, optician, or technician who describes one way that they use CLI’s The EASY Way program, such as training staff, educating new and current wearers, or reminding themselves to have a quick but effective wear and care conversation with every contact lens patient.
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC) staff sent 24 cease-and-desist letters to eyecare prescribers after receiving complaints claiming that the prescribers failed to comply with the Contact Lens Rule. Some letters also cited potential violations of the Ophthalmic Practice Rules (known as the Eyeglass Rule). These rules ensure consumers the right to comparison shop for prescription lenses. The FTC is not making the names of the prescribers receiving letters public at this time. As detailed in the letters, the Contact Lens Rule requires prescribers to provide a copy of the contact lens prescription to the patient at the end of the contact lens fitting, even if the patient does not request it; prohibits prescribers from requiring that patients buy contact lenses, pay additional fees, or sign a waiver or release, as a condition of releasing or verifying the prescription; and requires a prescriber who has a direct or indirect financial interest in the sale of contact lenses to ask patients to confirm that they received their prescription by signing an acknowledgement of receipt, a prescriber-retained copy of the prescription, or a copy of the examination receipt.
- Latinos En Optometry, also known as LEO, is an organization supporting Latinos in eye care and those who serve Latino communities. The group is founded by Diana Canto-Sims, OD, CEO and founder of La Vida Eyewear, and Lawrence Chavez, founder and CEO of EveryDay Contacts Inc. The group will provide resources and communications for Latinos in optometry and Latino communities.
- TearSolutions Inc. has established a Strategic Advisory Board, which was accomplished with the appointment of Amir Shojaei, PharmD, PhD. The members of the Medical Advisory Board are Deepinder K. Dhaliwal, MD, L.Ac; Nancy McNamara, OD, PhD, MS; Kelly Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD; John Sheppard, MD; and Joseph Tauber, MD. TearSolutions also announced the promotion of James Cook to chief development officer.
- Harrow announced the appointment of Mark Mannebach, PhD, RPh, as head of regulatory affairs and pharmacovigilance, responsible for overseeing and managing all regulatory-related submissions and strategy related to the company’s portfolio of new and existing products. Dr. Mannebach’s successful 30-year career in the pharmaceutical industry, much of which was focused on ophthalmology, includes leadership roles in regulatory affairs, quality assurance, program management, and pharmaceutical product development.
- Selagine Inc. entered into a research, development, and sublicense agreement with Grifols, a creator of plasma-derived medicines for the development and commercialization of immunoglobulin eye drops for dry eye disease. The eye drop is an immunoglobulin biologic drug containing functional antibodies generated from human plasma. Selagine is a spin-out company from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
- Aldeyra Therapeutics Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the New Drug Application (NDA) for topical ocular reproxalap, a first-in-class investigational new drug candidate, for the treatment of the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. The FDA assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act date of Nov. 23.
- Orasis Pharmaceuticals announced that the FDA has accepted for review its new drug application (NDA) for investigational CSF-1 (low-dose pilocarpine hydrochloride 0.4%). The FDA has assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act goal date of Oct. 22, 2023.
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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR GSLS AWARDS
The Global Specialty Lens Symposium (GSLS) is seeking nominations for its two awards that will be given out at the 2024 GSLS.
• GSLS AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
The GSLS Award of Excellence was established in 2013. The award is given periodically by the GSLS Program Committee to a distinguished clinician, scholar, and/or scientist to recognize his or her lifelong achievements in the field of contact lenses, especially as they relate to specialty contact lenses. The individual(s) selected are recognized for their contributions to the field of contact lenses, including development, practice, translation of knowledge and education, and scholarly activity, all of which moved the field forward in seminal ways.
• GSLS RISING STAR AWARD
The GSLS Rising Star Award is intended to recognize an emerging leader in the field of cornea and contact lenses. The ideal candidate is within 10 years of receiving their degree or residency training, and must demonstrate substantial contributions to the field, outside of what might normally be expected in this early phase of one’s career.
Nominations should include the names, title/affiliation/contact information, and a summary (up to 500 words) of why the nominee should be considered for the GSLS Award of Excellence or Rising Star Award. A copy of the nominee’s curriculum vitae must also be included. All nominations, due by June 15, can be sent to GSLS Chair Jason Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, at Jason.nichols@broadcastmed.com.
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