The New Jersey Legislature is considering a bill that would require comprehensive eye exams for second graders through the creation of a pilot program.

The purpose of this proposed three-year program is to eliminate inappropriate referrals to special education programs by examining students at the end of second grade for vision-related problems. When such problems go undiagnosed, it can result in special education classification for these students.

This proposed legislation is based on a recent report from the New Jersey Commission on Business Efficiency regarding special education reform in the public schools. Significant findings in the report include a high occurrence of undiagnosed or untreated visual problems among special education studentsas well as among the adult illiterateand that few students classified as special education return to full-time general education.

The pilot program would not only save considerable money for public schools, but would also save children from considerable struggles, says Leonard Press, O.D., immediate past president of the New Jersey Society of Optometric Physicians and the chair of the AOA Pediatric Vision Project Team. This could save children from certain stigmas and also save them from trouble at home, when a parent may say You arent trying hard enough, Dr. Press says.

Under current New Jersey law, only one vision assessmenta visual acuity screeningis required by the end of the third grade. Kentucky is the only state that mandates an eye exam for kindergarten students, while other states have passed mandatory vision screening laws.

According to the commissions report, if students received appropriate early-intervention reading assistance and follow-up, including early intervention for those children with undiagnosed or untreated vision problems, the state would eventually save $200 million per year in special education aid costs and would also rescue the lives of thousands of children each year. (See also Legislature Considers Childrens Vision Bills.")