The International Centre for Advancement of Rural Eye Care (ICARE), promoted by L V Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI), Hyderabad has initiated a novel insurance-based community eye care project in the state. To begin with, the community assisted and financed eye-care (CAFE) programme, based on the principle of insurance, is being implemented for a population of 50,000 in the target area of Smt. Rajeshwari Ramakrishnan Lions Eye Hospital, Nidadavole.

Under the programme, insurance for eye-related problems is being offered to the community at "one rupee per person per month". According to the latest activity report of LVPEI, 2,620 residents have been registered in CAFÉ in just three months since the programme was launched in October 2001. Of all these persons who got registered by paying Rs 1, 233 patients were screened and 34 surgeries performed.

The programme is in collaboration with Eyesight International, Canada. ICARE, the public health service of LVPEI was established in May 1998 to organize a large-scale effort to understand the problems of blindness in India, and to make available improved models of eye care for the under-served populations. ICARE has also received a grant from National Lotteries Charities Board of UK and International Centre for Eye Health of London and is one of the six centers, which constitutes a global network of community eye health resource centers.

ICARE has four major areas of work, which includes implementation of projects like CAFÉ project. It is also providing consultancy services. The other major areas of ICARE activities are training of all cadres of eye care personnel and development of sustainable quality eye care infrastructure in the under-served parts of India.

LVPEI report says that ICARE is networking with its regional centers at Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Ahmedabad. It is also in touch with institutions and organizations like Shankara Netralaya, Rajeev Gandhi University of Health Sciences, WHO, SEARO, CHETNA, Voluntary Health Association of India, CEHAT, PRIA and Action Aid for possible networking of information.

ICARE had actively participated in the Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study (APEDS), which assessed the prevalence and causes of blindness and visual impairment, risk factors for various eye diseases, barriers to utilization of eye-care services and quality of life in the visually impaired. The study, which started in 1996 and ended in February 2001, was a cross section population based study involving 10,293 people.