​In March 2020, news outlets in multiple countries began simultaneously reporting that contact lens wearers were at higher risk of COVID-19 infection—claims devoid of scientific proof. Without countermeasures, panic could ensue among the world’s contact lens wearers and health officials, plus devastate the global contact lens marketplace.

The non-profit Centre for Ocular Research & Education stepped in, assembling a team of scientists with an aggressive plan to turn the tide. In only 30 days, its efforts with McDougall Communications replaced falsehoods with facts, reached consumers and doctors in 55 countries, and set an entire industry on the path to recovery.