Rancho Cordova, Calif., October 8, 2008 – VSP^® Vision Care today announced the first of four buildings on its Rancho Cordova, Calif. campus has earned Platinum Certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – Existing Buildings (LEED-EB); the highest level possible and only awarded to 14 other buildings in the nation.

Established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED is a leading-edge system for certifying the greenest performing buildings in the world and a nationally accepted benchmark for building sustainability.

“We envision a campus that is environmentally responsible, healthy and prosperous that improves the quality of life of not only our employees but the community we live in,” said Steve Hibbs, Director of VSP Corporate Services. “Our platinum certification is a significant achievement in sustainability, and it marks a milestone in VSP’s ongoing efforts to become a model of energy and resource efficiency.”

Efforts by VSP to attain Platinum LEED-EB certification include:

• Reduced overall waste by 70 percent.
• Installed low-flow plumbing fixtures and altered landscaping and irrigation to reduce water consumption by 50 percent.
• Installed water meters to monitor the rooftop HVAC equipment and cafeteria.
• Implemented energy upgrades and adopted processes to monitor and reduce energy usage and CO2 omissions.
• Installed sub-metering equipment to track energy usage.
• Use environmentally friendly products made of recycled materials wherever possible.
• Use CO2 sensors and humidity monitoring to ensure optimal fresh air.
• Installed highest rating filters on all HVAC equipment.
• Changed custodial hours to shut down the building six hours earlier for significant energy savings.
• Recycle all materials with “side saddle” trash bins that encourage recycling.
• Employees use permanent water and coffee cups to eliminate disposables.

“VSP is to be commended for achieving LEED certification. This facility is one that both the community and its customers can be proud of,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO, Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council. “VSP will be a showcase for high-performance, energy-efficient, healthy work environments, and an inspiration for others.”

The LEED Green Building Rating System™ is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. The rating system was designed by leading experts in the construction industry to promote buildings that are economically profitable, environmentally friendly, healthy and productive places to work.

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About the VSP Family of Companies
VSP^®’s family of companies includes the largest not-for-profit vision benefits and services company in the United States with 55 million members; VSP Labs, industry leaders in new technologies, production processes, service and logistics; Marchon^® Eyewear Inc., one of the world’s largest manufacturers, designers and distributors of quality fashion and technologically-advanced eyewear and sunwear, distributing its products to more than 100,000 customer locations in more than 100 countries; Eyefinity^®/Officemate^® which offer innovative solutions and the premier management software and technology to improve overall practice management and the patient experience.

Since 1997, VSP has provided more than 470,000 low-income, uninsured children with free eyecare. Through relationships with the American Diabetes Association, Prevent Blindness America and the Center for Health Transformation, VSP promotes the importance of annual eye exams for maintaining eye health and overall wellness.

About the U.S. Green Building Council
The U.S. Green Building Council is a nonprofit membership organization whose vision is a sustainable built environment within a generation. Its membership includes corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and other nonprofit organizations. Since UGSBC’s founding in 1993, the Council has grown to more than 13,000 member companies and organizations, a comprehensive family of LEED® green building rating systems, an expansive educational offering, the industry’s popular Greenbuild International Conference and Expo (www.greenbuildexpo.org), and a network of 72 local chapters, affiliates, and organizing groups. For more information, visit www.usgbc.org.