The hospital was founded based on the purpose "to alleviate the suffering of the poor and the cultivation and diffusion of sound knowledge of all that relates to the diseases of the eye and ear."

[citation needed] On October 15, 1869, Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital was opened in a rented brownstone at 233 East 34th Street.

[citation needed] The first permanent facility of Manhattan Eye, Ear & Throat Hospital was located on Park Avenue and 41st Street and was completed and opened on October 3, 1881.

[citation needed] With the number of patients increasing substantially each year, it was not long before the facilities of Manhattan Eye and Ear on Park Avenue became overburdened.

Many world-renowned physicians have been associated with MEETH, including its founders Cornelius Agnew and Daniel B. St. John Roosa, Charles Kelman, Lawrence Yannuzzi, David Gilbert Yates.

[2] In 1999 the board of directors of MEETH adopted a plan to sell the real estate on East 64th Street, terminate its residency program and close all hospital functions.

Medical care is provided for the diagnosis and treatment of afflictions of the eye, including issues such as cataracts, glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration.

MEETH has also been a pioneer in: Photodynamic therapy for wet macular degeneration, the use of sonography (ultrasound) and angiography to diagnose a wide range of eye disorders, ophthalmic plastic surgery, and LASIK laser vision correction.