TORONTO --
A new report suggests that improved services for those with vision loss are needed to address growing costs that could otherwise put a strain on the health-care system and Canada's economy.
The report, published on Wednesday from Deloitte Access Economics and commissioned by four leading vision organizations in Canada, used established data on major eye diseases to estimate that vision loss costed Canada nearly $33 billion in 2019 and is expected to climb to $56 billion in 2050, primarily due to trends in population growth and aging.
"Canada is experiencing an emerging crisis of preventable blindness," Doug Earle, president and CEO of Fighting Blindness Canada, told CTVNews.ca in an interview.