Seva Foundation Study ‘The $1 Trillion Blind Spot’: Uncorrected Vision Loss is Undermining Global Productivity

The global cost of uncorrected vision loss is far greater than the world has previously recognized, according to a new self-published report from the Seva Foundation. The study, The $1 Trillion Blind Spot: How Uncorrected Vision Loss is Undermining Global Productivity, estimates that vision loss drains $1 trillion annually from low- and middle-income countries, a figure that more than doubles earlier calculations that focused solely on blindness and the more severe forms of visual impairment.

“We’re facing a $1 trillion problem hiding in plain sight. Vision loss drains more from the global economy each year than the direct costs of all natural disasters combined — and yet, we can solve most of it with a pair of glasses or a 15-minute cataract surgery. The tools already exist. What’s missing is global urgency,” says Kate Moynihan, CEO and Executive Director of Seva Foundation.

The new Seva study reveals the true economic toll of poor vision—both the direct loss of productivity and the ripple effects: children struggling to learn, caregivers pulled away from work, and families losing income and opportunity. The findings show that the burden of vision loss is far greater than previously recognized, underscoring the urgent need for investment in eye care.

“This study builds on earlier research by expanding the scope to include the most common vision challenges, such as myopia and presbyopia,” explains Brad Wong, Chief Economist for Seva. “By capturing these widespread but often overlooked conditions, we gain a fuller picture of how vision loss limits employment prospects, reduces school performance, and erodes quality of life—especially in low-income and rural communities.”

Drawing on updated prevalence data and labor market statistics, the study models how vision loss impacts employment, productivity, education, and income across a lifetime. For example, it estimates that children with uncorrected refractive errors can lose up to 78 per cent of their lifetime earnings potential—because without glasses, they learn only about half as much as their peers—cutting short future opportunities and deepening cycles of poverty.

Seva’s report makes the case that correcting vision loss is one of the most cost-effective health investments available. Simple interventions like eye exams, eyeglasses, and cataract surgery are inexpensive, sometimes as little as $10 per person per year, yet have an outsized impact on economic and social well-being. “A recent Seva study shows that for every $1 spent on eye care, we gain $36 in productivity, education, and quality of life, making it one of the best public health investments,” asks Moynihan.

The analysis also highlights the inequity embedded in global vision care: of the estimated one billion people living with uncorrected vision loss, nearly half experience near vision impairment, primarily presbyopia. Only four percent are blind. The majority, which accounts for 538 million, are of working age, while 78 million are children. Roughly 90 percent of these cases are preventable or reversible.

“It’s rare to find a global health issue that is this large, this fixable, and this cost-effective,” Moynihan notes. “We already have the solutions: eyeglasses and cataract surgery are among the oldest and cheapest medical technologies out there. It’s time to scale them.” Seva leaders stress that the main call to action is simple but transformative: scale up eye care services globally.

Fifty years ago, the landmark Nepal Blindness Study demonstrated that tackling vision loss on a national scale was both possible and practical. Dr. Larry Brilliant, epidemiologist, and public health specialist states, “With this new study from Seva, we know the true costs if we fail to do just that.”

For Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof, the findings underscore both progress and unfinished business. “Over decades of reporting, I've seen huge progress against blindness worldwide. This restores people's dignity, economic opportunity, and happiness, and it's one of the great bargains of global health. But next to that progress, I also see so much vision loss that remains unaddressed. That's what I admire about Seva: It is filling that gap by restoring sight reliably and inexpensively in a way that is truly uplifting,” he affirms.