Silver Book Fact
Visual impairment and blindness cause an annual health utility loss of approximately $10.5 billion. This figure measures lost quality of life when a disease has little or no short-term impact on mortality.
Frick K, Gower E, Kempen J, Wolff J. Economic Impact of Visual Impairment and Blindness in the United States. Archives of Ophthalmology. 2007; 125(4): 544-50. http://archopht.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/125/4/544