How much does Myopia control cost?

In 2015 the World Health Organisation (WHO) held an international scientific meeting looking at the growing problem of Myopia.[1]

In addition to recommendations on areas such as myopic macular degeneration and an identified need for further research into myopia, the WHO meeting concluded that: “Measures for the detection and management of myopia should be an integral part of plans for the provision of eye-care services.”

That report was followed by a WHO meeting in May 2021 at which all countries committed to a 40% increase in effective coverage of refractive error by 2030.[2] So why is the WHO so concerned with the problem of Myopia? Well, apart from the fact that it has been estimated that without action half of the global population will have Myopia by 2050, uncorrected distance refractive error is the largest cause of preventable blindness worldwide. Moreover, one 2012 estimate [3] put the annual productivity loss due to uncorrected refractive error alone at $202 billion.