Eye care costs a barrier for people on low incomes
Healthwatch England publish report “Seeing clearly: Attending sight tests and accessing opticians focuses on eye care costs as a barrier to people accessing care.” (Opens PDF.)
- New research reveals costs of additional eye care services are likely to deter some people from visiting opticians altogether.
- NHS vouchers to help meet eye care costs has fallen by over 30% in real terms, putting pressure on high street opticians to cover costs in other ways.
- People describe regular visits to the opticians as vital in maintaining eye health, but some avoidable eye care problems risk not being identified if costs are putting some people off attending appointments.
- Healthwatch England calls for review of eye care support, to ensure additional costs do not deter those on the lowest incomes from visiting opticians.
An estimated 50% of sight loss is avoidable (Source: The State of the Nation 2016 by RNIB, supported by Specsavers [opens PDF]. That’s why it’s vital that people are able to have their eyesight tested regularly and, if there is a problem, get the help they need.
However, new research found that costs associated with visiting opticians are deterring those on the lowest incomes from getting regular eye tests. One in seven, 14%, of people who responded to Healthwatch England’s self-selecting survey, had avoided eye care due to cost in the last two years. People who describe themselves as ‘not at all comfortable financially’ are much more likely to avoid going to opticians than those who are financially very comfortable (39% vs 3%). The high rate of people avoiding eye care may be exacerbated by lack of awareness of the financial support available.
Healthwatch England carried out a self-selecting online survey of people’s eye care experiences between July – September 2024 following concerns people shared with the patient champion about the cost of eyecare. In total, 2,568 people shared their stories about their eye care experiences, with 1,766 people responding to the questions about having eye tests in the last two years.
As people are faced with rising eye care costs and lack of financial support, many high-street opticians, which are private businesses, must increasingly rely on income generated through offering additional services in addition to eye tests. In recent years, the real terms value of NHS optical vouchers has dropped by over 30%, and the value of the NHS sight test fee by even more. This, alongside significant changes to eligibility for some benefits, puts pressure on both customers and opticians.
The survey found that of those who had attended an eye test in the last two years, 72% had experienced staff offering additional services at a cost. However, this practice has also made some people reluctant to visit optician services at all. Those who said that opticians had offered them additional paid-for services were twice as likely to say they had avoided getting eye care in the last two years compared to those who had not experienced this (17% vs 8%).
Most (84%) of the respondents to our self-selecting survey were eligible for free eye tests. However, as the results of our survey show, many people who are eligible for financial support for their eye care may find it difficult to afford additional costs and they may put off getting eye care support because they are concerned about being pushed into paying for products or services they can’t afford.
Louise Ansari, chief executive of Healthwatch England"Regular visits to the optician are essential to help keep your eyes healthy and identify any issues. However, there are clear signs that the extra costs people face could discourage those struggling financially from visiting opticians. NHS funding to help meet eye care costs has not kept pace with inflation, which, in turn, is causing high-street opticians to rely more on selling additional services to make their businesses viable. It is essential that this situation does not impact on the those most disadvantaged in society. This is why the Government needs to review the help available for those on the lowest incomes and ensure that more people are aware of how the NHS can help meet the costs of eye care."
Healthwatch England set out the following steps to protect people from the rising impact of eye care costs:
- The Department of Health and Social Care should review support for the costs of NHS eye care for those on the lowest incomes.
- The Government and the NHS should consider a targeted communications campaign through direct channels to low-income eye care patients.
- The primary eye care sector should have clear guidelines for how staff should assist those on lower incomes without affecting their confidence in seeking care.
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