People often ask about the difference between being blind and being “legally blind.” Because “blindness” can mean many different things, blindness under the law is the threshold at which a person is considered visually impaired for legal purposes, such as insurance purposes, to receive certain benefits, or to be accepted into various programs. These options can all be used to help a person with legal blindness live more independently and enjoy the same activities more as people with normal vision. A common test for visual acuity is Snellen`s eye chart. Someone who is legally blind could simply read the top row of the chart, a capital E, while wearing corrective lenses. The line under the capital E is the line for 20/100. There are also tests that can measure between 20/200 and 20/100. Someone who can`t see the line for 20/100 but sees somewhere between 20/100 and 20/200 would still meet the government`s standard of legal blindness, which is why they are listed as “20/200 or less.” Someone who is legally blind has corrected vision of 20/200 in their best eyesight. You may feel legally blind if you can`t see beyond one foot in front of you without wearing glasses, but as long as your vision can be corrected 20/20 with a visual aid like glasses, you`re not considered legally blind. Although some people become legally blind after an accident, several eye conditions can also cause legal blindness and other vision problems.
Note that the blind person within the meaning of the law is not completely blind. While legally blind people can still technically see, completely blind people will not be able to perceive light or see anything. When determining right blindness, the field of vision (the part of a person`s vision that allows them to see what is happening on their end) is also taken into account. A field of vision of 20 degrees or less is considered blind under the law. Ophthalmologists can help diagnose right blindness. Basically, if it`s at least 20/70, can`t be corrected — even with touches, glasses, or surgery — and interferes with your daily activities, it can legally be considered a “visual impairment.” Like the term “legal blindness,” “visual impairment” is not a functional definition that tells us a lot about what a person can and cannot see. It is more of a classification system than a definition. They are considered legally blind if the test detects a field of view of 20 degrees or less.
You may hear that this is called tunnel vision. Blind people are “legally blind,” but some people who can see with strong eyeglasses say they are legally blind without their glasses. This means that without glasses, they might not see well enough to see certain things, drive, etc. Visual acuity below 20/200 is considered blind under the law, but to truly fit the definition, the person must not be able to achieve 20/200 vision, even with prescription glasses. Many people who would be legally blind without glasses can function well in everyday life with proper glasses or contact lenses. Most government agencies and health care institutions agree that legal blindness is defined as visual acuity (central vision) of 20/200 or worse in the best sighted eye or a field of vision (peripheral vision) limited to only 20 degrees. Visual acuity of 20/200 means that what the legally blind person can see at 20 feet, the average person can see clearly at 200 feet. When it comes to the field of vision, the average person can see 140 degrees without turning their head.
Legal blindness occurs when a person has a central visual acuity (vision that allows a person to see right in front of them) of 20/200 or less in their best eye with correction. With a visual acuity of 20/200, a person can see at 20 feet what a person with a vision of 20/20 sees at 200 feet. Total blindness is the complete absence of light perception and shape perception and is recorded as “NLP”, an abbreviation for “no light perception”. Did you know: The largest letter on the diagram (an E on most Snellen diagrams) is a 20/200 vision. If someone cannot distinguish this letter with his prescribed glasses, he is considered blind within the meaning of the law. There are many conditions that can cause legal blindness, but the most common are age-related eye diseases. Age-related eye diseases that are the leading causes of low vision and blindness: Part 1 of the American definition of legal blindness says this about visual acuity: American Printing House for the Blind. What is legal blindness? If you have a Snellen rating above 20/70, with and without contact lenses or glasses, you have relatively good vision and are not legally blind or even legally visually impaired.
If you are legally blind or caring for a blind person, visually impaired people are usually more familiar with the latest visual aids to help you get the most out of your eyesight. A legally blind person with 20/200 vision (with the best corrective lenses) would have to be 20 feet away from an object to see it, and someone with 20/20 vision could see it from 200 feet away. The terms may also be used by health insurers to determine benefits and as part of the vision screening tests required by state departments of motor vehicles (DMV) when determining driver`s license eligibility. For safety reasons, people who are legally blind or visually impaired are generally not entitled to a driver`s licence. The Iowa Department for the Blind also serves people who are functionally blind. A person is functionally blind when they have to use so many alternative techniques to perform tasks that are normally performed with vision that their daily lifestyle is significantly altered. These alternative techniques could include reading a newspaper while listening to the phone or using Braille to read a book. Several NGOs can help people with legal blindness lead a more normal life, even with severe visual impairment. An ophthalmologist will measure visual acuity and visual field to determine if a person is legally blind. “Legally blind” is the definition of blindness used by the United States Social Security Administration (SSA) to determine whether a person is eligible for disability benefits, tax exemptions, and training for the visually impaired. As the country`s population ages, the number of legally blind Americans is expected to double by 2050.
This means that a blind person with 20/200 vision sees objects that are about one-tenth as sharp as a person with 20/20 vision. Another way of looking at it: if someone with 20/20 vision is standing next to a legally blind person, the legally blind person should approach up to 20 feet to see an object from 200 feet away, as well as the person with normal vision. We have all heard the term “legally blind,” but what does that really mean? How is it different from complete blindness and who is considered legally blind? “Legal blindness” is a definition used by the U.S. government to determine eligibility for job training, rehabilitation, education, disability benefits, equipment for the visually impaired, and tax exemption programs. It`s not a functional definition of low vision and doesn`t tell us much about what a person can and can`t see. Eye trauma or injury and genetic diseases, such as Usher syndrome, can also lead to legal blindness. The government uses the term “statutory blindness” to decide who can receive certain benefits, such as disability or vocational training. This is not the same as being completely blind. In the United States, legal blindness is based on measurements of central visual acuity (which is right in front of you) and field of vision (what is above, below, and to the sides).