Nigel Kirkpatrick, medical director at Newmedica, said these people “may be effectively invisible to the system and therefore not receiving the treatment they need”.
He said the findings were “a clear warning that eye health across England is under threat”.
“This isn’t a failure of clinical expertise,” he said. “It is a consequence of a system under funding pressure and a lack of transparency which makes it impossible for health commissioners to prioritise need.”
“The result is that many instances of avoidable sight loss continue to occur, often because care is delivered too late,” he added.
“By embracing this reform, we can create a new system which delivers high-quality consultant-led care at scale. In doing so there’s a real opportunity to increase capacity, increase treatment levels and significantly improve ophthalmology patient outcomes across the country.”
A Department of Health spokesman said: “Our number one priority is cutting waiting lists, including for ophthalmology. They are down by 340,000 since July 2024, and more people are now being treated in 18 weeks than at any point in almost half a decade.
“As part of our 10-year health plan, we are investing £20m to equip high-street optometrists with the digital tools they need to refer patients faster and more accurately and bring eye care closer to home.”