What is meant by legally blind? Does it mean that a person can see anything at all?
The definition of legally blind is used to qualify a person for legal reasons. An eye doctor is responsible for making this determination and filling out the necessary paperwork. There are tax and other benefits to being classified legally blind. This status may make you eligible for social services which will help you through the rehabilitation process. Once you have the necessary papers (the ones you get from your eye doctor), then present them to your tax accountant and the local State Commission for the Blind. The commonly used definition of legally blind is that a person must be able to see no better than 20/200 in the best eye with correction or have a field of vision no greater than 20 degrees in their best eye with correction. What does this mean to you? Well, some of my patients who are declared legally blind by an eye doctor have excellent peripheral vision and with only their prescription glasses they can even read the headlines in the newspaper, but they can’t read any type
