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Pensioner 'must go blind to get NHS treatment' - Independent Online Edition > Health

Pensioner 'must go blind to get NHS treatment' - Independent Online Edition > Health

A pensioner will have to lose his sight in one eye before health chiefs will consider treating him, a leading charity for the blind claimed yesterday.

Leslie Howard, 76, from Acomb, York, was diagnosed with wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in his right eye last November.

He needs special drugs to save his sight but it is claimed the local primary care trust (PCT) will only consider funding them once he has gone blind in one eye and developed wet AMD in his second eye.

The Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) claims Mr Howard's only hope is to pay for private treatment - wet AMD can cause sight loss in as little as three months and requires prompt treatment.

But Mr Howard, who has been in public service most of his life, says he cannot afford the private care bill of more than £6,000 a year.

Mr Howard said: "I can't believe I'm being left to go blind in one eye. I've spent most of my working life devoted to public service - I was in the Army, police and prison service - and I've never failed to pay my dues.
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