We know that health insurance is essential, but what about vision insurance? Vision insurance can be purchased as a group benefit via your company or individual coverage. But how does the price compare to the coverage you’ll get? That depends on your individual needs and the coverage you want.
Comprehensive eye examinations are required for much more than verifying whether current eyeglass/corrective lens prescriptions are correct. Vision insurance covers all or most of the cost of an annual eye checkup. However, when it comes to detecting eye illness or damage, they are also the first line of protection.
An eye exam can do so much more than test your eyesight. Your optometrist, for example, may identify symptoms of diabetes, glaucoma, excessive cholesterol, and some types of cancer that would otherwise go undiagnosed. In addition, while your eyesight may be fine right now, it may decline with age [1].
What is Vision Insurance, and How Does It Work?
Routine health insurance covers the expenses of eye disorders or accidents, but it does not cover the price of “regular maintenance” eye care, such as eye tests, glasses, or contacts. For example, vision insurance covers most of the expense of an annual checkup and the thorough eye tests needed to confirm or update prescriptions.
According to the National Eye Institute, over 65 percent of American people use glasses, contacts, or both. If you fall into this group, vision insurance is recommended; if you don’t, vision insurance is still an excellent idea.
You either submit a check to the insurance provider or have the premium withdrawn from your salary if you have an employer-sponsored plan when you have vision insurance.
You can be eligible for discounts on eye examinations, glasses, and contacts as a benefit of your policy. Some vision insurance policies require you to see a network provider. Other vision programs only demand that you see an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. To put it another way, you should see a vision care expert who has either graduated from a college of optometry and licensed by the state or has attended medical school and is certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology [2].
Who needs a vision insurance policy?
Vision insurance is beneficial to people of all ages and may cover everyone in your family. When you cover everyone in your household, you may save even more money on those essential yearly eye tests and eyeglasses. Also, keep in mind that you must see an eye doctor once a year to renew your contact prescription if you wear contacts. Your vision insurance will cover a large portion of the cost of glasses or contacts for you or your family if you have a policy [3].
Is Vision Insurance Important If You Have Good Vision?
Even if your eyesight is excellent today, it may gradually deteriorate as you age. An eye care practitioner can detect indicators of eye disorders or injuries in addition to determining if you need a prescription or a prescription update. During an eye exam, for example, your eye doctor may discover the following:
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- Glaucoma
- Some forms of cancer
Even people with healthy eyes might benefit from vision insurance because treating eye injuries or disorders without insurance can be rather expensive.
Visits to an out-of-pocket eye doctor can be far more expensive than a year’s worth of vision insurance payments. In addition, knowing that you are insured if any unforeseen accidents or ailments occur can provide a sense of relief.
Is it necessary to get vision insurance for my child?
It’s recommended that a doctor check your child in the first year to measure eyesight and eye development. The doctor will conduct the screening by shining a light in the child’s eyes to examine the pupillary response and eye alignment during routine well-child checkups. If any issues are discovered, you will be directed to an eye doctor specializing in children.
If these visual abnormalities are caught when your kid is still a newborn, you can ensure that the condition is addressed swiftly and that your child’s growth is constantly followed.
Ophthalmologist treatment and vision insurance
If you have any major eye problems, your primary care physician would most likely send you to an ophthalmologist. An ophthalmologist is an eye doctor who deals with more severe issues regarding eye health. Unlike an optometrist, whose primary role is to test your visual acuity and prescribe corrective lenses if necessary, an ophthalmologist is a medical doctor who deals with more potentially serious issues surrounding eye health.
Some people’s health insurance and vision insurance may work together to cover the expenses of ophthalmologist appointments and treatments. However, when it comes to ophthalmologist treatment, you should contact your insurance providers for the most up-to-date information on what is covered by each [2].
What does vision insurance cover?
Routine eye exams, medically necessary treatments, and prescription eyewear and contacts are all covered by vision insurance.
Specialty lenses and anti-reflection coatings are often included in vision insurance policies as allowances or discounts. Elective vision correction surgery, such as LASIK and PRK, is also discounted by some policies. If you know you would like correction surgery, this is something to consider when buying a policy.
Depending on the supplier, vision insurance may cover a wide range of services, goods, and treatments. Some vision insurance plans, for example, have different copay amounts, eye exam tests (which may or may not include a retina scan), and how frequently you may use your coverage to buy glasses or contacts.
As a result, the first thing you should do when selecting an insurance plan should be to examine what you and your family need for eye health. Depending on your requirements, vision policies provide varying coverage and prices.
What is the cost of vision insurance?
While the cost of vision insurance varies depending on the plan’s complexity, most businesses that provide vision insurance in an attempt to keep rates in the $5-$15 per month range. Some companies may even pay for a portion of the monthly payments.
This is when your vision needs to come into play. Annual eye examinations are required for you or your family’s eye health. If you also require glasses, contact lenses, or prescription sunglasses, the out-of-pocket expense of those items will rapidly add up. However, the monthly cost of vision insurance is often substantially less than paying for these visual goods and services without coverage for most individuals.
Final Thoughts
It might be challenging to decide whether or not to acquire vision insurance. The decision to purchase a policy is based on various considerations, including the policy choices available to you, the sorts of vision care goods and services you need, and how often you require them. So do your homework and the math before signing up to ensure you’re obtaining a product that will be useful to you.
- [1] “What is Vision Insurance, and What Does It Cost?” https://www.allaboutvision.com/vision-insurance/what-is-it.htm (accessed Feb. 15, 2022).
- [2] “Is vision insurance worth it?” https://www.policygenius.com/personal-finance/news/is-vision-insurance-worth/ (accessed Feb. 15, 2022).
- [3] “Vision Insurance: Costs, Benefits and Who Needs It – NerdWallet.” https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/health/vision-insurance/ (accessed Feb. 15, 2022).
- [4] “Is Vision Insurance Worth It? What You Should Know.” https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/11/vision-care-insurance.asp (accessed Feb. 15, 2022).