Paying for essential health services, like eye care, is an important part of staying healthy. However, financing eye care services like check ups and vision tests can put a lot of stress on a family’s budget. If you want to get high quality eye care, but still save money, it can help to compare financing options for eye care. By looking at the below financing options for eye care, you can determine which one works best for you in your family, and which will be the best investment for your overall health and wellbeing.
Vision Insurance
When you purchase vision insurance, it can help you lower the cost of routine eye care — like eye doctor visits or other normal procedures. Insurance helps lower the cost of care in a variety of ways. First, some insurance companies can negotiate lower rates with eye doctors who are in their networks. Also, some vision insurance companies can pay for a portion of the services you receive, leaving you to pay what’s remaining.
Despite helping pay for the cost of vision care, vision insurance doesn’t pay for all eye care procedures. Most plans require you to provide a co-pay after a visit. The amount of your co-pay can differ significantly, depending on your provider.
Also, vision care plans usually have a deductible you must meet before it covers more serious procedures. This means that you have to spend a certain amount on things like vision tests, eye doctors visits and procedures before it covers more expensive things like eye surgeries. Your eye care deductible will differ depending on who your insurance provider is. Some providers will pay for all of your eye care services once you’ve paid $400 — others may require you to pay $1,000 or more before it will cover your bills.
Some people receive vision insurance from their employer. In this case, employers help offset the cost of the insurance. If you don’t receive insurance from your employer, then you’ll need to pay for it on your own. While vision insurance does cost less than traditional healthcare insurance, the monthly expense can add up — and it can put a strain on your wallet.
Vision Care Discount Plans
One way to help reduce the cost of your vision insurance is to get a discount Vision Plan. Discount vision care plans offer people who sign up for them an opportunity to take advantage of lower-priced vision care costs. People who have a vision discount plan can expect to receive discounts of 20 percent to 40 percent off the retail price of eye care. Discount plans work at more than 65,000 eye care providers across the nation. The plans also offer patients discounts on eyeglasses, conventional lenses, contact lenses, eye exams and more.
All DentalSave memberships include EyeMed Vision Care Access Plan D and QualSight LASIK Eye Surgery discounts at no additional cost. That means you get dental, vision, hearing, and prescription drug discounts included in a single plan.
Vision Care Payment Plans
A lot of eye care providers know that individuals can’t afford to pay for expensive procedures. Therefore, many practices offer payment plans for patients who need help financing their care over time. Payment plans break bills into smaller increments, and they can feel less stressful — thought they don’t save you any money in the long run.
CareCredit
Another option for paying for vision care is CareCredit. CareCredit is like a credit card that pays for the amount of your bill that’s left over after. CareCredit offers interest- free options if you can pay your bill off within 18 months. After 18 months, CareCredit charges a low interest rate on the remaining balance, until your bill is completely paid. Like payment plans, CareCredit can help paying for vision care feel less stressful, but it doesn’t save you money on care in the long run.
Paying for vision care is important — but it isn’t always affordable. Luckily, there are options, even for those without access to vision insurance, that can help make financing care stress-free and easy.
