<p>OMG- I have been trying all month to get my daughters contacts ordered.
( But from instate 3rd party- not through optometrist because I just paid over $2000 for my glasses and they don’t feel comfortable)
First it was delayed because the name for the contacts that the dr uses & the name the company uses are different- although I checked online & they are identical.</p>
<p>Washington, has prescriptions good for two years- I realize many states don’t, but since ins only pays for one eye exam every two years & since the contact exam is completely seperate, it is good that it is for two years.
Unless.
The Dr decides that it is only good for one year.
However, if they decide it is only good for one year, there are steps they are supposed to take to make sure the PATIENT knows it is only for one year.
But how do you prove someone didn’t do something?
So she leaves for school tomorrow, but doesn’t have her contacts.
Have to make an appt for her at her college town.
Grrrr.
( plus they said she had an appt in Feb of 09, which I know isn’t right cause she wasn’t even in the USA in Feb of 09)
otherwise- I like the dr- but …</p>
<p>I’m not sure that optometry will be covered in the new insurance plans, in any case. They are usually separate policies from the general health insurance.</p>
<p>Yes isnt’ that ridiculous?
The frames * were * expensive, but my bridge is really hard to fit & plastic is much more comfortable than wire-
My prescription is so strong I have to have special lenses & while some places offer the bells & whistles ( like polishing & anti reflective) included- this Dr didn’t & he was supposed to be on our preferred list,- plus the bifocal part adds about another $300 onto it, which I might as well have skipped because I have to take my glasses off to read tiny print.</p>
<p>( the 10% sales tax also adds quite a bit)
:p</p>
<p>My S lost a pair of glasses, and insurance wouldn’t pay to replace them. The local eyeglass place wanted over $400.</p>
<p>I went on line and got them for about $50, and $35 of that was for the photochromic lens treatment. $15 glasses - can’t beat it! They worked fine, and looked identical to his old ones.</p>
<p>( However I have to admit, they are very well made- I take them off and on with one hand- when I am not thinking, or leave them on when I am getting dressed & other frames get bent out of wack very easily- but they still look really good)</p>
<p>OMG, $2000 for a pair of glasses. How sad. Frames are sold as designer items; otherwise the would be worth all of $10 or $20. Plastic lenses are also cheap to make. Even at $200-$400 there is a huge markup.</p>
<p>I pay $40 for my glasses. Sometime I reuse my frames. I buy only frames that are covered by my insurance, I do not even check other shelves. My H’s very expensive no-line bifocals with strong prescription and very fancy no-rim frame are $800. I would need to try very hard and spend enourmous amount of time for research to find $2000 glasses.</p>
<p>“Washington, has prescriptions good for two years … Unless. The Dr decides that it is only good for one year.”</p>
<p>Our family changed optometrists over their “good for one year” policy. Their interpretation was that the starting date of the “good for” period coincided with the date of the prior exam … regardless of how long before the exam had been. In our case it was twenty-three months. So the (proposed) exam covered the prior eleven months plus the next one month. “Your next exam is coming up in a month, so why don’t we schedule both exams now” the clerk cheerfully suggested.</p>
<p>Because of the strenght of my lenses, Costco couldn’t fit me. I did go to many places to try on frames- but because of the width of my bridge I could’nt find anything that fit. (We don’t hAve walmarts in the area). Of course a previous frame that I had really liked and fit well had been discontinued. All the other frames were too small for the bifocal part, were wire or didn’t fit. I did go to about 6 different places, but most places also have an afiliated optician and want you to get a prescription from them.</p>
<p>I can’t wear no rim frames because of the thickness of the lens- also why I can’t wear wire- because the nosepads dig into my nose from the weight.</p>
<p>If I could have lasik I would ,even if the ins wouldn’t cover it, it would save me money.</p>
<p>My DHs company has an eyeglass insurance plan (ie discount) but we are pretty convinced they (the eyeglass place) just makes up the charges/prices as they go along. By the time you pay for the progressive lens, polished edges (if they need it), glare resistent coat, thin lenses, frames, etc the $200 becomes $800. My DH just got new lenses but kept the old frames. When they told him the price (after the insurance discount) he just looked at them and said “how much???” They knocked the price down about $80</p>
<p>I just got a new pair, too. Before insurance, $700. After insurance, $150. So I guess I can’t complain too much. They talked me into the super-high index of refraction lenses, which was $90 of the $150. Unfortunately, my prescription is so high I get weird chromatic effects, so they are redoing them for free with a lower index. We’ll see how that goes.</p>
<p>With the lenses I am getting now I can get these on-line for $50. The mark-ups are incredible.</p>
![http://www.zennioptical.com/images/frames/1205/images/more_detail.jpg[/url]](http://www.zennioptical.com/images/frames/1205/images/more_detail.jpg%5B/url%5D){kind=link}
