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Creatively Frugal Eye Care
How do you save money on glasses, contacts, optometrist appointments,
and other things related to caring for your eyes and maintaining
good vision?
"I get my eyes checked
every two years so I have a current prescription. I have been
using Sears Optical to get glasses as they have a $99 special
that seems to happen about every 6 months. They seem to always
have one in January or February and I have found them to be
reliable. So far they have been able to fit me in frames
with progressive lenses (no-line bifocals) without an extra
charge. This is usually the problem with special promotions."
~ Janice
"I wait for the $99 ads for Sears and JCPenney.
You can even get no-line bifocals with these. The lenses,
though, are basic, and do not include UV or scratch protection.
Also, Lenscrafters sometimes has Buy-one-get-one sales. I
purchase my contact lenses at Walmart or Target; I've found
the on-line offers are more expensive.
For prescription sunglasses, the best
tip I ever received is from my mom. When you get new
glasses, bring your old glasses to the place you purchased
them and have them tinted. You can choose the amount of tint
that you want. Then you have prescription sunglasses for about
$20!" ~ Sharon
"We do two things to save on the
cost of eyeglasses in my home:
1. We buy an Entertainment
book. My son and I both required glasses this year. We ended up
saving $75 on the cost of two sets of glasses. The Entertainment
book (which was bought after the first of the year so it was
discounted) paid for itself.
2. We estimate the cost of exams,
frames, and lenses. Since we require glasses and exams every
two years, we take $560 (the rough cost of all of this for two
people). We divide this by 52, (We are paid bi-weekly.
26 pay periods/year X 2 years = 52 pay periods.) So
$10.76 is what we would have to save for glasses every pay period.
I round up to $11 because I hate dealing with change. We don't
have vision insurance." ~ Annie
"The eye care center that I go
to has a $99 drawer. I need bi-focals but refuse to spend all
that money at this time.
(I am on a budget and bi-focal
aren't in it just yet) and I got my prescription sunglasses,
reading, and computer glasses. (Yes I know but I got them all at
different times all for different reasons -- besides
the fact I'm not even 40 yet!) And believe it or not they had
some frames that I love too! Who needs some designer frames
anyway! I just recently found out they also have a $49.99 drawer
too! I'm lucky enough that our health insurance covers eyes, and
will reimbursed up to $100.00 every other year, I just make sure
when or if I need to get new frames or something that I don't go
in back to back years! ASK -- you will be surprised what they
offer. If you don't ask they will not tell you!" ~ Linda
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"We are blessed in that we are able to get our eyes
tested by a qualified optometrist annually, paid by the
Federal Government.
Our daughter was complaining of
headaches and blurry vision, so the optometrist was visited.
Yes, she barely needed glasses.
I asked and was told it was
perfectly okay for her to have the glasses for sale cheaply at
the Discount Shops. $7.95 and a 1+ size later, she's as
happy as Larry.
If she had needed prescription,
we would have bought on prescription, but it was unnecessary,
due to an honest and understanding Optometrist, bless her!"
~ Leonie
"Make sure to check your health insurance! When I
changed centers, the person asked for my insurance
information. I had been getting glasses at a place
which never bothered to ask and I had always assumed it
wasn’t a covered expense. However, to my pleasant
surprise, insurance covered almost all the cost of the
exam and most of the cost for the glasses.
" ~ Jeanette
"I have saved hundreds or even thousands of dollars
over the years by wearing hard, gas permeable contact
lenses. They are about $170 a pair, but I've been
wearing my current pair for over 5 years. The cleaning
and soaking solutions are not expensive; I spend about
$12 a year on those solutions." ~ Katie in New
Mexico
"I have gotten glasses at $100 off by being a mystery
shopper. Due to confidentiality issues, I can't give
details, but I will say that there are many mystery
shopping scheduling companies that are good. Beyond
Hello has a eye wear client. I'm sure there are others.
The forums at Volition.com have a lot of good discussion
for people wanting to get into mystery shopping." ~
Anonymous
"My neighbor gets her son's glasses
at JCPenneys. They have some sort of guarantee that if the glasses
break they will be replaced free. Her son plays football and hockey so
this has saved them lots of money." ~ Sandy
"I have been wearing contacts for over 10 years now and
wore glasses before then. I have discovered that since I am
the only one in my family who requires vision care, it is less
expensive for me to pay outright for my exams and contacts
rather than paying for vision insurance all year and still
paying a co-pay for materials. My exam is $59 and contacts are
$100 if I purchase them from my optometrist. However, I have
started taking my prescription to Wal-Mart and paying about
$60 for a year's supply of daily-wear lenses!" ~ Samantha
Editor's Note: Thanks to these readers for taking time to share
their ideas!
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