Our Ophthalmologists Conduct Regular and Medical Eye Exams

Getting your health insurance to pay for your visit to your eye doctor can be an iffy proposition. If you need eye surgery, there is usually no question that your insurance will cover most of your costs. But for some other kinds of visits to your eye doctor, health insurance only pays the cost of a medical eye exam. We at Michigan Eyecare, offering services to Dearborn, Livonia, and Southfield, want to make sure you understand what kinds of eye care are reimbursed by insurance and what kinds of eye care are paid out-of-pocket.

Medical Eye Exam

A medical eye exam produces or rules out a diagnosis of a disease, like diabetic retinopathy or glaucoma.   Seeing ophthalmologists about eye surgery would be an example of a medical eye exam. Your health insurance will usually pay the costs of a medical exam (even when the finding is that you didn't have the disease in question). Medicare also pays for medical eye exams. However, neither regular health insurance nor Medicare pays for glasses, contact lenses, or vision training.

Routine Eye Exam

A routine eye exam produces a diagnosis of a preexisting and ongoing condition of your eyes that is not directly related to a disease. An example of this kind of exam is a visit with your eye doctor to get glasses or contact lenses to correct farsightedness, nearsightedness, or astigmatism. Your health insurance usually will not pay the costs of a routine eye exam. Neither does Medicare.

However, vision insurance usually pays for all or part of the cost of a routine eye exam. Sometimes vision insurance gets you a discount from the ophthalmologists doing your eye exam. Your vision insurance coverage may also provide a discount on the cost of glasses or contacts. Your policy will state this and you can find out the amount of the discount in advance.

Refraction fees

A refraction fee is charged for the part of your visit with your eye doctor that determines the strength of the glasses or contacts you need for astigmatism, farsightedness, nearsightedness, or problems with distinguishing colors or depth perception. Vision insurance usually covers refraction fees. Medicare specifically does not cover them. Refraction fees are typically not covered by regular health insurance, even on the same visit for a medical eye exam.

Don't put off your checkup with Michigan Eyecare

Don't let a little extra expense discourage you from keeping your regular checkup appointments with Michigan Eyecare in Southfield, Livonia, or Dearborn. It's important to see your eye doctor regularly to keep your sight. Call us at (248) 352-2806 in Southfield, (734) 464-7800  in Livonia, or (313) 582-7440  in Dearborn, or get in touch with us online.