VSP

VSP – Vision Service Plan. Aka the only eye insurance I’ve ever heard of. Despite the apparent monopoly (or my ignorance regarding their competitors), I love this company. LOVE it.

I had my annual eye exam a couple of weeks ago, which went more or less seamlessly. I should note that I’m like blind, for those of you who somehow missed that memo. Blind. Anyway, I called the doctor to schedule my appointment and was asked if I “had” to have Dr. N. Thinking she must have been too busy, I said no, I’ll take someone else. I just need to get in. So I was booked with Dr. C.

I arrived to the office to discover that Dr. C is the “low vision specialist”. Awesome. I’ve been switched from the regular eye doctor to the doctor for the blind. Definitely a blow to my ego, but I’ll get over it.

When I checked in I specifically asked the receptionist if I would need to be dilated for this exam. She said “Oh you have VSP. They usually don’t cover dilations, so no.” OK cool, I called my dad and told him he didn’t have to pick me up (It’s like almost impossible to drive with dilated eyes, even in the dark. Add some sunlight and you’re sure to kill someone.)

So Dr. C checks me out. No vision changes – score! Then she says she has one more exam to do – the eye dilation one. Are you serious? I thought this wasn’t covered? Apparently VSP DOES cover it, as needed. And since I’m nearly blind, they didn’t even bat an eye when the doctor told them I will require annual dilation for the remainder of my life. Dude, I could NEVER get that kind of treatment from my HMO! In fact, I have to jump through hoops just to see a specialist of any kind through my HMO. +20 points to VSP to making my life easier. No referrals + easy authorizations, thank you!!

Then I head over to order my contacts. They cost a pretty penny since I’m so blind. Add onto that new glasses (lenses only cuz I’m too poor to buy new frames), and we’re talking like $800 for the year. In the past I’ve been told that VSP will pay for frames every other year, and some lenses every year. That’s it. This year I learned that I get to choose either contacts or glasses (frames + lenses), and that this is a yearly benefit. Free glasses every year? That’s like a $400-500 value! I pay 100% of my VSP premium at work, and this is only like $5 a month. I love it. For $60 I get my eye exam covered in full (minus copay), and FREE GLASSES?! (Well I add stuff to them, like polycarbonate lenses – they’re thinner and lighter, and anti-glare coating, but it’s not terribly expensive.) This is definitely love.

And here’s the end product that I selected with my benefits: