If you wear contacts or glasses, you are aware of the high cost of vision care. For example, the average price for glasses frames and lenses is well over $250, but a vision care plan can help make the cost of vision care more manageable.
Oftentimes health insurance plans offered by employers include a small business vision insurance plan. If you own a small business and you don’t offer vision insurance to your team, you should consider doing so as it’s more affordable than you might think.
Jump To:
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How Vision Insurance Works for Small Businesses
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What Does Vision Insurance Cover?
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Types of Vision Care Insurance Plans for Small Businesses
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Why Small Businesses Should Offer Vision Insurancee
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Advantages and Disadvantages of Vision Insurance
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The Cost
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FAQs
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Get Small Business Vision Insurance Today!
How Vision Insurance Works for Small Businesses
Medically necessary vision care is often covered by a group health insurance plan. For instance, your insurance typically covers ophthalmologist visits if you have injured your eye or exhibit symptoms of an eye condition. On the other hand, health insurance does not cover routine eye exams or eyesight correction. For this type of care, you will need a separate vision insurance plan. This type of insurance typically pays for vision correction with elective treatments like LASIK, as well as eye exams and corrective lenses.
As with all other types of insurance, you have to maintain vision care insurance by paying a premium to your insurance provider. The cost of small business vision insurance varies depending on your plan, provider, and location. Basic plans are typically relatively reasonable, but as you add coverage, costs increase.
What you get for your premium payments can vary greatly. For example, while some vision care insurance plans cover the whole cost of eye exams, others require a copay. In addition, some plans provide an allowance for corrective lenses every 12 or 24 months, while others only cover a portion of the cost, or offer discounts. To receive the full benefits of your plan, you might need to visit a doctor in your plan’s provider network.
There are also things that aren’t covered by vision care plans. For example, if you want upgrades like designer frames, anti-reflective or anti-scratch coating, or progressive lenses, you will probably have to pay extra money out-of-pocket.
What Does Vision Insurance Cover?
Eye exams, prescription eyewear (contact lenses or glasses), and medically necessary treatments are all covered in some way by vision insurance, helping to reduce your out-of-pocket costs for them. Additionally, many vision plans include discounts or allowances for photochromic lenses, which are eyewear that blocks ultraviolet light and blue light from computers, as well as prescription lenses with scratch- and anti-reflective coatings.
The majority of vision insurance policies include a set of benefits or discounts on eye care and eyeglasses. Even discounts on Lasik and photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) procedures are offered by some vision insurance plans. These treatments fix vision issues linked to:
- Nearsightedness (difficulty seeing distance)
- Farsightedness (trouble seeing up close)
- Astigmatism (when your eye isn’t completely round)
Even though the prices of PRK and Lasik have decreased over the years with the development of newer technology, they can still be expensive to pay for out-of-pocket.
Types of Vision Insurance Plans for Small Businesses
Small businesses can typically choose from two main categories of vision care:
- Vision Benefits Plans – These are actual insurance policies. Employees make a premium payment each month, and are in turn covered for routine eye exams, eyeglasses, contact lenses, and other requirements for eye care. Each time you utilize one of these services, you typically have to pay a copay.
Most vision benefits plans are structured as PPOs. That means employees are encouraged to use an eye doctor within the plan’s network, and are responsible for a larger portion of the cost if they receive care out-of-network.
Typically, these plans will cover a certain amount of the cost of vision hardware. For example, your plan might pay $175 for frames, while anything above that amount is your employees responsibility to pay. LASIK eye surgery and other cosmetic procedures are typically not covered by these vision policies, but some do provide discounts for them.
- Discount vision plans – The monthly premiums of vision benefits plans are significantly more than the cost of a discount vision plan. This is because discount vision plans do not provide the complete cost coverage provided by a vision benefits plan; instead, they just offer you a discount on vision care, which is often between 15% and 35%. Discount vision plans generally offer discounts on eye exams, lenses, and other products that vision benefits plans normally cover.
Why Small Businesses Should Offer Vision Insurance
Every employer should consider offering vision insurance as part of an overall employee benefits package. Even if your employees’ vision is good right now, as they get older, it could gradually get worse. Not only that, but an eye care professional can identify symptoms of eye disorders or injuries, in addition to determining whether you need a prescription or a prescription update. For instance, your eye doctor can identify the following conditions during an eye exam:
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- Glaucoma
- Some forms of cancer
Additionally, if you have your employees have kids it’s even more important to offer vision insurance. Did you know that it’s recommended for children to visit an eye doctor at least once per year? The eye doctor can check their vision for any problems or determine whether or not they may need glasses.
Pediatricians advise that babies have three vision screenings in their first year to monitor eyesight and eye growth. Early detection of any potential issues can guarantee that any problems are treated quickly and are monitored as soon as possible.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Vision Insurance
Vision insurance has advantages and disadvantages. Whether you should purchase a more expensive comprehensive policy for your team or not may depend on your employee’s vision needs and underlying conditions. For example, it can be beneficial to spend more money on vision insurance if members of your team have a history of needing eye exams for medical issues. On the other hand, you might not need an expensive eye care insurance plan if your employees simply visit the eye doctor for a basic checkup once a year.
Overall, vision care insurance is affordable and could end up saving you money over time. Particularly if you frequently need corrective lenses or have ongoing eye problems. Also, if you eventually require eye surgery, it may also lower the cost.
Disadvantages of vision insurance include the possibility that it won’t always cover the services you require, or that it won’t let you receive treatment outside of its service area. Additionally, some policies might only carry a select few brands. In other words, if you like using a particular brand of lenses or specialized lenses and frames, you may have to pay out of pocket.
The Cost
The cost of vision insurance will vary depending on the coverage offered by various plans and providers. While some private vision insurance companies merely require you to visit any optometrist or ophthalmologist, others will not pay for your exam if you see a provider who is not in your plan’s network. Pay attention to these details, as well as your copays and deductibles, because choosing a doctor outside of your plan’s network could result in expensive fees.
The majority of basic dental insurance plans cost between $10 to $20 per month per employee. Employers have the option to cover these costs in total or contribute a portion of the total cost. For those looking to save on eye exams, but aren’t able to afford premiums for private insurance, a discount plan would be a good option. These alternatives let you pay a monthly fee that is cheaper than a normal premium in exchange for discounted eye care services.
Another option to pay for vision care would be using funds in your health savings account (HSA). You just have to ensure that vision services you need are considered a qualified medical expense by your HSA.
It’s important to note that if you or your employees don’t have vision insurance coverage, you can still pay for your optometrist visit and prescription glasses out-of-pocket. A new patient eye exam normally costs between $150 and $200. Although costs will vary depending on the physician and area.
To see health insurance costs and information specific to your state click here!
FAQs
Is vision insurance worth it for small businesses?
Yes, offering vision insurance to your employees goes a long way in improving overall well-being and productivity. Additionally, it keeps vision expenses manageable for employees so that they don’t have to worry about high costs when visiting the eye doctor.
Can I get a dental and vision bundle policy for my employees?
Yes, you can get a package of dental and vision insurance. With this package, you can save money on your team’s dental and eye care since combination policies usually come at a discount price. To make sure you get the best deal, you should compare the companies that offer this type of bundle.
Why is vision insurance separate from health insurance?
Vision insurance is often sold as a separate policy from health insurance because it covers specialized care. Also, in the past, craftsmen, not doctors, made and sold glasses. This led to a long-standing difference between health care and eye care.
Get Small Business Vision Insurance Today!
Offering a group health insurance plan to your employees is a great way to take care of their basic medical needs, but it doesn’t cover everything. Adding a supplemental vision insurance plan is a cost-effective way to fill in the gaps, and help employees maintain good eye health. Not to mention the fact that it only costs about $10-$20 per month for each employee.
EZ.Insure makes it simple to get the eye care you deserve. Our user-friendly platform offers free, no-obligation quotes, side-by-side plan comparisons and 24/7 access to expert insurance agents. To get started, simply enter your ZIP code below, or give us a call at (844)-770-0064.