Insurance Leaves Much to Be Desired

Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the insurance coverage. But for some areas, the coverage in New York State is woefully, woefully lacking.

Just this week I went to my eyeglasses store. The frames I purchased six months ago (for a whopping $250!) have deteriorated. The bronze color coating is flaking off, the metal is rusting and the frames are causing my skin to react in blisters. The store told me that they were awfully sorry, but they can’t do anything. I could order a brand new pair of glasses and pay retail or they could locate another pair of frames exactly like the old and pop in the old lenses. But the insurance will not pay for a new pair, and there is only a 30-day guarantee on new pairs. Problem is, the replacement frames are $80!! I’m not paying $80 for another pair of defective frames that I will only have to replace in six months. :-p

The eyeglasses store told me that my new insurance only pays a total of $39 every 2 years for glasses. Oh my gosh. That is AWFUL. I was flabbergasted, especially when I see that the insurance company has tons of coverage for mental illness, alcoholism and family planning. For many people, glasses are a medical necessity. Because my prescription is currently so high, my glasses cost about $200 to $250. Why are glasses SO expensive?! And why are insurance companies so stingy about the coverage??

Well, thank God there’s another choice. Zenni Optical. What you see is what you get– quality frames, quality lenses, good service– and no middleman or insurance paperwork hassles to mess everything up. I’ve heard about Zenni for a while now, but have been balking about ordering new eyeglasses. I think I’m going to check into them. I have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I’ll no doubt do a review about my experience in the near future!

UPDATE: Well, I just ordered a pair of glasses from Zenni! I did a little comparative shopping and Zenni was the only company that makes glasses stronger than -10 OD/OS! My prescription is -16 OD/OS so we’ll see how the glasses do for me. I can’t wait to get them!