Types of contact lenses insurances
There are two types of insurances you can use to pay for your contact lenses.
Standard health insurances: flexible spending account (FSA), health savings account (HSA), health reimbursement account (HRA), limited care flexible spending accounts (LCFSA). If you have one of these health insurances - you can use it to buy contacts if you have tested your eyes choose best contact lenses for you and have a valid prescription.
You cannot use your health insurance to buy colored contact lenses or other non-prescription contacts. Note than you cannot use dependent care flexible spending accounts to buy contact lenses.
If you have such insurance as FSA, HSA, HRA or LCFSA - all you need it's just to pay for you lenses from your account.
Other types of insurances you can use to buy contact lenses are Vision plans. Vision plans are not really a type of contact lenses insurance is rather a type of discount program. Such vision plans provide you with discounts on specific products such as contacts, glasses and vision exams according to the terms of program you choose.
In case if you use your vision plan to buy contact lenses online you can have different options of payment:
1) Pay and then reimburse expenses.
In this case you can pay for you contacts from own money and then claim your money from your vision service provider. As usual you need a receipt from the online shop where you have bought your contacts that is attached to your order. Also you have to feel a special form for your provider to get your money back.
2) Direct checkout.
Some stores can offer direct checkout option - when you can pay directly using your account with vision plan provider. At this time 1800contacts allows checkout for Blue View Vision members and Eyeconic for VSP, MetLife and Gigna Vision members. As usual it is a special option that exclusively provided by specific store for a specific vision plan provider.
3) Apply benefits as discount coupon.
Some stores allow to apply benefits from your vision insurance plan as discount coupon to your order. At this moment Contactsdirect allows to apply discounts from VSP, Metlife and Cigna Vision plans.To use this option you have to contact support via live chat and then they will apply discounts to your order.
Note that Alcon rebates or rebates from other manufacturers are not covered by such contacts insurances as it is option provided exclusively from manufacturer.
How to choose insurance for contacts
If you have an option to choose a type of contact lenses insurance you must remember that you can use flexible spending accounts (FSA), health savings accounts (HSA), health reimbursement accounts (HRA), and limited care flexible spending accounts (LCFSA) to buy contacts when contact lenses are prescribed.
Dependent care flexible spending accounts are not eligible for reimbursements on contacts.
If you want to choose Vision Plan than you must fully understand terms of such discount program and have a clear idea how much you spend on your contacts and how many contact lenses / glasses exams you need.
The biggest providers of such discount programs are: Vision Service Plan -VSP, Metlife, Cigna, Advantica Eyecare, Ameritas Group, Cole Vision Services, Davis Vision, Eye Med Vision Care and many others.
First of all you need to calculate potential expenses and then compare that amount with total price you can pay for then same products and services if you do not use vision plan at all (if you buy contact lenses without insurance).
As usual vision plans have some sense if you buy your contacts at office and use premium services.
If you buy cheap contact lenses online and use cheap contact lenses exam options then vision plan option will be more expensive than just buy you contacts without insurance.
Do not forget to compare contact lenses prices before you place your order and search for some discounts on contacts as this will help you to save much more.