FAQs

What insurance do you take?

We have details on our insurance page.

Can I download the patient forms?

Our system uses online forms which are customized for each appointment.  If you'd like to use a printed form you can download it here.

How much is an eye exam?

A routine annual comprehensive eye exam is $95. These exams are typically billed to your vision insurance.

If you are visiting us for a medical condition those exams are between $60-$175 depending on the complexity. If there is additional testing there can be charges for that.

A typical medical eye check (Do I have pink eye? or Is there something in my eye?) is usually $80. Removing that rusty metal shard out of your eye is another $100. These exams and procedures are typically billed to your medical insurance.

We offer a 10% discount for customers without insurance coverage.

Do you charge extra for a contact lens prescription?

Yes, everyone does. We do additional diagnostic testing and the doctor spends extra time when doing a contact lens prescription. If you "didn't pay that fee" at the last place, it's because they just avoided this difficult conversation and took the exam frees out of your contact lens allowance. Some plans let us do that. Some do not.

The standard contact eval charges are below. Some plans have a set price, others stipulate a discount percentage and we have other discounts as well.

***If you have Spectera insurance it's even more complex. They typically cover the exam and a few months of contacts if your doctor fits you in their limited 'Contact Lens Selection List. Other Spectera plans offer smaller allowances but don't limit you to the list. You can look up your benefits on myuhcvision.com

Which insurance covers my exam?

There are two types of insurance that will help pay for your eye care services and products. You may have both and our practice accepts both:

• Vision care plans (such as VSP and EyeMed)
• Medical Insurance (such as BlueCross BlueShield and Medicare)

**Some VSP Plans have "Essential Medical Care Coverage" which is secondary to your medical insurance

Vision care plans only cover routine vision exams along with eyeglasses and contact lenses. Vision plans cover a basic screening for eye disease. They do not cover diagnosis, management or treatment of eye diseases. A few plans cover the Optomap but most do not. More on that below.

Medical insurance must be used if you have any eye health problems or systemic health problem that has ocular complications. Your doctor will determine if these conditions apply to you, but some are determined by your case history.

Example: The chief complaint for routine eye exam might be burry vision. Someone with diabetic retinopathy might have the same complaint. The treatment for these are not the same, so we cannot be certain which insurance you will be using until the doctor reviews your case history and starts your exam.

What is the youngest patient you will see?

Once your child knows their shapes, numbers and some letters we can do a thorough routine exam on them. If this is for an office visit (medical issue), we can see you child once they are able to swallow medication in pill form. If you child isn't able, we recommend Arizona Pediatric Specialists at 480-835-0709.

Many medical plans include coverage for children's routine eye exams. Please contact us to check your medical plan coverage for your children.

What are medically necessary contacts and when are they covered?

Medically necessary contact lenses are non-elective contact lenses prescribed when certain medical conditions hinder vision correction through regular eyeglasses and contact lenses are the accepted standard of treatment. With some medical conditions, patients are unable to achieve a specified level of visual acuity or performance through regular eyeglasses. This results in the need for “medically necessary contact lenses.”

Such medical conditions include:

• Aphakia – the removal or absence of the lens of the eye(s) due to surgery, injury, or abnormality.
• Ametropia exceeding – 10D or +10D in meridian powers
• Anisometrophia – a refractive condition where the eyes have unequal focus or optical power.  Typically 3 diopters in meridian powers or more
• Keratoconus – an eye disease that causes structural damage to the eye’s cornea, changing from the normal, round shape to a bulging, cone shape.  Generally covered when vision is not correctable to 20/30 in either or both eyes using standard spectacle lenses
• Vision improvement other than Keratoconus when vision can be corrected two lines of improvement on the visual acuity chart when compared to the best corrected standard spectacle lenses

When is my Optomap covered by my insurance?

Some VSP & EyeMed plans cover retinal imaging in full or in part.

Some VSP plans offer a medical benefit that will cover your Optomap in full as 'Diabetic Retinopathy Screening'. To qualify you have to be diabetic. If you have previously been diagnosed with Diabetic Retinopathy, it's not covered under your routine vision coverage.

Simply put, your routine vision coverage will cover blurry vision and the Optomap screening for diabetics. If you have previously been diagnosed with retinopathy you SHOULD be using your medical insurance and we should be running the Optomap Plus (medical testing mode) on you.

If you are in for a medical visit (rather than routine vision) we will send the Optomap Screening on the medical claim coded as S9986 and we will point any Diabetic diagnosis codes at it. Optomap Plus is billed as a 92250 and the diagnosis codes related to the doctor's order for the test are pointed to it.

Some commercial plans have covered the Optomap when billed this way. If you have VSP medical coverage will with Coordinate your claim with them after we have received payment from your primary medical insurance.

It is never covered by Medicare.

Is it better to use my benefits for glasses or contacts?

If you are in a progressive lens, it's always better to do glasses with your insurance.  If you are in single vision lenses it depends on how many options you want on your lenses.  We have a great package on our standard Single Vision Poly with A/R.  It's a great lens.  EyeMed will even cover contacts and a frame so our package lens is a great way to get them both.

Will you take my PD?

We do not charge to take your PD. If you have ever bought glasses from us, just call and we should have it on file. It's not on the prescription, since the opticians take it rather than our doctors.

Note: If you choose to purchase eyewear elsewhere, we will be happy to help with prescription verification, SEG height measurements, adjustments, and repairs for $25.00.

Do you have a Spanish speaker?

Yes, Dr. Young speaks fluent Spanish as well as several of our staff. When calling to book your appointment let them know you would like to make an appointment on a day when we have a Spanish speaker in the office.

What types of repairs do you do?

We do laser welds, advanced solder repairs, spring hinge repairs and of course all the regular repairs and adjustments that you'd expect. Our repair list is covered here.

What is your warranty?

The short version is:

• 90 day satisfaction warranty on the Rx, frame and lenses
• 1 year warranty on frames for defects in workmanship and materials (see next question)
• 1 year / 1 one time scratch warranty on scratch coatings and most anti-reflective coatings
• 2 year / 2 time replacement scratch warranty on “D” level anti-reflective coatings

Products with scratch warranties have a very hard scratch resistant coating which will prevent most scratches.  This warranty does not cover your lenses if your dog decides to chew them. VSP customers have a $40 copay for the VSP Premier Edge Promise program that can cover those situations.

Warranties start from the date of completion (not pickup) so it's important that you pick up your eyewear in a timely manger.  

We have a 99% success rate with our prescriptions. If you decide to purchase your glasses somewhere else, please check their terms and conditions on doctor RX changes. We will not reimburse you for the cost of remakes.

For those who purchase glasses from us using outside prescriptions, we will remake the lenses twice at no charge. The third remake will also be free but you will need to pay for an exam by one of our doctors first.

Do you sell a frame warranty?

No. We offer a free one year warranty on defects in workmanship.  

If you have VSP and it's a Marchon or Altair frame we can replace the frame and lenses for $40.  It doesn't cover lost or stolen but it will cover all types of damage.

Some chains sell a warranty that covers all types of damage. They charge an up front fee and a deductible fee. Those don't cover frame loss either. 

We offer substantial discounts on replacement frames if they are not covered.

Will you special order a frame for me?

Yes. There may be a $20 fee if you decide not to purchase the frame, but that depends on whether we think the frame will sell in the store.

My progressives don't seem right. Is my prescription wrong?

Your prescription is probably correct, but your doctor made some assumptions when they wrote it.

Your add power in the bottom part of your lens may need to be adjusted if you read at a different distance (computer, tablet, or book) than you discussed with your doctor. When you were younger you read at 15 inches. As you aged to started to hold things farther away in order to focus. With your new progressives, you don't need to hold that book at arm's length anymore.

Your seg height (where the add power begins) may be set too high or too low based on where you wear your glasses on your nose. That leads to you having to lift your head to read (seg height too low) or lower it to look over the top to drive (seg set too high). Sometimes it's a simple nose pad adjustment.

The last issue can be blurred peripheral vision. You may need to point your nose in the direction of what you want to read so it's centered in the lens. We rarely see this issue with the modern progressive lenses that we sell, but we occasionally see it with lenses purchased online.

Our opticians can troubleshoot your glasses. If the problem isn't obvious to them, we will have you do an Rx check with your doctor. There is no cost (to you) for us to remake your lenses for these type of adjustments.

What is your refund policy?

Prescription lenses are a custom order and once "in process" cannot be re-used for anyone else.

That said, we offer full credit towards another purchase. The difference for upgrades in lens design, material or add-ons will be charged appropriately. There is no refund for downgrades once the lens has been made.

Outright refunds are 100% of frames and 50% of the price of the lenses. If your purchase is covered by insurance your refund policy may be dictated by your insurer.

Can I reuse my existing frame?

Yes, if it is in great shape. It's pretty rare that we have issues with brand new frames, but the same can't be said for used eyewear. Metal is fatigued, so it can break with even a minor adjustment. Acetate frames (plastic) get brittle, lose their shape and can become difficult keep on your nose.

You will be asked to sign a waiver releasing us from liability for breakage. We offer a 50% off any in stock frame in the event of breakage.

Do you reward reviews and referrals?

We do reward referrals of friends and relatives. Sorry, but immediate family members are excluded (Sorry, referring your significant other or children doesn't qualify). If you refer an entire family/household we reward you for the first person. You will be notified via email of your reward and a note will be added on your account so for the next time you are in.

We do not have a reward program for online reviews. We appreciate the positive reviews, but prefer that you email us if we did not meet your expectations. You can find our contact info on the contact us page.

What is your missed appointment policy?

We ask that you give 24 hour notice for canceling or rescheduling an appointment. Less than a 24 hour notice is considered a missed appointment. Patients who miss an appointment are required to provide a deposit in order to schedule any future appointments.

We do our best to run on time. We reserve the right to reschedule or cancel patients who arrive late 10 minutes or more. If you are running late, please call our office as soon as possible.

Can I get non prescription sunglasses with my EyeMed insurance?

Yes for $64 plus your frame co-pay. Do you wear contacts all the time and you want to use your frame benefit for sunglasses? The EyeMed marketing material said your frame is covered. Yes, you can get a frame, but we have to take the plano (non-rx) lenses out.

The best solution is to buy contacts and use your EyeMed discount (usually 20% discount) to buy basic lenses. If you purchase Rx lenses the current rules don't require us to remove the sun lenses. You can have both sets of lenses and having a pair of lenses for a back is a good idea if you wear contacts anyway

We uploaded the EyeMed rules here.

I have Medicare. They paid last year so why didn't they pay this year?

Medicare has an annual deductible of $233 in 2022. You may not have hit your deductible yet this year.

Also, Medicare doesn't have routine vision exams. If you were in last year with "blurry vision" and you had cataracts, they may have covered your visit. If came back this year after Cataract surgery and you just need reading glasses, they wouldn't cover your routine vision exam.

How can I make multiple page scan for my contact lens rebate upload?

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210336

or

https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/9308884?hl=en