Don’t be Fooled by Online Eye Exams

In today’s fast-paced society, accessibility and convenience are key: groceries can be delivered right to your door, bills can be easily paid online… even eye exams can be done online from the convenience of your own home.  Online eye exams may sound like they can save time and money, but there’s some important things you need to know before cancelling your next trip to the eye doctor.

How Do Online Eye Exams Work?

Online eye exams work by calibrating your computer screen in order to determine your visual acuity (how well you can see) and calculate your refractive error, or the prescription you may need in your glasses.  The test concludes with a new prescription that allows you to buy glasses. Though this sounds convenient, there are many vital parts of a comprehensive eye exam that are excluded from these vision tests.

Is it as Good as an Exam with My Eye Doctor?

Nope.  Not even close!  A major risk of online exams is that they have no way to assess the health of your eye; potentially harmful or sight-threatening conditions such as glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy may go undiagnosed.  Secondly, there is no clear way to adjust or recheck your prescription if you are unhappy with the results of your vision test. While your eye care professional will work with you to tweak your prescription to meet your visual needs, online eye exams rely on the results formulated from the calibrated computer, with little ability to adjust the final prescription.  Online vision exams for children are particularly worrisome as eye care professionals are well trained in diagnosing and treating complicated problems in visual function of children that online vision exams are not able to catch.

What About my Vision Insurance?

Eye exams from online services have the appeal of being cheaper, however, they are rarely covered by insurance.  Patients of online eye exams are paying out-of-pocket for services that are only a fraction of the comprehensive exams they receive from their eye doctor.  In order to maintain healthy eyes and ensure the most effective use of your vision, it is imperative to receive a face-to-face comprehensive exam from your eye care professional.