How fees work
Insurance we work with
A routine eye exam is billed to a vision plan. A visit for an eye problem, an eye disease check or a follow-up is billed to medical insurance. Vision therapy sessions are not a routine vision plan benefit; some medical plans pay part of them, depending on the diagnosis and the plan. Medicare does not cover routine eye exams or glasses, with a few exceptions.
Vision plans, for routine exams, glasses and contact lenses
Medical plans, for eye health visits and some therapy
Medicare, within its limits for eye care
If you pay yourself
Self-pay covers the exam or evaluation and the sessions you choose. Glasses, contact lens fittings and replacement lenses are billed separately. We tell you what each part will cost before you decide, and we do not quote a price over the phone as a promise.
The evaluation or exam
Sessions, in the plan Dr. Parrish writes
Glasses and contact lens fittings
Receipts for reimbursement
Ask for an itemized receipt and send it to your plan. The plan decides what it reimburses.
An estimate in advance
If you pay without insurance, you have the right to a Good Faith Estimate in writing before your visit. Ask when you book. If a bill comes in at $400 or more above the estimate, you can dispute it.
Checking your benefits
Before your visit, Stacie checks your benefits where she can and tells you what she finds. Please confirm with your plan too, because the plan has the final say.
What the first visit includes
The first visit is an evaluation or an eye exam, about an hour to an hour and a half. It ends with a written plan, or with a referral if therapy is not the right fit. We bill the evaluation when it is done, and sessions begin only when you decide.
Vision plan, medical insurance or you
The usual pattern for the visits at this practice. Your plan decides what it pays, and we check before you come.
| Visit | Often billed to | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Routine eye exam | Often billed toYour vision plan | Good to knowIncludes a glasses or contact lens prescription |
| Eye problem or follow-up | Often billed toYour medical insurance | Good to knowBilled to medical when the visit is about a problem |
| Vision therapy evaluation | Often billed toMedical insurance, or you | Good to knowPlans differ; we check first |
| Vision therapy sessions | Often billed toSome medical plans, or you | Good to knowNot a routine vision plan benefit |
| Glasses and contact lenses | Often billed toYour vision plan's eyewear benefit, or you | Good to knowWe tell you what is left to pay |
Your prescription is yours
A copy, every time, without asking.
Your prescription is yours. We give you a copy after your exam and fitting, and you can fill it anywhere. That is true for glasses and for contact lenses, and it does not depend on where you buy.
We do not ask you to buy from us, and we do not charge to release a prescription.
Questions about a bill?
Call before your visit and Stacie will go through it with you.