About Health Insurance Vision Plans

According to Allaboutvision.com, an eye exam can cost anywhere from $50 to more than $100. Vision insurance can cut that exam to $0 with a free annual exam. Vision insurance is often available with health insurance plans, either through an employer or privately. As with all types of insurance, there are a few terms you'll need to know to fully understand your vision plan.

Premium

• Vision plans that come prepackaged with health insurance plans come one of two ways -- either with the vision insurance already included in the health plan or as a separate plan altogether. Some health insurance plans operate in a way that offers you both vision and health insurance, but the vision insurance is actually a separate plan through an entirely different provider. In those cases, you'll have to pay a vision insurance premium, which is an annual or monthly fee. You do not have to pay a separate premium if the vision insurance comes included with the health insurance; you would only need to pay the health insurance premium. According to Everydayhealth.com, most comprehensive insurance plans include a vision plan.

Deductible & Copay

• Nearly all vision insurance plans come with either a deductible or copay. Many plans come with both. The terms "Deductible" and "Copay" are universal insurance terms. A vision deductible is the amount you must pay before the insurance pays anything. The deductible varies greatly for each insurance plan. If you have a $50 vision deductible and your contacts cost $150, then you must pay $50 before the insurance will pick up anything. A copay is the amount you must pay each time you visit the eye doctor. Copays generally range from $10 to $25.

Coverage

• As with deductibles, premiums and copays, the amount of coverage for each vision plan varies. Vision plans that come with high premium health insurance plans generally cover more than vision plans that come with low premium health insurance plans. For example, a low premium plan may only cover an annual checkup but not dilation, while higher premium plans may cover both. According to Everydayhealth.com, John Williams of Employee Benefits Group Inc., says that vision plans that cover LASIK surgery often come with a higher premium.

Network

• Vision insurance plans operate on a network basis. A network is a group of eye doctors that you can visit and receive full coverage from your vision insurance. Out-of-network doctors are not within the covered network. Vision plans have an entirely different set of costs and coverages if you go to an out-of-network eye doctor. For example, while your vision plan may cover an annual exam for an in-network doctor, it may only cover up to $30 for an out-of-network exam.