Choosing an Employee Vision Plan

Vision plans are often available as supplemental or add on insurances combined with the All Care Dental Plan or major medical plans. An employee vision plan can be bundled with a wide variety of other services that do not warrant a whole insurance policy by themselves but are incredibly worthwhile for your employees to access.

Always begin your search for an employee vision plan by considering the wants and needs of your current and future employees. If you have ten employees and only two would take advantage of a vision plan, it may not be cost-effective for you to offer it at all.

Also, consider what levels of coverage most of your employees would probably use. A routine eye exam for each member of the family, and prescription glasses or contacts, are probably all most employees will ever use. Discounts on frames are an extra bonus that some plans will offer.

An employee vision plan for a small business is not that expensive and adds a lot of value for the employees. A typical plan for small business would cover a reasonable range of services without breaking the bottom line budget. A routine eye exam once per year per family member, prescription lenses and contacts, and basic preventive care such as glaucoma treatments are the very least services to make paying for the plan worthwhile.

Your employees should be allowed to visit a wide range of optometrists and ophthalmologists, either by choosing one on their own or through a list of preferred service providers. Most plans use the “usual and customary” fees structure to somewhat limit patients. A routine eye exam, for instance, is reimbursed at a certain rate, and any extra expense is paid out of the employee’s pocket.

Costs really are very low for a good employee vision plan, especially when it is part of an all care dental plan policy. As an employer, you choose the amount of the cost you will share, typically 25 percent to 50 percent of the premiums. Your employee then covers the rest of the annual premium, which can be as low as $50 per year.

Shop around for the best deal for your company and your employee. Keep in mind that a severely limiting employee vision plan will probably not be used by your employees.

Reimbursement ideally is handled between the optometrist or ophthalmologist and the insurance company directly, without the employee filing any claims forms. Most people are willing to pay a few extra dollars per year if they do not need to submit claims forms for reimbursement and then wait for the check to arrive in the mail.

Benefits are a big factor for truly good employees. They will continue working at a business that offers good benefits, and will apply to work at businesses that take care of employees with extra incentives. It is (almost) more important to a good employee to save money through insurances than it is to make a slightly higher than average wage.