Vision Care Financial Assistance Information
Following is a list of contact information for organizations and services that provide financial assistance for vision care.
Download a copy of the Vision Care Financial Assistance Directory.
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 510
Rockville, Maryland 20852
Phone: (301) 231-5944
Fax: (301) 770-1828
www.opted.org
Many optometry schools offer low-cost care to people willing to be treated by supervised students. They may also provide free care to people who join research studies.
Chronic Disease Fund
6900 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 200
Plano, TX 75024
Toll-free Patient Info: (877) 968-7233
Main: (972) 608-7141
www.cdfund.org
Chronic Disease Fund® is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit charitableorganization helping patients with chronic disease, cancers or life-altering conditions obtain the expensive medications they need.
Elected Official
Check with your state elected official.
EyeCare America®
The Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology
P.O. Box 429098
San Francisco, CA 94142-9098
Phone: (877) 887-6327
Fax: (415) 561-8567
www.eyecareamerica.org
EyeCare America provides eye care to US citizens and legal residents through volunteer ophthalmologists (Eye M.D.s) at no cost to those who qualify. Go to the website or call to find out if you qualify for eye care. EyeCare America facilitates eye care for U.S. citizens or legal residents who are without an Eye M.D. and who do not belong to an HMO or do not have eye care coverage through the Veterans Administration.
Those who are age 65 or older and who have not seen an EyeMD in three or more years may be eligible to receive a comprehensive, medical eye exam and up to one year of care at no out-of-pocket cost for any disease diagnosed during the initial exam.Volunteer ophthalmologists will waive co-payments, accepting Medicare and /or other insurance reimbursement as payment in full: patients without insurance receive this care at no charge.
Those who are determined to be at increased risk for glaucoma (by age, race and family history) and have not had an eye exam in 12 months or more may be eligible to receive a free glaucoma eye exam if they are uninsured.Those with insurance will be billed for the exam and are responsible for any co-payments. The initiation of treatment is provided, if deemed necessary by the doctor during the exam.
The HealthWell Foundation
P.O. Box 4133
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
Phone: (800) 675-8416
Fax: (800) 282-7692
www.healthwellfoundation.org
The HealthWell Foundation provides financial assistance to eligible individuals to cover co-insurance, co-payments, healthcare premiums and deductibles for certain treatments.
Health Department
Call your local office.
The Hill Burton Program
Health Resources and Services Administration
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 10C-16
Rockville, Maryland 20857
Phone: (800) 492-0359 (Maryland residents) (800) 638-0742
www.hrsa.gov/gethealthcare/affordable/hillburton/
Participating hospitals and other healthcare facilities provide medical care for free, or at reduced cost, to those who meet eligibility requirements based on family size and income. Procedures covered vary from hospital to hospital. A list of assisting sites available in your state is located online.
InfantSEE
Optometry Cares
The Foundation of the American Optometric Association
243 N. Lindbergh Blvd., Floor 1
St. Louis, MO 63141
Phone: (888) 396-EYES (3937)
www.infantsee.org
InfantSEE optometrists provide a no-cost comprehensive eye and vision assessment for infants within the first year of life regardless of a family’s income or access to insurance coverage.
Lions Clubs International
300 22nd Street
Oak Brook, Illinois 60523
Phone: (630) 571-5466
(800) 747-4448
www.lionsclubs.org
Provides financial assistance to individuals for eye care through local clubs. On their website, go to “Find a Club” to locate your local club.
Lucentis® Access Solutions
Phone: (866) 724-9394 or (866) 422-2377
Fax: (866) 724-9412
accesssolutionsluc-d@gene.com
www.genentech-access.com/lucentis/patients
Assists patients who are concerned about access to Lucentis (a drug treatment for AMD developed by Genentech) and assists them with health insurance coverage and reimbursement issues.
Medicaid
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244
www.medicaid.gov
Information and assistance can be found at the Medicare.gov website and the individual state Medicaid websites (see our “Medicaid by State” page). Generally, the best place to start is the Medicaid office of your particular state — most of the numbers listed here are for program issues and general questions and information.
Medicare
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244
Phone: (800) MEDICARE (633-4227)
www.medicare.gov
Medicare beneficiaries, family members, and caregivers can visit Medicare.gov, the Official U.S. Government Site for People with Medicare, for the latest information on Medicare enrollment, benefits, and other helpful tools.
Mission Cataract USA
6716 N. Cedar Avenue
Suite 212
Fresno, California 93710
Phone: (800) 343-7265*
www.missioncataractusa.org
* Please note – you will receive a voice message when you call this number. Leave your contact info and someone will return your call. You can also visit their website for more information. Coordinated by the Volunteer Eye Surgeon’s Association, it is a program providing free cataract surgery to people of all ages who have no other means to pay. Surgeries are scheduled annually on one day, usually in May.
National Council on Patient Information and Education
4915 Saint Elmo Avenue
Suite 505
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
Phone: (301) 340-3940
Fax: (301) 656-4464
www.talkaboutrx.org/med_users.jsp
They provide free information on their website regarding the safe use of medicines.
National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, Maryland 21230
Phone: (410) 659-9314
www.nfb.org
They work to improve social and economic conditions of blind persons by providing evaluations of present programs and assistance in establishing new ones; awards scholarships to blind persons; has a public education program including speakers’ bureau; and has several special interest divisions, including those for diabetics, educators, lawyers, parents of blind children, students and public employees. The National Federation of the Blind has affiliates in all fifty states plus Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, and over seven hundred local chapters.
NeedyMeds
Post Office Box 219
Gloucester, MA 01930
Phone: (978) 865-4115
Fax: (206) 260-8850
www.needymeds.com
They provide information obtained directly from the drug manufacturers regarding special programs to assist people who can’t afford to buy the drugs they need.
New Eyes for the Needy
549 Millburn Avenue
Post Office Box 332
Short Hills, NJ 07078
Phone: (973) 376-4903
Fax: (973) 376-3807
www.neweyesfortheneedy.org
They accept donations of used prescription eyeglasses and distribute them to persons with limited incomes. Recipients must have a letter of referral from a social services agency.
Partnership for Prescription Assistance
1100 15th Street, Northwest
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (888) 477-2669
Fax: (202) 835-3414
www.pparx.org
This website is designed to help people find patient assistance programs for which they may qualify.
Patient Access Network Foundation
PO Box 221858
Charlotte, NC 28222
Phone: (866) 316-PANF (7263)
contact@patientaccessnetwork.org
www.panfoundation.org
Founded in October 2004 as a solution to help the underinsured access the health care they so desperately need to continue living a relatively normal and productive lifestyle.
Public Aid
Check with your state, county, or city office.
Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB)
Contact your local Medicare office for information on qualifying.
Salvation Army
Contact your local office.
Senior Centers
Contact your local center to see if they have financial resource information in your area.
Sight for Students, a Vision Service Plan (VSP)
Phone: (888) 290-4964
www.sightforstudents.org
Contact your local Prevent Blindness America affiliate for more details. This program is in partnership with The Entertainment Industry Foundation, and provides eye exams and glasses to children 18 years old and younger whose families cannot afford vision care.
Social Security Administration (SSA)
Call your local Social Security Administration office for information on qualifying.
Social Workers
Contact a social worker at a hospital or other community agency. Social workers are often knowledgeable about community resources that can help people facing financial and medical problems.
Specified Low Income Medicare Beneficiary (SLMB)
Call your local Medicare office for information.
United Way
Check with your local office.
VISION USA
Optometry Cares
The Foundation of the American Optometric Association
243 N. Lindbergh Blvd., Floor 1
St. Louis, MO 63141
Phone: (800) 766-4466
www.aoa.org/visionusa
VISION USA, an Optometry Cares program, provides free eye exams to low-income Americans across the U.S. Patients cannot have had an eye examination in the past 24 months. Applications may be obtained on the AOA website, along with more information. You must work with a charitable organization, social worker, case worker, community health agency to submit an application. Applicants are to provide proof of household income for verification of income level eligibility.
Download a copy of the Vision Care Financial Assistance Directory.