It’s Possible: How to Afford the Cost of LASIK Eye Surgery
Finding a reason to want LASIK eye surgery isn’t hard… maybe you want to ditch your glasses in time for your upcoming wedding, you hate the aggravation of getting new prescriptions every year or your eyes get easily irritated by your contacts. Whatever your particular reason is, it just makes sense to move on from glasses or contacts. You’re sold on the procedure, but what about the cost of LASIK?
If there’s anything stopping you from scheduling laser eye surgery, it’s likely of a financial nature. Is LASIK eye surgery cost prohibiting you from getting the vision and lifestyle you want? You’ve probably heard that the average cost in the United States is around $2,300 per eye. Since this is typically not covered by insurance, the sum can be a lot to swallow – and hard to scrape together.
But if you want the surgery badly enough, and are willing to be creative, you might be pleasantly surprised that there are plenty of options for LASIK financing. Read on for some places to start.
Flexible Spending Accounts
A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is something that is offered by certain employers. If you’re eligible for one through your company, your employer can choose whether or not to match whatever contributions you make. Either way, you designate pre-tax dollars to put into this account and then can draw on them later to use for medical purposes. The best part? LASIK is eligible to be paid for with FSA funds.
There are a few caveats to note. To use money from an FSA this year, you would need to already be enrolled and have been contributing throughout 2016. If you haven’t been, consider doing so in 2017 and planning for your LASIK procedure at the end of next year. If you do have an existing FSA, though, you might need to apply the funds before December 31st in order to use them. There’s a chance you could be allowed to roll over $500 to the following year, or you could get two and a half extra months to use all of your funds, but this depends entirely on how your particular employer has opted to set up your FSA.
If you want to pursue this LASIK financing option, call the eye surgery center you’re considering and ask for a review of your FSA details, along with their advice about how to best use those funds. You might need to act quickly, but what you save in using pre-tax dollars for this procedure can be well worth it!
Financing by LASIK Centers
Another great choice to help buffer LASIK eye surgery costs is to look into financing options offered at your LASIK center of choice. Many of these companies roll out periodic specials that can significantly discount the price of the procedure. In addition to specials, your eye center might have attractive financing terms that can make paying for LASIK eye surgery a breeze for you.
You might be able to get a monthly payment plan that works with your budget, or could work out a deal in which you pay a portion of the cost of LASIK now and then have a longer time to pay off the balance. The particulars will vary based on the laser eye surgery center you go to, but be sure to ask about all the options available to you.
Traditional Financing
If the other two choices don’t end up panning out for you, there are still traditional financing methods that can be pursued. One option is to consider a medical credit card that offers no interest for short-term payment plans, or long-term payment plans (that do carry interest). This can be attractive if you know you can pay it all within a few months or a year, but just can’t gather the funds upfront.
Another option is to apply for a loan. There are many loan providers online; just be sure to read the fine print of what any offer entails. You want help paying for the cost of LASIK, but don’t want to get stuck in a messy debt situation! So read all credit card and loan offers with care, and find a provider that won’t charge interest for as long of a term as possible. Then plan to pay the entire balance within that period of time.
So yes, the price tag of LASIK eye surgery can be overwhelming at first. But you have a lot of choices for LASIK financing if you’re willing to spend some time researching and being a little creative. And isn’t clearer sight worth that? To see if you are eligible for LASIK eye surgery to improve your vision or for more information on our services and how we can help, contact us today.