Optometrists Feel Threatened By Technology, So Guess What Do They Do

Forbes ^ | June 13, 2017 | George Leef

[reaganaut1]

One of the many holes in the “social contract” theory of government is that the power of the state is so often harnessed by interest groups to protect themselves against competition. Nobody ever agreed to that, but it happens all the time, inflicting losses on the consuming public.

A recent instance of this is the aggressive lobbying campaign being waged by the American Optometric Association (AOA) against innovations that now make it possible for Americans to get accurate eye exams and lens prescriptions over the Internet. By using such innovations, millions of Americans who need vision correction could save substantial amounts of money. But savings for them means less revenue for optometrists and they are trying to stop that by asking politicians for salvation.

As far as the AOA (with 37,000 members nationwide) is concerned, the villain is new technology that gives consumers less costly alternatives than the old-fashioned office visit. One of those alternatives is called Opternative. It gives consumers an eye exam that takes 25 minutes through a smartphone app. No need to drive, park, and wait. The eye analysis through the phone has been proven to be just as accurate as those done in professional offices.

Naturally, the AOA sees phone apps for eye prescriptions the same way the Luddite hand-weavers saw the development of power looms – they must be shut down.

Lawyer Bruce Fein excoriates the AOA for its efforts at preventing this competition. In his May 8 Washington Times article, he writes, “Their current well-financed efforts to strangle internet competition in contact lenses and eyeglasses are indistinguishable from standing athwart economic history yelling ‘Stop.’”

[null and void]

Oh? I’m about due for new lenses...

[HLPhat]

In the kingdom of the blind, the one eyed lobbyist is king?

Imagine that.

[Dilbert San Diego]

I am interested in seeing comments on this story. Personally I like the idea of going to the office and getting checked. I think of the internet testing as being a screening tool to see if you have eye problems, but that you should then follow up with a professional exam. Maybe I’m not looking at this the way others do?

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[DanielRedfoot]

Reciently broke glasses while out of town and needed emergency replacement.

My eyeglass place refused saying I must first have new eye exam because prescription was over 1 year old. That’s 1 YEAR.

Had No choice but to use internet glasses option and surprisingly it worked out fine with nicer frames at half cost.

Congrats on the lobbies losers, you are officially fired.....

[Chainmail]

Never heard of this before..

[Mr. Douglas]

In the long run, it is really irrelevant:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU

[cyclotic]

That sounds really cool. I have a friend with twin girls with glasses. He orders theirs online from some place in China. They cost $10-15 a pair. If the kids lose or break them Oops.

I keep meaning to order myself a pair.

[struggle]

I got glasses in Japan this summer. $80, 15 minutes, no optometrist.

[Drango]

Most glasses (frames) are made in China. Order online and save even more. http://www.zennioptical.com/

[cymbeline]

“My eyeglass place refused saying I must first have new eye exam because prescription was over 1 year old.”

Here’s something else. The coatings the put on eyeglasses start deteriorating in a year or so.

Here’s something else. An independent optometrist told me there are machines about to become available that will figure your eyeglass prescription. So go put your eyes into that, then order glasses from the internet.

I think it is worth going to an eye doctor so they can check for abnormalities.

[petitfour]

A teacher told me about a place online for cheap glasses. She had purchased a few pairs for herself and recommended the place to a lot of families. I haven’t purchased any yet because we have insurance that covers everything except the Obamacare TAX. However, the last time one of our sons was fitted for glasses, I took a picture of the paper that had all his measurements on it. I had asked at another eyeglass place if I could write down the measurements. The woman was not happy because they might be held liable if something went wrong when we ordered from somewhere else. Whatever.

I don’t remember the name of the online eyeglass place. They had a ton of frames and allowed you to virtually try on the glasses. It’s pretty neat.

[napscoordinator]

i agree with you. Internet eye exam is a horrible idea. Eye doctors now can detest a lot of diseases from just looking at your eyes. They inside of the eye has become a real description of the rest of the body. Idiots would be the only ones to do an internet eye exam. Out of 330 million people you will always have a percentage of dumb people.

[FoxInSocks]

The eye analysis through the phone has been proven to be just as accurate as those done in professional offices.

I'd like to see the studies that "prove" this.

Anyway, I get a lot more than a simple lens prescription from visits to my optometrist.

[FoxInSocks]

Maybe it’s Warby Parker.

[HerrBlucher]

An Optometrist visit is more than just corrective lenses, its about checking the health of the eyes and looking for potential problems like glacouma, retinal detachment, macular degeneration, cataracts etc. I will be going every year just for that alone.

[Rebelbase]

http://www.zennioptical.com/?gclid=Cj0KEQjwmv7JBRDXkMWW4_Tf8ZoBEiQA11B2fl8ycmcSgjdgKjckpqubpnO1tVHuxLWHXt3x6BlAzp0aArQY8P8HAQ

[redgolum]

Automation is all fine and dandy till it starts cutting into white collar jobs.

Hate to say it, but after my last few eye visits I trust a bot more than the drunk I got the last time.

[George from New England]

I now have cataracts in one eye. How do I know, my triple vision and my own research. I find out 15 months ago my eye optometrist knew, put the condition of cataracts in my file, but DIDNT TELL ME.

They are more interested in selling glasses than the care of your eyes.