By: Drew Armstrong –

Last week, I had my yearly eye exam appointment. It cost me a half day’s worth of vacation time from my job, an hour of driving in California traffic to get to the office, and an extra 30-minute wait because the doctor was “running a little late.” My “15-minute” eye exam cost me over $150.

The most frustrating part about this whole scenario is that there was nothing wrong with my eyes. The only reason I went is because my contact lens prescription had expired and needed to be renewed.

Due to the successful lobbying efforts of the American Optometric Association (AOA), there is a legal requirement in many states that all contact lens wearers have an eye exam proctored by a licensed physician in order to purchase contact lenses. But a revolution has come about as companies develop low-cost, high-tech alternatives that are removing the hassle and expense of exams. This new technology has thrown the AOA into a complete panic and has them working hard to make sure we will never have access to this new technology.

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