to think glasses should be free on the nhs?

[eggsy11]

My prescription is minus 7.5 in both eyes. That means that if my glasses have fallen off my bedside table I am in tears until DH manages to find them. I can barely feel my way to the bathroom without glasses or contacts. It is fair to say I literally couldn't function without them. I couldn't certainly couldn't cook or wash, let along leave the house.

My glasses are now five years old, and have no coating left on the outside, so they barely function, hence me wearing contacts 99% of the time, which i've been told is damaging my eyes. They cost about £12 a month, monthly disposables.

Recently found out that since we get tax credits, I receive a voucher towards glasses. I was so excited, I went to the optitians, picked out the cheapest frames I could find (£50, were the cheapest ones that would hold my lenses which are thick since they're so strong), HAD to pay an extra £50 to have the glass thinned down just one stage as the lenses wouldn't fit even in big thick black chunky frames. Add that to the cost of the lenses anyway, £150 for glasses. NHS voucher was £56, so still £100.

I had to cancel it as I can't afford £100 on myself. I think it's so unfair that i'm in a position where I physically can't see without glasses and yet they're not free? Lucky I can wear contacts! :(

gazlaw

My point was lots of people with life threatening complex conditions are paying for prescriptions

Only the following get free prescriptions in England:
cancer
A permanent fistula requiring dressing.
Forms of hypoadrenalism such as Addison's disease.
Diabetes
Hypoparathyroidism.
Under active thyroid
Myasthenia gravis.
Epilepsy
A continuing physical disability which means you cannot go out without help from another person.

So you can be really sick and not get.

I know this isn't really what this discussion is about but people are arguing if x gets, y should too. There seem to be a lot of misconceptions about who gets what.

In Scotland I think free eye test every other year if you think prescription has changed.

I've just been quoted £480 just for lenses for new glasses, I only wear them part of the time because I do wear contact lenses, my prescription is -11, so I do get free eye tests, but the cost of the glasses is just staggering and it isn't an option not to have them as backup to the contacts, I want to wear contacts for the rest of my life and that means not overwearing them.

My mum has dreadful sight. it is about minus 10 due to illness when she was small. She is entitled to free glasses and sight tests regardless of her income.

I think glasses etc are free, but you have to have terrible sight. My mum considered paying for laser surgery, but this would not perfect her sight and she would then have to pay for her opticians and glasses as she would no longer be classed bad enough.

I have got rubbish eyesight and have worn glasses since I was 7.

I get a free eye test and £10 towards the cost of my lens from the NHS.

I need thinner lens otherwise the bridge of my nose and my ears would hurt.

thankfully I am in Westfield so can claim back my money. they currently have waived the qualifying claim period, so you could take out the policy and then claim straight away.

it also covers dental etc, so for me it more than covers itself.

as a glasses wearer of four decades I agree - but as someone else points out, there are many other health conditions that also cost.

OP, if your eyes are showing signs of oxygen deprivation you MUST take action. Go speak to the bank about an overdraft if you can't afford the glasses, but do SOMETHING. You do not get spare eyes.

PLEASE.

Sorry, another voice here saying that if you can afford lenses, you can afford new glasses. Besides, OP, I think you are being a bit melodramatic:

"if my glasses have fallen off my bedside table I am in tears until DH manages to find them. I can barely feel my way to the bathroom without glasses or contacts. It is fair to say I literally couldn't function without them. I couldn't certainly couldn't cook or wash, let along leave the house."

My prescription is similar to yours (-7.5 and +2 - wait until you have to pay for varifocals), but I can get around the house perfectly well without my glasses. Initially it is hard, but after a few minutes your eyes and your brain adjust and you're fine. I swim without my glasses and haven't bumped into anything yet. Of course, driving is something else; but being in tears? not finding your way to the bathroom? Come on.

To be fair - I feel rather like the OP but when mine fall off the bedside table I generally know where they land and can grope around for them.

The OP is in this situation right now and it must be hard although I find it difficult to imagine how she got into it. For a start I always keep my last two pairs of specs so that I can "manage" if I were to crunch my existing ones - at least until a new prescription is made up. Also, I know my prescription changes every two or three years and new glasses are something I budget for. I also budget generously because I wear my glasses every single day and they sit on my face and I want to have glasses that are as complimentary as possible to my appearance.

Vain bugger that I am, as the OP is a student, I think I'd be looking for a part-time job to fund the stuff I wanted - bit of cleaning, ironing, shelf stacking, dog walking, babysitting, etc. My DS is 18 and has supplemented his allowance since he was 16 and has never had too much trouble finding odd jobs and has a cracking babysitting round which he fits in round socialising, 6th form (complex A'Level quals), and training and playing for school and club teams.

If you survive on less than half of £100 pw - how about that as a little idea OP? You could buy some nice stuff for your ds too.

Could you have a clear-out and sell any old toys, electronics etc to put towards the glasses? Or take out a small loan so that the repayments are the same as contact lenses?

I agree that there probably should be some kind of discount on lenses over a certain prescription strength. I don't really think frames should be free though. But the fact is, there isn't, and you really need these glasses!

I agree with you in principle. Both DH and I need glasses and they're bloody expensive and take a hefty chunk out of the household budget. We are not entitled to any help with the cost and its been a struggle to pay for them in the past.

However, the money just isn't available so I can't see how it could be free for everyone. Saying that though, I do think it might be better if opticians could offer decent, no interest payment plans.

YANBU or at least provided for people on low incomes.

I know my dh's were £300 recently. That's a significant prescription you need as well. It's not as though you could manage without them.

What gets me is how they can be so expensive. If they can sell prescription swimming goggles for £25, why can't they make glasses for £25?

My optician reckons children don't get glasses completely free, like adults it's a voucher to a certain amount (DD wears glasses and DS might need them).

I agree with not going to the internet with a high prescription, but for people with a high prescription who need thin glass, a smaller sized frame, something like this will work better. It's what I do (-10 and -10.5, with astigmatism).

And please be aware that Specsavers will only order glasses with full payment up front now. I queried this last time, to be told it's because so many orders had previously been placed and people not collecting/not paying.

YANBU to want new specs. YABU to burst into tears every time you knock them off the bedside table. Good luck finding some that don't blow the budget :)