Yeah, they’re required to give you your prescription, but the FTC doesn’t require them to give you your PD, though some states do. If they are hesitant to give it to you, you could tell them that you’re hesitant to schedule your next exam with them, and see how they like it.
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My last three opthamologists (my insurance changes a lot) have flat-out refused to give me my PD; one said “If you want to avoid buying glasses from us, just use a ruler at home.”
If your doctor (or staff) refuse to provide your pupillary distance as a part of your vision prescription, it’s time for a new optometrist/ophthalmologist! That’s unethical BS. I’ve never had any trouble getting my PD, but it is something I typically have to ask for. But I think you’re not likely to have much variance in PD once you’re past your teenage years.
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If you already have a pair of glasses that fit well, simply use the measurements for them to guide your selection on Zenni. The frame width, bridge width, and temple length measurements in millimeters is almost always printing on the inner surface of the temple. Also, you can readily look up most glasses on Google and find even more dimensional details such as lens width and height, which can be important if you use bifocals. Zenni and most other online glasses shops allow you to filter the available frames to fit the needed dimensions.
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Well, I have changed optometrists three times, hoping to find one who won’t sneer at me. But I disagree that it’s “unethical”. It’s a measurement that’s only used for one specific thing – to produce lenses – so the only reason I would want it is to take my prescription online to buy glasses. For eye doctors who sell glasses and frames as a major source of their offices’ income, I can understand their hesitancy in giving me that measurement.
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Capitalism: a system in which we make starving people complicit in massive corporations exploiting themselves and other starving people.
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That’s a lot of political extrapolation pulled from an eye doctor’s hesitancy to provide a measurement that until a few years ago nobody had even heard of and that they’d never been asked to provide before.
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I wouldn’t expect a doctor to withhold your blood pressure or temperature or weight if you asked. Your pd is your business. But I suspect there might be a difference between an optometrist and an opthamologist. One is a doctor, and the other is in the business of selling glasses.
In Massachusetts, they apparently made it a law that eye care professionals have to give you your PD. Not sure where else, though.
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I’ll look into this, as I’ve been specifically refused, in Massachusetts, three times by three separate doctors, so I’m curious as to when the law took effect. But I also suspect that you’re correct that different types of eye doctors may have different takes on it.
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Not an attack on you, an observation of the reality of our “service-based” retail situation. Capitalism forces us all to work against echo other’s best interest. It does it by coercion: threatening starvation.
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Two specific things? You need to know your IPD to adjust a VR headset like the Vive.
My son started wearing glasses at 3, so Zenni has been a lifesaver! I get his vision re-checked each Summer so he starts the new school year with a new prescription and I can generally get 2 pairs of glasses for about $50. He’s only had catastrophic mishaps a couple of times, but is also an athletic kiddo who’s rough on glasses (and jeans and shoes), so at less than $30 a pair, I don’t fret too much about the abuse they take.
Just a tip: boys generally fare better with frames that do not have nose pads, although bent nose pads can certainly be fixed with a little fiddling. But rimless or even partially-frameless glasses can be real trouble since they’re considerably more delicate.
I wish this was a realistic option for me. My ophthalmologist is the only one in my insurance network so I really can’t piss him off too much.
I mean - I know it’s a screwed up system and I really hate the whole process. It’s infuriating that glasses aren’t more affordable or covered by regular insurance. I’m blind without mine.
Useful! Thanks for posting!
Also, was anyone else expecting that to turn into an adult movie… something about the way she was speaking…
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