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te1271
Contributor ⭐
July 6, 2026

Vision Care and Medicare

  • July 6, 2026
  • 6 replies
  • 407 views

I have Medicare A and B plus AARP/ United Healthcare plan G in NJ. Is there an option to get a vision rider or is there a separate plane that is recommended for seniors on Medicare?

    6 replies

    KatraM935670
    Contributor ⭐
    September 2, 2026

    A separate vision plan is probably your best bet, but I’d price it out first. If you only need an eye exam and glasses every couple years, paying out of pocket can sometimes be cheaper.

    CBtoo
    Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
    September 2, 2026

    And many doctors around here charge $50 to tack on an exam for glasses to the annual eye exam medicare pays for. Doesn’t cover the cost of glasses (well except if you have cataract surgery).

    cat0w
    cat0w
    Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
    July 7, 2026

    Have you checked with United Healthcare to see what plans they have? Do they have a Medicare Advantage Plan?

     

    My Medicare Advantage Plan pays for one eye exam each year. I live in Texas and have Baylor Scott and White Medicare Advantage.

    te1271Author
    Contributor ⭐
    July 7, 2026

    Advantage plans do have some perks but we wanted the best medical plan available so we went with G. Turned out to be a great decision for my wife. She had a stroke and the bills were over a half million since 2019 when she had it. Our only out of pocket cost was the deductible at the beginning of the year. Also it allows us to pick any doctor we want that accepts Medicare. Pretty much all of them do.  

    CBtoo
    Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
    September 1, 2026

    You will likely have to buy a separate vision plan (and dental plan). Like you I don’t want to have my network as limited as advantage plans are, have to deal with rejected referrals and then appeals which delays medical care, etc.. Not to mention if you end up having expensive medical issues it is far cheaper to have a medigap plan than pay the huge out of pocket that almost all advantage plans have. Not to mention if you then fail medical underwriting (so not talking about birthday and equivalent states) you are then trapped for life in advantage plans. 

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