JCPenney Eye Exam Cost
Multiple JCPenney locations offer eye exams for all ages with one of their independent state licensed Doctors of Optometry.
Aside from the exams, they also offer multiple designer frames, contact lenses, and sunglasses, truly making it a one-stop shop for your eye needs.
To date, the company boasts more than 350 full-service locations in 43 states.
How much does an eye exam cost at JCPenney?
The cost of an eye exam at JCPenney, like most retailers that have an ophthalmologist, will be able to set his or her own prices since the practice will be independently owned. Because of this, you will find that you will not be able to find the exact prices on the official JCPenney website; instead, you will either need to visit the vision center in person or call them over the phone to receive accurate information since the doctor can set the price. While you can book your eye appointment online via JCPenney, it did not specify the price once confirming the appointment.
With all of this being said, we did browse third-party resources online, such as Yelp, and were able to find that most eye exams, without any additional purchases, could range anywhere from $65 to $90 without insurance for a basic eye exam. This would not include the price of frames, contact lenses or additional treatments if you were to need it.
For example, on this Yelp.com review for the San Diego, California location, one reviewer said they paid $74 for just the exam without insurance, while another reviewer for the National City, Calfornia location stated she paid $89 without insurance.
If you have vision insurance, JCPenney Optical, via the official website, notes they accept thousands of vision care plans such as Avesis, EyeMed, Davis Vision, Spectera and Superior Vision. The screengrab below, for instance, displays most of the policies they accept as of this publishing; however, like anything, this can change over time, so we do encourage you that you go to the company’s official insurance page to see if they accept your plan.
What should you expect during the eye exam?
At first, your eye doctor will first want to explore your health history and vision by asking a few questions to see if you have any concerns/questions. Next, he or she will perform a visual acuity test, where you will read a standard eye chart to assign a numeric value to each eye, such as 20/20 for perfect vision, for example. The larger the bottom number is, then the worse your vision is considered to be.
From there, while optional, your doctor will want to place eye drops in your eyes to dilate them in order to look into each eye with an ophthalmoscope, an instrument that enables your eye doctor to see the internal structures of your eyes to check on the internal health.
After dilation, your eye doctor will then check the surface of your cornea, the outermost portion of your eye, to see if glaucoma is suspected. To determine, a pressure test will be used to help measure the pressure inside of the eyeball. Depending upon your health, your doctor may also recommend an eye test to determine color patterns and depth perception.
With all these tests combined, not necessarily in this order, your doctor will be able to determine your vision prescription as well as discuss any health problems that may persist, with a treatment plan recommended at this time.
JCPenney Optical reviews
Via PissedConsumer.com, more than 85+ visitors gave the company a 1.7 out of 5 rating, noting the bad service, poor quality and misleading prices. While many mentioned you could get the prices as advertised, the options seemed to be very “cheap,” and if you wanted to upgrade, the costs would sometimes triple or even quadruple. Remember, as noted earlier, each location is independently owned, meaning the service will vary from location to location, but as for the prices for the frames, this seems to be standard across the board and was often a common complaint among those who bought glasses here.
Yelp had multiple locations with many differing views for each location. For the most part, from what we did see, the average rating seemed to range anywhere from as little as a 1.5 to as high as a 4 out of five rating. The highest rated optical locations had reviewers boasting about the great customer service and low prices, whereas the lower rated stores talked, again, about the poor customer service, long wait times and bad prescriptions.
Tips to know
Not all JCPenney locations will have a vision center; to make sure your local location has a location, refer to the official store locator tool.
Be sure to check out the offers and discounts page listed on the website to see if you can take advantage of any special eye exam offer.
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