Those places all require a prescription in the USA. Which means you still have to pay for an eye exam. The fact that it's easy in Japan is the whole point of t

Those places all require a prescription in the USA. Which means you still have to pay for an eye exam. The fact that it's easy in Japan is the whole point of the article. It's easy in most countries outside the USA! (Costco, at least, charges a membership fee, so that can hardly be called a cheap option. And 99$ is also hardly cheap considering that glasses cost less than 5$ to make: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3/6/18253555/eyeglasses-cost-lenscrafters-essilor-luxottica https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3/6/18253555/eyeglasses-c...)