4 ms·

Glasses and contacts too please.

• somebodynew 4y ago
  Glasses are already de facto over the counter. Virtually every online source of glasses (including large, domestic businesses) will openly sell glasses with requested specifications to anyone without asking for a copy of (or even affirmation of the existence of) any kind of official document. While the word "prescription" is often still used when the specifications of the glasses are what is really meant, this situation is clearly a stark contrast to the prescription-as-approval practiced for medication. No legitimate domestic company will sell FDA-approved medication without asking for proof that the customer first paid a doctor for a signed document giving them permission to buy it. This step may still be prevalent for contact lenses, but in practice it's not applied to glasses.
• rocket_surgeron 4y ago
  I don't know if glasses and contacts have the same accessibility problems. I know people like to rage against the machine and reveal the ancient forbidden knowledge they have "discovered" about the Luxottica monopoly but you can get a vision test at any of the ten thousand or so optometrists in the US for $50. Then you can order a pair of perfectly serviceable and stylish prescription glasses online for $20. In the 30 years I've been buying glasses, I've never paid more than $100 except for the last time when I opted for the fancy blue-blocking and ultra-scratch-resistant coating and my glasses were $105. Hearing aids cost thousands and thousands of dollars.