Guidelines for Ordering Your Contact Lenses Online

Choosing to order your contact lenses from an online supplier can often be more cost effective than ordering from a store. However, the two can both be completely different experiences. When you decide to order your contact lens prescription online, you may lack the advice and guidance often given to you by your doctor, but you can still do it on your own. To help you safely order your contact lens prescription from an internet supplier, follow these guidelines.

- Make sure your prescription is current and unexpired. Since your vision can decline year-by-year, it is best to have a check up at least every two years. Wearing the wrong prescription can cause your vision to decline more quickly.
- Have a check up if you have not had one in the past two years. A checkup every year is better, but two at the very most. As explained above, your vision can change and if you are ordering online you may have forgotten to have a checkup first.
- Make sure your new prescription contains your name, your doctors name, your lens brand, your lens material, and your lens measurements. You may need this information when ordering online.
- If this is your first pair of contact lenses, make sure you are aware of how your contacts are supposed to be used. For example, are the daily wear or extended wear? Will your doctor allow material substitutions?
- Make sure the company is following all state laws required for ordering contact lenses online. You may want to search for laws in both your sate and the company's state prior to ordering.
- A good company will ask for your doctors information to call and verify the prescription.
- Although they may not be required to ask for an actual prescription, they should at least have you fill out information on you, your doctor, and your prescription.
- Try to make an appointment with your doctor to have him check the fit of your new lenses and evaluate your sight to make sure the lenses are correct.
- Always make sure you see your doctor when scheduled so that he can check for irregularities with your eyes. These irregularities could lead to sever eye irritation, such as an eye infection, and damage, such as blindness.
- Order from a familiar and reliable supplier. Ask around for recommendations from friends or family. If nothing else, you may be able to find a consumer review website containing evaluations on various internet suppliers.
- Make sure they give you a manufacturer information sheet, as with any prescription.
- Some suppliers may try to substitute brands without first consulting your doctor. For this reason you should check the lenses to make sure they are the ones you paid for.
- Remember, your doctor is the only person qualified to determine which brand and fit is right for you.
- You can report complaints to the FDA's MedWatch at www.fda.gov/medwatch, e-mailing web complaints@ora.fda.gov, and by contacting the manufacturer.

The most important point to remember is to make and keep appointments with your doctor. It is important for the sake of your eyes. Not only will he give you an updated prescription, just in case your vision has changed, but he can also check the fitting, brand, and shape of your new lenses to make sure they are right for you.