Why a contact lens exam is different from a routine eye exam

A glasses prescription doesn’t translate directly to a contact lens prescription. Contacts sit on the cornea, so we have to measure the curvature of your cornea, evaluate your tear film and ocular surface health, and check that your eyes can comfortably tolerate a foreign object every day. Most patients can — but the fit and lens design matter more than people realize.

If you have vision insurance, our team verifies your contact lens benefit before you come in, so you’ll know what’s covered before you sit down.

What happens during your contact lens exam

Eye health check. We start with a comprehensive look at the front and back of your eyes — corneal shape, tear quality, lid health, and any conditions that change which lenses are safe for you.

Lens recommendation. Based on your prescription, lifestyle, and budget, we’ll recommend a specific lens — daily disposables, biweekly or monthly soft lenses, toric lenses for astigmatism, multifocals, GP, or a specialty / scleral design if your eyes need one.

Fit and trial. You’ll try the lenses in office, and we’ll evaluate the fit, the visual acuity, and the comfort while you’re sitting with us. If you’re new to contacts, this is also when we do one-on-one insertion, removal, and lens-care training. There’s no extra charge for the training.

Take-home trial. You go home with a trial supply and wear the lenses in real life — at work, at the gym, on a long drive — for about a week.

Follow-up visit. You come back, we re-check the fit and your vision, and adjust if needed. Follow-up visits during the fitting process are included. We work with you until the lenses are right.

You commit when you’re ready. We don’t ask you to buy contacts on the day of the fit. Wear them, like them, then we order your supply.

New to contacts

If you’ve never worn contacts before, we set aside dedicated time for one-on-one insertion and removal training. The first time always feels strange. Most patients have it figured out within 15 minutes, and we won’t send you out the door until you can put them in and take them out yourself, comfortably.

“I’ve been told I’m hard to fit”

If you have keratoconus, a corneal scar, severe dry eye, post-LASIK irregularity, or a high or unusual prescription, you probably need more than off-the-shelf contacts. Dr. Karres has a research background in specialty lens design and presented at international optometry conferences on the topic. We fit custom soft lenses, GP and hybrid designs, and scleral lenses for these patients. Many people are surprised how much vision they recover in lenses they didn’t know existed.

In a lot of these cases the lenses are considered medically necessary, which means a portion of the cost may be covered by medical (not vision) insurance. We’ll work through the coverage with you before you commit. Learn more about Specialty Contact Lenses →

Kids and contacts

A common parent question: “Is my child ready for contacts?” The honest answer is that it depends on the child, not the age. Dr. Keller has fit elementary school athletes who handled contacts beautifully and high schoolers who weren’t quite ready — we evaluate maturity, hygiene habits, and motivation alongside the prescription.

If your child’s myopia is progressing, daily multifocal soft lenses or ortho-k can also help slow it down. Learn more about Myopia Management → | Learn about Ortho-K →

What it costs

For patients with vision insurance, contact lens exams are often as low as $60 out of pocket — exact cost depends on your plan, lens type, and whether the exam is medically necessary.

For patients without vision insurance, we offer transparent flat-rate pricing through COVE Plus. See COVE Plus pricing →

Schedule your contact lens exam

We see patients from New Albany, Gahanna, Westerville, Johnstown, and across Central Ohio. Whether it’s your first time in contacts, your kid’s first time, or you’ve been told no by a previous doctor, we’d like the chance to take a look.

Schedule Online | Call 614-933-0575