Using Your Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance from Home During COVID-19
While most of us are under orders to shelter in place due to COVID-19, you might be wondering how you can use your health, dental, and vision insurance from home. The good nows is that you can take care of many routine, non-urgent or diagnostic health, dental and vision needs right from your house. Read on for how to use your benefits at home.
Health Insurance from Home
Get at-home care advice from your 24/7 advice nurse hotline
Your insurance company likely offers a 24/7 hotline where you can seek guidance from a registered nurse on a wide range of health topics.
You should contact an advice nurse if:
You’re experiencing a minor issue like sore throat, bladder infection, or allergy symptoms
You have a question about general health or wellness topics
Your doctor’s office is closed, but you need advice on a non-urgent medical issue
You can’t decide whether you need to see a doctor or go to urgent care
Most importantly, your insurance company’s advice nurse hotline is typically free! Your nurse can help you decide whether you need to visit a doctor or urgent care center so you can avoid any unnecessary visits and copays.
Email your doctor or pharmacist with questions about an existing condition or prescription
Insurance companies like Oscar and Kaiser allow you to message your doctors or pharmacists from your member account or in-app. Email is best for non-urgent health or prescription questions, as well as communicating updates between visits. You won’t be charged for emailing your provider either!
Not every doctor’s office allows patients to communicate by email, so always double-check with your doctor on their email policy if it’s unclear.
Video chats or phone visits with your primary care doctor or specialist
Telemedicine services like video or phone consultations are offered by almost every insurance company for free, a lower cost than in-person visits, or the same cost as an in-person visit.
Doctors can help you over video or phone with issues like:
Acute illnesses like rashes, the flu, bladder infections, or pinkeye
Health care advice when traveling out of town
Getting prescriptions for common drugs like birth control, blood pressure medications, inhalers, or medications to treat minor illnesses like sinus infections
If you have an employer-sponsored health plan, a private plan purchased directly through an insurer, or a marketplace plan, coverage for telemedicine services will vary depending on your insurance company and the state you live in.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, several insurance companies have committed to making telemedicine services more widely available at the same cost as in-person visits–or even offering telemedicine services for free! Check out what your insurance company is saying here and whether your state has mandated telehealth services be available to you. If you don’t have health insurance, you might still be eligible to enroll. Check here to determine if you are.
Dental Insurance from Home
Schedule a virtual dentist visit
Many dental providers are beginning to offer teledentistry benefits, such as appointments over video or phone. Virtual appointments are best suited for non-urgent consultations or diagnosing emergency situations–if you are having a dental emergency, call your dentist’s office immediately to coordinate an in-person visit.
Keep in mind that the American Dental Association (ADA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are urging dental providers to postpone elective procedures at this time. We recommend you call your dentist’s office to inquire about the specific issue you’d like to discuss with your dentist.
Before you seek virtual dental care, check with your dentist and your insurance company to make sure that the visit would be covered under your current plan. Stride’s Renaissance dental plans do not currently cover teledentistry services like virtual visits, except in the case of an emergency exam.
If you don’t have dental insurance, you can enroll at anytime for coverage starting on the first of the following month. Check out your options here.
Vision Insurance from Home
Order glasses or contact lenses
If you have a vision policy, like the custom VSP plan offered by Stride, you can order prescription glasses or contacts online!
Keep in mind that you must have an active prescription for glasses or contacts for your insurance to cover any costs. If your prescription has recently expired and you’re not experiencing any changes to your vision, you should call your eye doctor to see if they can extend your prescription during this time.
To buy glasses or contact lenses at the same cost as going to a provider or retailer in-person, make sure to find an in-network online retailer. Your insurance company’s website should have a directory for you to choose from. If not, try calling your insurance company directly using the phone number on your ID card.
If you have VSP vision insurance through Stride, you can use their online Eyeconic service to order glasses or contacts. Eyeconic is VSP’s only in-network, online vendor. By staying in-network, you maximize your savings and have access to the most extensive benefits your plan offers.
How it works:
Shop for glasses frames and contacts on the Eyeconic website.
If you have a current prescription, call your eye doctor to obtain it and upload it to Eyeconic during checkout.
Link your insurance to get your $120 glasses frames or contacts allowance automatically applied. Keep in mind that you’ll still be responsible for any overages, lens enhancements, or copayments.
Eyeconic will deliver your glasses or contact lenses straight to your home!
If you can’t find frames you love or the right contacts from in-network retailers, you can always order from other sites like Warby Parker, Lens.com, Contacts.com, and Coscto online. These would all be considered out-of-network with VSP, but Stride’s VSP plan does offer some out-of-network benefits.
When you go out-of-network, you’ll cover the full cost of glasses or contacts at the time of purchase. After you submit your order, you’ll want to submit a claim with your insurance company for reimbursement.
If you have VSP coverage through Stride, you can submit claims for out-of-network orders directly through your VSP member portal! VSP typically sends a reimbursement check within 7-10 business days under the primary on the account.
If you don’t have vision insurance, you can enroll at anytime for coverage starting on the first of the following month. Check out your options here.
For additional COVID-19 resources, please visit our guide here.