Recently I spent $700 on my eyes because of contact lens recall

[Aerows]

I had health insurance, and eye insurance. The place I went to decided to turn it down, even though it was related to the recall of the lot of contact lenses that I used to wear.

My eyes hurt so badly, I had to visit an eye doctor.

Insurance refused.

I ended up having to pay.

What can I do? My eyes are STILL bothering me over this, three months later.

I was wearing the lot number and contact lenses covered in the recall. What do I do?

[Phentex]

1. Have you contacted the manufacturer?

Aren't they the ones who would replace the ones in the recall?

What did your recall notice say?

[Aerows]

6. Mine was recalled

but the issues haven't gone away.

[DURHAM D]

2. I am having trouble with my contacts.

Where is the list of the recalls?

Sorry, don't have any advice about your insurance.

[Aerows]

5. It's stated to be Avira and other manufacturers

and was defined to be shown at a halo rainbow on the lens (like petroleum all over it). Mine had that, but it has issues beyond that.

[Phentex]

8. Here's some info...

save everything and try to contact one of their lwayers.

http://www.contact-lens-recall.com/

[Aerows]

14. That's the one

My eyes are still bothering me, and I had to shell out 700 buck to get steroids put in my eyes to make them quit hurting, then had to wear glasses for weeks.

[Aerows]

16. Contact one of their lawyers, or have my lawyer contact them?

I'm thinking that after all of the money I've spent, I'm really not inclined to hear about filing fees.

[Phentex]

17. It sounds like you contact theirs...

they want to settle it. They don't want you suing them.

[pinboy3niner]

7. Try googling 'contact lens recalls'

That should turn up the information you want. Good luck!

[seabeyond]

3. i had massive problems with my sons eyes last june. actually

it started in spring and by june he was out of contacts for 7 months cause of problems.

what was the brand?

[Aerows]

4. That's when it happened

They have a halo (rainbow refraction) on the contacts, visibly when you hold it up to the light, or it just is irritating to the eye and you get problem with the eyeball in pain.

[seabeyond]

29. interesting. i will do some research. gonna be pissed if this is what all that was about

it ended up being scary stuff for sons sight. not to mention cost.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. wear glasses

[Aerows]

11. Uh, thanks, liberal person.

[Liberal_in_LA]

15. i mean it. give your eyes a rest.

[Aerows]

20. I am -7.00 in each eye

It sounds pleasant to merely wear glasses, but my eyesight is bad enough that glasses weigh a ton. No visual correction at all is not an option for me, either. I have great vision with contacts, but it is diminished with glasses due to the curve of my cornea. I appreciate your care, though.

[tammywammy]

31. I feel for you

But if your eyes are giving you trouble, you should stop wearing contacts for awhile. I wear a -12 contact, I pay for the high index lenses and still have thick lenses that are bigger than the plastic frames. When it comes to my eyesight, honestly I'd rather take the discomfort of glasses for awhile than risk more damage to my eyes.

[Aerows]

36. Wow

You are the first person I've ever met with more terrible eyesight than mine! -12? That's bad.

You are correct - I don't want any more damage to my eyes!

[tammywammy]

37. I like to think I'm special

I love it when people with a -3 try and tell me how bad their eyesight is. I laugh at them!

I've learned to just deal with it best I can. I usually give my eyes a break from contacts during the weekend. I've scratched the crap out of my cornea before, what a PITA, I had an eye patch and everything once. It was just awful.

Your eyesight is just so important. I really hope you find a good doctor that will help you.

[dkf]

42. I agree that glasses are inferior to contacts.

I dont understand why LASIK isn't covered by insurance.

[Romulox]

44. I'm nearly (but not quite) as bad. If you haven't worn glasses in some time, you'd be surprised

at how thin and light plastic composite lenses can be.

[The Genealogist]

38. Glasses are not for everyone

Some people do better in contacts. My first cousin, for instance, wore glasses for a few years. The eye doctor put her in contacts, as the glasses were actually making her vision worse. She did MUCH better in contacts, and has worn them since the 1970s. It is not all about cosmetic concerns; some people just do better with contacts than glasses in terms of vision health.

[Liberal_in_LA]

39. i see. thanks for the info.

[Carolina]

41. I agree

Have worn glasses for over 45 years. And now they have such stylish ones available that young people can avoid the nerd/geek factor I went through and older folks (like me) can avoid the granny glasses or obvious bifocals.

Course my son wanted contacts as a teenager but I was insistent about cleaning them religiously and not sleeping in them.

Vision is priceless.

[Aerows]

10. Okay, I'm trying to get this out there

The recall was with "Avira", and I'll dig that up later, but other manufacturers may not necessarily having issues with it. It may be a regional issue.

I live on the Gulf of Mexico. My problems started with the BP spill.

That said, a bunch of Avira contact lenses were recalled when they were revealed to have a shimmering layer of petroleum.

[cbayer]

24. Still, your insurance company should tell you how to address this issue.

Looks like the recall was in November/December 2011. If you google Avira Contact Lens recall, you will see a slew of attorneys who are looking for people who were injured. Have you seen these?

[tammywammy]

12. Have you tried finding another eye doctor?

The less fancier their office the more reasonable their prices I've found.

Also try contacting the manufacturer. Do you have glasses that to can wear? I'm a contact during the work day and glasses at home type of person. I feel for you with eye issues. The worst I've ever done is scratch the crap out of my cornea requiring an eye patch for a day.

Good luck.

[tblue37]

13. Wow! I am so glad my two adult kids were finally able to get Lasik surgery.

Good luck--and save everything as documentation for a potential lawsuit or claim filing.

[tammywammy]

19. I wish I qualified for LASIK.

Sigh, such is life. Plus people find my story of trying to put mascara on without contacts/glasses without jabbing myself in the eye entertaining.

[tblue37]

33. Both were so severely nearsighted that they were nonfunctional without

contacts or glasses--and my daughter bordered on being legally blind. Now both have 20/20 and are thrilled. They had it dne 3 years ago (my daughter) and 2 years ago (my son).

[cbayer]

18. Wait, you have insurance but nobody takes it?

That makes no sense. The insurance company needs to tell you who accepts your insurance. If no one in the area does, then they need to tell you how to bill them (the insurance company) directly for any charges you paid.

[Aerows]

21. That's the situation - and worse

I have insurance, and it has been denied. For an emergency because I thought my eyeballs would fall out, was in pain, and no, they would do nothing.

I don't even know how to fight it. I was shamed at the doctor's office by being made to wait for like an hour before they "interviewed me" and told me my insurance wouldn't cover the situation.

The first time I was welcomed to the eye doctor when they had to put drops in my eyes. The second time on the follow up, I was treated terrible, pulled into a side office after being made to wait for 2 hours and told that "you know your insurance won't cover this". I said "Okay." About 15 seconds after I was presented with a bill for 180 dollars, I saw the doctor. I then got charged again.

[Aerows]

22. Understand

this is because of contacts under a recall.

[csziggy]

23. Here is the FDA page about the recall

http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/Safety/RecallsCorrectionsRemovals/ListofRecalls/ucm275835.htm

The Avaira Sphere Contact Lenses recall is an expansion of the Class I recall of CooperVision’s Avaira Toric Contact Lenses.

Go to the CooperVision recall web page at http://www.coopervision.com/international-recall and enter the package lot number to determine whether the lenses have been recalled or contact the toll-free consumer hotline at 1-855-526-6737.

Note at the bottom there is this:

Health care professionals and consumers may report adverse reactions or quality problems they experienced using these products to MedWatch: The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program either online, by regular mail or by FAX.
The MedWatch link is: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/default.htm

Maybe someone at one of those places can help you get treatment for your eyes. You need to get this taken care of!

[Aerows]

27. I'm trying

I'm working within the recall, and it hasn't been pretty. That's why I've had to spend money outside for new contacts, eye exams and generally giving up on them.

I'm not sure how much it means to yell about obvious safety violations, so much as it is imperative to protect my own.

I speak up when I have to.

[csziggy]

32. I know it's hard

Good luck with it - I hope they will come through with what you need to get your eyes healthy again.

[Aerows]

25. Think about this for one second

You have contact lenses that were recalled, were issued new ones. Your doctor wasn't available, so you had to go to a new guy that was available.

You had to go and then he squirts some drops in your eyes. You finally don't feel like your eyeballs are going to burn out of your head. Your NEW doctor didn't mention how you have got keratitis. ACUTE Keratitis. Due to the replaced contact lens, it will never be revealed to the manufacturer of the contact lens. Except its the same manufacturer. different name.

It's lunacy.

[renate]

26. I wonder whether your local news has a consumer protection reporter

If a lot of people in your area have the same problem, contacting one of your local news stations might actually get you somewhere.

[Aerows]

28. Gulf Coast

BP gifts.

[MadHound]

30. For the health of your eyes, you probably need to take a break from contacts and wear glasses

Seriously, if they are bothering you that much, it is time to take a break. With contacts directly irritating your eyes, it is very easy for long term, or even permanent damage to occur. I saw upthread about how much your glasses would weigh, but you would actually be surprised at how lightweight lenses have become. And while you might have to sacrifice some of your visual clarity for awhile, it is better than sacrificing your eyesight for the rest of your life.

[REP]

34. Can you afford a lawyer?

If you can, please think about it.

And pay cash if you must to have your eyes cared for immediately. Fight with the insurance once your eyes are well, but please do not take chances with your eyes.

[Aerows]

35. I'm thinking about it

It's a tight squeeze, but I am thinking on it.

[Romulox]

43. You have "access to insurance". According to some, that means the problem is solved.