Hello
My kid will be going to Kindergarden this year. Orientation hasn't been done yet from school. But I recevied bunch of papers, I need to have it ready for registration. One of the forms is Eye exam test.. I have heard somewhere, there are some doctors who do this basic eye test for free... I live in bartlett, IL .. Does anybody know any of the doctors? Even good Kid dentist? Thanks in advance.
Really? Now they require an eye exam?? That's crazy. They used to do them in school. My kid is in7th grade so this is a recent change.
I don't know about free, but the state of Illinois requires that you take him/her to an ophthalmologist or optometrist and not his/her pediatrician. I don't know if I would call it a basic eye exam, as my son's was as thorough as mine is each year.
Our eye insurance will pay for one exam each year, so I wasn't really paying attention. But I'm pretty sure the school talked about free or reduced exams. I would call the school and ask. You could also call your pediatrician.
The school and doctors are used to this. All kindergartners need the exam, so you won't be the only one with questions.
Your regular pediatrician should be able to do a simple eye exam in their office. They have your child stand 20ft from the chart on the wall and have them tell you what's on it. If there looks to be any problems they can refer you out to an eye doctor for further testing. You shouldn't need more than the simple test your pediatrician can give unless there is the chance your child needs glasses.
If the school requires it and you can't afford it, they HAVE to provide it. This is public school - they can't require you to pay for something you can't afford. It's their burden.
Your child will have to have a school physical anyway (because so many booster shots are required before going to Kindergarten), and the eye test is part of that physical. Every doctor everywhere can do this at their office, as far as I have ever seen. If you don't have insurance, the county health department can usually provide the school physical/booster shots, as well.
If you have insurance, this ought to be something that's covered. I have medicaid, and it covers eye exams for my children once a year.
I do want to caution you against having the school or a pediatrician perform the exam. My pediatrician always said my oldest child's eyes were fine...her assessment for school at 3 years old said her eyes were fine...but when I began teaching her to read, around 3 1/2 years of age, I immediately noticed HUGE problems. After taking her to an ophtomologist (or whatever...an actual eye doctor) it turned out that she was far more farsighted than a child at that age should be (they're all farsighted at that age)...her eyesight was terrible. They immediately put her in glasses with a prescription so strong that I, who wear glasses, can't even see through them. They said if I had brought her in as a baby, they likely would have had glasses on her even then...and her ped. always just said "Oh, they're fine!"
Sorry I can't speak directly to your question about specific doctors. Speak with your insurance company or the school for recommendations.
Our blue cross insurance covered our sons exam by an ophthalmologist. Your pediatrician may recommend someone.
I would think that you can get that done at a well visit with the pediatrician. You'll need a full exam anyway.
Unfortunately, this is a state mandate so it is unlikely that your school district will pay for it. Your pediatrician can't do the exam, it has to be an eye doctor. You might check with the county health department. If that doesn't work, I got my daughter's done at Costco for relatively little. Target also does eye exams.
If you have insurance then your child's pediatrician will perform regular vision and hearing exams as part of the annual well visit.
If you DON'T have insurance then you can contact the government clinic or agency or wherever it is you take your child for vaccinations.
Here in California vision/hearing screenings are also provided by the schools, at no charge, to all children, by law.
Call the school and see if they offer pre K screenings.
There is nothing like that free on this planet!! A good eye exam by an ophthalmologist when starting school is a good thing. If there are any problems, they can be caught early.
Your pediatrician can do the test for you. It's pretty simple.
Talk to his pediatrician. If they don't do a basic eye test in their office, they should know someone who will.
as far as your question about dentists goes...we LOOOOVEEEE!! Dr Hayes at Pediatric Dental in Chicago! They are jsut off Mich Ave.
