1-800 Contacts is trying to make it easier to get prescriptions for eyeglasses or contact lenses.
- 1-800 Contacts said Tuesday that it has entered an agreement to acquire 6over6, an Israel-based tech firm that has developed at-home vision tests conducted through smartphones or computers.
- A technology developed by 6over6 could allow people to obtain new prescriptions for eyeglasses or contact lenses without a visit to an eye doctor.
- "In-office eye exams tend to cost about $150 and take a few hours away from work," 1-800 Contacts CEO John Graham told Business Insider in an interview. "We can do it more affordably using a smartphone or a computer in 10 or 15 minutes."
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1-800 Contacts is trying to make it easier for people to get new prescriptions for eyeglasses and contact lenses by cutting out the need for a visit to an eye doctor.
The e-commerce company said Tuesday that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the Israel-based tech firm 6over6, which has developed software that it says is capable of determining new lense prescriptions through an exam conducted on a smartphone or computer. The transaction is expected to close in December.
The software, which is currently in the process of clinical trials and awaiting regulatory approval in the US, could become publicly available in the US within the next year, according to 1-800 Contacts CEO John Graham.
"The regulatory timelines are not incredibly precise, but we're hopeful it will be on the market in the next year or two," Graham told Business Insider in an interview.
Prescriptions for eyeglasses or contact lenses typically expire every one to two years in the US, requiring wearers to visit an eye doctor regularly for exams.
These visits can be expensive and inconvenient, Graham said.
"In-office eye exams tend to cost about $150 and take a few hours away from work," Graham said. "We can do it more affordably using a smartphone or a computer in 10 or 15 minutes."
1-800 Contacts currently offers prescription renewals through an at-home vision test that it calls Express Exam. The Express Exam, which typically costs about $20, involves a smartphone or computer and a remote doctor who reviews the results, Graham said.
On its website, 1-800 Contacts says the tests are highly accurate.
"In independent clinical trials our vision exam was as accurate as a traditional refractive exam performed by an optometrist or ophthalmologist using a phoropter," the company says.
1-800 Contacts said it expects to use 6over6 technologies across many of its existing services, including Express Exam. The 6over6 technology that's awaiting regulatory approval in the US will provide a similar service to the Express Exam, but for new prescriptions, as opposed to renewals.
"It has been our life's mission to create ground-breaking technology that would allow consumers the ability to take control of their own vision care and reach communities around the globe without access," Dr. Ofer Limon, co-founder of 6over6 Vision, said in a statement. "1-800 Contacts shares our drive to change what is broken in this industry, and we know that this acquisition will bring our vision to life on a global scale that can make real change."
Online eye exams face some opposition from doctors
The American Optometric Association (AOA), which represents eye doctors, has taken a hard stance against online vision exams.
"Online vision tests often give inaccurate or misleading information, and can misinform consumers that can delay essential, sight-saving treatment," AOA says on its website. "Comprehensive eye exams with your doctor of optometry are one of the most important, preventive ways to preserve vision, and the only way to accurately assess eye health, diagnose an eye disorder or disease, and determine the need for corrective lenses."
The group recently pushed for the Food and Drug Administration to recall 1-800 Contacts' Express Exam.
Graham said some eye doctors may be opposed to the online exams because they threaten a source of their revenue.
Traditionally, "an optometrist performs the medical services and then turns around and tries to fill the prescription they just wrote, and a majority of their income comes from that," he said.
He said 1-800 Contacts' online tests aren't meant to replace health-related visits to an eye doctor and are not capable of detecting potential issues such as glaucoma.
"It is not a comprehensive eye exam," 1-800 Contacts says of the Express Exam on its website. "If you have concerns about your eye health, see your doctor for a full eye exam."