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In 2025, Remote Area Medical (RAM®) distributed 15,013 pairs of glasses to patients across the country. May is Healthy Vision Month, a time to recognize the importance of protecting eye health and vision. At RAM Clinics, patients can receive a free eye exam and eyeglasses, helping remove one of the biggest barriers to vision care: cost.
For many patients, vision care is one of the first healthcare needs to be delayed. Patients often have to pay for both the eye exam and the glasses that follow. Together, those costs can easily reach hundreds of dollars. That’s why many patients go years without updated glasses, even after their vision changes.
Why do some patients live with vision changes for years before coming to a RAM Clinic? Often, it’s because changes in vision may not feel urgent at first. Unlike dental pain, worsening vision can be easier to put off until it begins affecting daily life.
Vision Care at a RAM Clinic
Vision services are the second most requested service at RAM Clinics, after dental care. Patients typically choose between dental and vision care, though some may receive both depending on volunteer provider availability. Some patients return the next day to receive vision services.
Each RAM Clinic with vision services is equipped for comprehensive eye health exams. These exams allow volunteer eye care professionals to evaluate a patient’s vision and overall eye health.
After the exam, patients who need glasses can choose their frames. Some patients may receive more than one pair, such as distance glasses and reading glasses. Most glasses are made on-site, allowing many patients to leave the clinic just a few hours later with their new prescription glasses.
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RAM Clinics can also provide free eye exams for children and babies. When children need glasses, their glasses are typically shipped to them a few weeks later.
The Need for a Free Eye Exam and Eyeglasses
RAM Clinics offer free eye exams and glasses to patients who need them. These services are necessary because 69% of RAM patients do not have vision insurance.
RAM patients have told us that going without glasses affects daily life in many ways. Without the right glasses, patients have shared that they struggle to:
- See the board in class
- Fourth grader Celeste received her first pair of glasses at a RAM Clinic in Pennsylvania. She couldn’t wait to show her classmates and teacher her new pink, sparkly glasses.
- Drive
- Shelly had avoided driving because she had not received new glasses in more than two years. With updated glasses, she was excited to drive to see her grandchildren.
- Read
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- Bernadette had not been able to read for more than a year after her old glasses broke. After receiving new glasses, she was excited to read again without relying on her husband to read to her.
- Work
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- Randy works at a computer all day. Without reading glasses, he struggled to read and write what he needed. His new glasses will help him continue running his business and providing for his family.
- Teach
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- Michelle works at the school where the RAM Clinic was hosted. Though she has vision insurance, she could not afford new glasses. Receiving a new pair will help her continue teaching her students.
Wearing Old Glasses
Some patients wear old glasses for months, or even years, before they can get a new pair. Many have repaired the same pair again and again, trying to make them last.
Grace superglued her frames back together multiple times over the past few years. A few months before our clinic in Bethlehem, her glasses broke beyond repair. At the clinic, Grace and her boyfriend received new glasses for the first time in years.
Angel also superglued her glasses together because her budget was focused on making sure her young sons had what they needed. At the RAM Clinic in Athens, she was able to receive a new pair in just a few hours.
Already have a glasses prescription from the past year? Bring it to a RAM Clinic, and we may be able to make you a new pair without a new eye exam. Find a clinic near you!
Borrowing Glasses
Other patients go without their own glasses and borrow an old pair from a friend or family member. This is not recommended, but for some patients, it becomes a last resort until they can receive an eye exam and glasses of their own.
Regina, RAM’s one millionth patient, was one of the many patients we’ve met who had been wearing someone else’s old glasses just to get by. At the RAM Clinic in East Tennessee, she received her own pair of glasses.
Wearing someone else’s prescription can cause blurry vision, eye strain, headaches, or discomfort. That’s why access to a proper eye exam and prescription glasses matters.
At a RAM Clinic, patients can receive a free eye exam and free glasses. No insurance is required.
Healthy Vision Month
This Healthy Vision Month, take time to care for your vision. An up-to-date eye exam and the right glasses can change someone’s daily life. For RAM patients, clearer vision can mean seeing the board in class, reading again, driving safely, or continuing to work.
If you or someone you know needs a free eye exam or glasses, please check RAM’s schedule to find a clinic near you.
How You Can Help During Healthy Vision Month
The need for a free eye exam and eyeglasses exists in communities across the U.S. You can help patients receive the eye exams and glasses they’ve gone without by donating to RAM.
A gift of $100 can help provide an eye exam or a pair of glasses for a patient who may have gone years without updated vision care.
Are you an eye health professional? We’d love to have you volunteer at one of our upcoming RAM Clinics across the county. Not an eye health professional? We still would love to have you as a volunteer.
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