Thousands of people have laser vision correction every year. You probably have co-workers, neighbors, friends and family who've had some type of vision correction procedure like LASIK. Thousands more each year consider improving their vision with eye surgery but say that fear, time or finances prohibit them from moving forward. With a little creativity and resourcefulness, those who think that laser vision correction is too expensive will see just how affordable it can be.

There are numerous ways to save money on laser vision correction. (Choosing the cheapest surgeon in town is not the recommended solution, by the way.) From employer-sponsored flexible spending accounts or health savings accounts to finance companies that cater to laser vision correction patients, solutions abound.

3rd Party Financing

You have many options when it comes to third party finance companies. You can talk with your local bank or credit union. If you don't have local banking resources, you can also apply to companies that specialize in fee-for-service elective medical procedures. A couple of the most popular choices are Care Credit and CapitalOne Healthcare financing. Typically, these companies offer plans with six, nine, twelve months or more of interest-free financing with lower interest rates than traditional credit cards. Interest rates are dependent on your credit rating.

Credit Cards

There are a plethora of companies out there today with great incentives to use their credit card. Whether it is cash back rewards, airline miles or points that you can redeem for vacations, tickets or cruises, a credit card with a low interest rate may be the right choice for you if you are building points or miles toward a particular reward.

Flexible Spending Accounts

Check with your employer to see if this option is available to you. Some companies offer medical spending accounts so that you can use pre-tax dollars to pay for medical expenses. You can use the dollars for medical insurance premiums or for qualified medical expenditures. Laser vision correction is a qualified expense for most plans but be sure to confirm this with your human resources department for deciding to set this aside for the year. The most important thing to remember about flexible spending plans is that if you don't use the set-aside dollars for the plan year, you lose them. However, there is also a huge benefit to you. You get to use more of your money since it is saved at a pre-tax level and the money is taken from you in equal payments from your paycheck throughout the plan year - just as if you were making payments to a credit card company only there's no interest to pay.

Health Savings Accounts (HSA)

Another option to investigate with your employer is the use of a health savings account. Like flexible spending accounts, the money to fund the account is taken from your paycheck on a pre-tax basis and can be used to pay qualified medical expenses. However, unlike the flexible spending accounts, you own the account and whatever money you don't spend on medical expenses is yours to keep and rollover to the next plan year. There are rules and restrictions with these accounts so be sure to get all the details from your human resources department.

Medical Expenses Deduction

And last but not least, you can hit up Uncle Sam for a deduction on your IRS income tax return if you qualify. Generally, if you itemize deductions on your tax return and your medical expenses equal or exceed 7.5% of your Adjusted Gross Income, you can claim them as a deduction. For more detailed instructions, please talk to your tax adviser.

So you see (pardon the pun), if you really want to correct your sight with a laser vision correction procedure, you can afford it. Explore all of the above options and you're sure to find something that can make laser vision correction fit into your budget this year.