How to Donate Unused Contact Lenses

In case your eye prescription’s recently changed—or you’ve finally bit the bullet and opted for LASIK—here’s one way to get rid of those spare contact lenses you might’ve stashed away. We’ll write you a tax-deductible receipt for your old car. If it still works, we might use it for our programs — we drive a lot of our residents around. We also drive people to our brain injury rehabilitation centers and we help adults with disabilities get to our day programming, where they have a community and activities. We won’t put the shirt on the rack at your local store, but we will make sure to recycle it. It might become a rag in Goodwill’s wiping cloth program , which makes cleaning rags.

Be sure that the contacts you’re donating aren’t expired before you donate them, otherwise they can’t be redistributed. And if you have any old glasses laying around too, check out our guide to donating and recycling eyeglasses. Instead, you should be recycling both your contact lenses and the blister packaging they come in.

In 2018, an Arizona State University study of contact lens wearers found 15-20% of them were flushing their old contacts down the toilet or washing them down the sink’s drain. Not any Tom Dick, and Harry use contact lenses leh. Another way is to donate it to Salvation Army but make sure you pack it nicely.

Canada’s first contact lens recycling program kicks off – Canadian Plastics

Canada’s first contact lens recycling program kicks off.

Posted: Thu, 30 Jan 2020 19:33:37 GMT [source]

There are actually a few options available to you. This is great for people who have had LASIK eye surgery. Their eyes are better and they don’t need contacts or glasses, so they want to donate them to people that can use them since they can still be used.

Where To Donate Unused Contacts

Most charities that accept donations of unopened and unused contact lenses may also accept unopened and unused cleaning and maintenance supplies for contact lenses. Check with your charity of choice to see whether they can use these supplies, and if they answer positively, send the supplies along with the contacts. TerraCycle® and ACUVUE® have partnered to create a free recycling programme for any brand of soft contact lenses and blister packs. The programme operates through a network of public drop-off locations throughout the UK. Find a vision practice near you participating in the contact lens recycling program. At this time, drop-off locations aren’t available in Alaska and Hawaii.

Where to donate unused/unopened contact lenses?

I tried LensCrafters and they told me they will not accept unused/unopened contacts. Along with Suzanne’s comments, I too tried Goodwill, Lion’s Club and have sent messages to Eyes for the Needy and Madre’s Helping Hands to see if they will. I did not read this area before I sent the messages so I’m assuming it won’t be successful. The best answer is to seek for an exchange or a credit in the place they bought it from.