OPW News Alerts and Links
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- AOA Resource: Can Aetna Drop Me If I Drop EyeMed? - 8/31/26
- Illinois Enacts New Protections Against Abusive VBM Practices - 8/25/26
- New Study Adds To Growing Body Of Evidence Supporting Contemporized Optometric Scope - 7/30/26
- Student Loan Regulations Finalized—AOA Secures Optometry’s Inclusion - 7/9/26
- Historic Win: Vermont Advances Optometry’s Nationwide Scope Momentum - 6/23/26
- 6 AOA Advocacy Wins in 2025 That Set the Stage for 2026 - 2/4/26
- AOA Advocacy Has Restored More Than $12M In Reimbursements To Optometrists Since 2024 - 1/21/26
- Salaries For VA Optometrists Now On Par With Physicians - 1/16/26
- VA Optometrists Achieve Pay Parity - 1/8/26
Additional sources for optometry news and updates:
AOA Resource: Can Aetna Drop Me If I Drop EyeMed?
Doctors participating in certain Aetna networks should carefully review their contracts for a provision that may link (or tie) the continued participation of the Aetna agreement to a separate EyeMed contract. The AOA developed a member resource for reviewing Aetna contracts to determine whether any tying provision exists and what consequences may result from changes to the EyeMed relationship.
If you are interested in learning more about advocating for new state laws regarding anti-tying or any willing provider laws, contact the AOA's State Government Relations team. Doctors may report challenges with Aetna and EyeMed for AOA experts to review.
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Illinois Enacts New Protections Against Abusive VBM Practices
Momentum for vision benefit middleman (VBM) reform continues to build: Illinois has achieved another important advocacy victory for doctors of optometry and the patients they serve.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker just signed S.B. 3707 into law, strengthening oversight of VBMs and addressing contracting and business practices that can restrict patient choice and create unnecessary burdens for doctors and their practices.
The new law establishes meaningful protections for Illinois patients and doctors, including greater contract and benefit transparency, protections from fee-based reimbursement and forced discount-plan participation, stronger provider rights and greater flexibility for patients to choose a lower-cost cash-pay option when appropriate.
“Two years after the Vision Care Plan Regulation Act took effect, Illinois eye doctors encountered issues with vision plans that revealed gaps in transparency and accountability,” says Leigh Ann Vanausdoll, CEO of the Illinois Optometric Association (IOA). “SB 3707 builds on the original law by addressing those concerns, strengthening oversight, improving transparency, and delivering meaningful protections for both patients and eye care providers.”
The AOA worked alongside the IOA and its advocates to support efforts to strengthen VBM accountability. The Illinois victory adds to growing momentum nationwide as AOA and its affiliates pursue reforms addressing reimbursement, contracting, patient steering and other VBM practices affecting patients and doctors.
“Illinois' action sends another clear message that policymakers recognize the need to protect patients and doctors from practices that restrict choice and undermine a competitive vision care marketplace,” says AOA President Teri K. Geist, O.D. “This law adds to growing momentum for commonsense VBM reforms that put patients first.”
The AOA congratulates the IOA and Illinois doctors of optometry for their leadership and persistence in securing this hard-won victory. Together, AOA and its affiliates will continue advancing reforms that protect patient choice, support access to high-quality eye care and hold VBMs accountable.
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New Study Adds To Growing Body Of Evidence Supporting Contemporized Optometric Scope
Patient interviews reinforce what decades of research and practice continue to show: expanding optometric scope improves access to timely, patient-centered eye health and vision care.
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Student Loan Regulations Finalized—AOA Secures Optometry’s Inclusion
New U.S. Department of Education federal student loan regulations are now final—reflecting a hard-fought AOA advocacy win ensuring optometry is recognized as a professional program, an outcome not extended to all health disciplines.
Effective July 1, 2026, the rules establish updated borrowing limits for graduate and professional students. Doctor of Optometry (O.D.) students qualify for the higher professional loan caps, strengthening the financial pathway into the profession.
- Professional students (including optometry): $50,000 annual / $200,000 aggregate
- Graduate students (including some health disciplines): $20,500 annual / $100,000 aggregate
This distinction reinforces optometry’s standing in federal policy and supports the pipeline of future doctors delivering care in communities nationwide.
AOA will continue advancing policies that recognize optometry’s role in healthcare and protect students’ access to the resources they need.
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Historic Win: Vermont Advances Optometry’s Nationwide Scope Momentum
It’s optometry’s year: another major advocacy victory has been achieved for doctors of optometry and the patients they serve.
On June 18, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott signed legislation modernizing optometric practice and expanding access to essential eye healthcare services. Vermont now becomes the 17th state to authorize doctors of optometry to perform in-office procedures, including ophthalmic laser procedures, and the third state in 2026 to achieve a major scope advancement.
Beginning July 1, 2028, Vermont doctors of optometry who complete the required specialty license will be authorized to provide additional in-office procedures, including certain ophthalmic lasers, injections around the eye, corneal cross-linking, minor eyelid repairs and removal of certain eyelid and periocular lesions.
“This is a historic day for Vermont patients and doctors of optometry,” says Tina Keshava, O.D., president of the Vermont Optometric Association (VOA). “For years, Vermont doctors of optometry have worked to ensure our laws reflect the education and training we receive today. This legislation will improve access to care across our state and help more patients receive the services they need.”
The VOA spearheaded the years-long effort, with support from the AOA State Government Relations team, to educate policymakers and advance legislation that reflects contemporary optometric education and patient care needs.
“Vermont’s victory is about more than one state; it reflects the growing momentum behind expanding patient access to care across America,” says AOA President Jacquie M. Bowen, O.D. “As the third major scope advancement of 2026, this historic win demonstrates the increasing recognition of doctors of optometry as essential healthcare providers at the ready to address Americans’ needs. The AOA is proud to stand alongside the VOA and affiliates nationwide as we continue advancing the future of eye health care."
The AOA congratulates the VOA and Vermont doctors of optometry for their leadership, persistence and commitment to patients.
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6 AOA Advocacy Wins in 2025 That Set the Stage for 2026
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AOA Advocacy Has Restored More Than $12M In Reimbursements To Optometrists Since 2024
Invision (1/19) carried a press release from the American Optometric Association announcing that “ongoing, direct advocacy by AOA, affiliates and the strong network of AOA’s Third Party Center volunteer doctors restored more than $12.1 million in reimbursement payments to thousands of AOA and affiliate members since 2024.” According to the release, “The Third Party Center Committee, chaired by Steven Eiss, O.D., has worked tirelessly to ensure that time-intensive records requests, inappropriate denials, Medicare Risk Adjustment audits and downcoding delays were adequately compensated or halted, with a total of over more than $4.6 million restored during the last six months.” AOA President Jacquie M. Bowen, OD, said, “We are committed to doing all we can to support our member practices, help them thrive and break down any barriers to care. Uncompensated and undercompensated care doesn’t just hurt optometrists’ financial sustainability. It drives up the cost of care and lowers accessibility for those who need it most.”
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Salaries For VA Optometrists Now On Par With Physicians
Healio (1/15, Cooper) reports that a press release from the American Optometric Association states that “optometrists in the Department of Veterans Affairs, as of this year, are paid on par with physicians – between $124,308 and $182,324.” The pay increase is due to “the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act, signed into law last year by former President Joe Biden.” According to AOA, “VA optometrists had been left out of 2 decades of legislation to raise salaries to make them more competitive with the private sector. Their pay has remained ‘far below that of the private sector in many regions,’ leading to vacancies at VA facilities, while more than a fifth of its optometry workforce is at or near retirement, according to the release.” The pay raise was a result of governmental advocacy by AOA and the Association of Armed Forces and Federal Optometric Services (AFOS).
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VA Optometrists Achieve Pay Parity
An executive order published in late December 2025 sets the base and longevity pay schedule for optometrists on par with physicians’ rates. This comes after the VA, in October, published new regulations implementing physician-level recognition for VA doctors of optometry, a major win for the profession.
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