OPW News Alerts and Links
Jump to:
- 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 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.”
Read More
|
|
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).
Read More
|
|
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.
Read More
|
|
