Optometry’s Meeting® Closes Out Historic Gathering with 13% Promise Signing, Eye Deserve More Highlight and Concludes Optometry’s House of Delegates

Washington, D.C. – June 26, 2023 – The American Optometric Association (AOA) and American Optometric Student Association (AOSA) concluded a historic Optometry’s Meeting® on Saturday, June 24, after four days full of education, networking and advocacy.

A unique and historic year for Optometry’s Meeting, the event hosted the AOA+ experience for optometry students, faculty and new doctors as well as AOA on Capitol Hill, the AOA’s single-largest annual advocacy event.

With over 190 credit hours of education available for doctors, paraoptometrics and optometry students, Optometry’s Meeting offered education for every attendee. This full suite of education offered hands-on workshops, integrated education, lively discussions and peer-to-peer forums.

Eye Deserve More and Blink Land

The AOA’s recently launched mobile game, Blink Land, created buzz at Optometry’s Meeting as attendees enjoyed the game and unique experience in Eye Care Square. Designed to educate the public about how screen time and eye health are connected, the game offers tangible actions players can take to protect their eyes while on screens.

The game launched as a part of the Eye Deserve More campaign, which takes a stand that every American deserves in-person, comprehensive eye care from an AOA doctor of optometry as part of their eye health and overall wellbeing. In fact, 78% of polled Americans said Eye Deserve More has motivational power and gamers recalled seeing AOA messaging 3x more than competitors. In addition, since 2022, the campaign has generated 3.1K media placements and 1.8B media impressions. There has been a 60% increase in people visiting AOA’s website searching for an AOA doctor since launching in 2021, with 448K visits to AOA’s doctor locator and campaign landing page in the past year alone.

Historic Moment Signing the 13% Promise

The AOA Board of Trustees convened with the Black EyeCare Perspective Executive Team for the first in-person gathering between the leaders, addressing the importance of moving the profession forward and action-oriented strategies to create opportunities for today and tomorrow’s Black optometrists, while working toward and building a robust applicant pool.

AOA President Ronald L. Benner, O.D., on behalf of the organization, took an historic step signing the 13% Promise with Black EyeCare Perspective leaders Adam Ramsey, O.D., Darryl Glover, O.D., Essence Johnson, O.D., and Jacobi Cleaver, O.D.

“This is an important moment for us because the AOA has been deliberate and thoughtful in everything we do when it comes to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in our profession, today and in the future,” said Dr. Benner. “Together in-person for the first time, we are joining the 13% Promise as part of the commitment the AOA is making to activate solutions to advance the profession. We take this partnership and our DEI work seriously, and we look forward to deeper collaboration with Black EyeCare Perspective.”   

Board of Trustees Adopts Resolutions

The AOA House of Delegates passed four measures strengthening existing resolutions: (1) calls on all stakeholders to evaluate the impact of current health and vision plan compensation models on the potential future availability of the highest level of patient care. The AOA and its affiliate associations are asked to work with state and federal legislatures and agencies to ensure enforcement of current laws regulating health and vision plans, and to take steps to ensure reasonable plan structures and valuation practices for health and vision plan benefit; (2) reaffirms AOA’s position that vision therapy is an integral part of optometric practice only to be practiced by doctors of optometry, ophthalmologists and other qualified professionals and that vision therapy and orthoptics by an unlicensed person, unless supervised by a qualified health care professional, is contrary to the best interest of the public; (3) encourages student/new doctor attendance at future AOA+, AOA and affiliate events as well as lifelong membership; and (4) spotlights AOA’s highly successful Eye Deserve More public awareness campaign. A fifth resolution clarifies the definition of “federal government employee” for membership eligibility in the Armed Forces Optometric Society.

For more information on the event’s news and updates, visit the Optometry’s Meeting news page. Optometry’s Meeting took place June 21-24 in downtown Washington, D.C., at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. For images from the event, follow along on Facebook and Twitter. 

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About Optometry’s Meeting®

Optometry’s Meeting, the annual meeting of both the AOA and AOSA, aligns optometric and industry professionals for a four-day experience to advance optometry and engage the association’s official business. Optometry’s Meeting’s renowned educational program supports every member of the care team with progressive continuing education and professional development opportunities. Simultaneously delivering an impactful conference experience, Optometry’s Meeting promotes networking and connection through the expansive exhibit hall, as well as a dynamic program of special events.

About the American Optometric Association

The American Optometric Association (AOA) is the leading authority on and advocate for quality eye health care, representing more than 49,000 doctors of optometry, optometry students and optometric professionals. As the sole primary eye care provider in many communities across America, doctors of optometry are often a patient's first entry point into the health care system and have extensive, ongoing training to examine, diagnose, treat and manage disorders, diseases and injuries that affect the eye and visual system. Through a nationwide public health initiative, AOA's Eye Deserve More campaign is fostering awareness of the importance of eye health and vision care and the overall health benefits of in-person, comprehensive eye examinations with AOA doctors of optometry for all Americans.