Public Health Promotion & Disease Prevention
The AOA's Health Policy Institute (HPI) establishes how doctors of optometry can work to address public health issues.
Kidney Disease and Primary Eye Care—Considerations for Doctors of Optometry
August 2025
This resource is intended to educate the public on early detection of eye health and visual performance problems, as well as the prevention of vision loss. Linked to decreased quality of life, eye and vision disorders can alter an individual’s overall physical and mental well-being—which has broad implications for the entire health care system. As primary health care providers, doctors of optometry play a vital role in a patient's overall well-being.
Visual Quality of Life and Mental Health
May 2025
This resource is intended to educate the public on the link between visual quality of life and mental health. Doctors of optometry can play a critical role in a patient’s overall wellness by recognizing mental illness; understanding how mental illness and medications can impact ocular conditions, and doctors of optometry are instrumental in identifying key referrals for patients. As primary care providers, doctors of optometry are sometimes one of the only health care professionals that individuals engage with on an annual basis.
Treatment Options for Patients with Blepharitis
May 2025
This resource is intended to educate the public on Blepharitis, its symptoms and treatment options. In July 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Lotilaner ophthalmic solution 0.25% (XDEMVY™) for the treatment of Demodex blepharitis. Developed by Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Lotilaner 0.25% obtained FDA approval for treatment of Demodex blepharitis and is a gamma- aminobutyric acid-gated chloride (GABA-Cl) channel inhibitor selective for mites.
Call for Myopia Management Prioritization: Federal Focus and Evolving Research
November 2024
Research continues to be conducted on the impact of contact lenses in addressing myopia progression. Included in this Health Policy Institute (HPI) brief is information regarding recent studies focused on contact lens use.
June 2023
It’s critical for the public to understand presbyopia and the range of treatment options available to patients.
Doctors of optometry are embracing managing myopia, not just talking about it
November 2022
According to an American Optometric Association (AOA) Research & Information Committee (RIC) survey, 69% of doctors of optometry report providing myopia management services in their practices and three out of four responding doctors consider myopia to be a disease in need of treatment. Nearly all responding doctors who provide myopia management services (93%) are practicing in metropolitan areas and 71% of these doctors report working in an independent practice not affiliated with private equity or corporate optometry.
November, 2021
Bilaterally integrating optometry diabetes care (e.g., clinical management, education, prevention, and support) through Diabetes Care and Education Specialists (DECS) should now become common in the optometry practice.
Optometry Making the Most of FDA’s MedWatch
October, 2021
Optometry’s opportunistic reporting to The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) MedWatch system may be the critical action that leads to increased patient safety and improved public health.
The Science of Reading Begins with Vision.
July 13, 2021
Learning to read, and acquiring comprehension, require well-tuned visual systems. A functional visual system supports development of efficient reading skills. This report explores what teachers, parents and administrators need to know.
Crucial Contact Lens Considerations During Pregnancy
March 2021
For the first time ever in the U.S., birth rates for women under age 30 declined, whereas rates for women age 30 and over rose. The highest birth rate is now represented by women aged 30–34. Coincidently, the average age of contact lens wearers worldwide is age 31, and the majority are female.
Doctors of Optometry Efforts to Minimize and Prevent Traumatic Brain Injury
September 2020
Efforts to minimize and prevent TBIs are a shared goal among the public health and medical communities. By improving impaired vision through comprehensive eye examination and appropriate treatment, there is evidence of enhanced balance and reductions in unintentional falls.
Distracted Driving and the Need for Comprehensive Optometric Eye Exams
May 2020
Doctors of optometry can diagnose common vision conditions that can increase the risks of distracted driving through a comprehensive eye examination.
In-Office Services and Dispensing by Physicians Enhances Patient-Centered Care
July 2019
Doctors of optometry build strong doctor-patient relationships and promote patient-centered care to reduce vision impairment in the United States.
AOA Joins the Action Collaborative as a Network Organization
March 2019
The AOA joins the Action Collaborative by supporting professional training and research in prevention, treatment and recovery to reverse the U.S. opiod epidemic.
Opioid Crisis—A U.S. Public Health Emergency: Recommendations for Doctors
November 2017
The AOA provides information regarding opioids and recommendations for prescribing doctors based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
Share this one-sided 8.5" x 11" information sheet with your patients and the community you serve.
Share this one-sided 8.5" x 11" information sheet with your patients and the community you serve.
Ask the Coding Experts
You ask, the experts answer. The AOA Coding and Reimbursement Committee supports the AOA's strategic direction to develop and value procedural (CPT), diagnostic (ICD-10) and supply codes (HCPCS). Members can submit questions regarding medical records and coding to askthecodingexpert@aoa.org. Here are the latest questions.
AOA on Capitol Hill 2025: Live News Updates
Welcome to the official news hub for AOA on Capitol Hill 2025! Follow along with the AOA's exclusive coverage from optometry's single-largest federal advocacy event in Washington, D.C., and learn about the issues 600 of our colleagues championed on Capitol Hill.
A global force: Highlights from Optometry's Meeting® | 5th World Congress of Optometry
Check out what you might have missed at Optometry's Meeting® 2025!