AOA Center for Independent Practice (CIP)

Welcome Home, Independent Doctors

The AOA has long been the voice of independent doctors and we want to help you succeed. Independent practice is thriving—whether you are practicing independently, want to learn more about it or want to find opportunities, the Center for Independent Practice (CIP) is your home.

This is your one-stop hub for resources to help advance your professional skills. Revisit often to find more information and tools to help you grow as the AOA fights for broader scope, recognition and opportunities for doctors of optometry.

Partners

The AOA thanks Southern College of Optometry,  Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry, The Ohio State University College of Optometry, University of Pikeville Kentucky College of Optometry, and Western University College of Optometry for their visionary partnership and leadership in the CIP and independent practice of contemporary optometry.

The Southern College of Optometry and the Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry have the highest rate of AOA membership among students who graduated from 2011-2021, and the five CIP partner schools have the highest rates of faculty membership in AOA among all schools and colleges of optometry.

Golden Opportunity Award offers three $50,000 independent practice awards in 2025

Doctors of optometry can apply to receive one of three $50,000 awards to help establish their first independent practice as part of the second annual Golden Opportunity Award. Applications will be accepted through Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.

• Submit your online application here.

The Golden Opportunity Award, honoring the legacy of Dr. David Golden, aims to support optometrists who represent underrepresented groups within the profession or who are committed to establishing practices in underserved areas. This initiative is pivotal in promoting a more diverse and equitable landscape in the field of optometry.

The AOA Foundation, in collaboration with the Professional Eyecare Resource Co-Operative (PERC) Alliance, launched the Golden Opportunity Award last year to provide substantial support to emerging optometric professionals. Learn more about the inaugural awardees.

Finalists will be selected in April 2025 and winners will be announced during Optometry’s Meeting®, June 25-28, 2025, in Minneapolis.

Build Independent Practice at Optometry’s Meeting®

The AOA Center for Independent Practice held its 2023 Symposium at Optometry’s Meeting in Washington DC, featuring expert Tom Bowen, founder and CEO of Thrive Practice and Life Development. The 2023 Symposium was sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Vision.

The AOA Center for Independent Practice held its 2024 Symposium in conjunction with AOA+ at Optometry’s Meeting in Nashville, with pop-ups featuring Bill Nolan, president, practice transitions for Williams Group; Bernie DeJesus, student loan consultant, GradFin team at Laurel Road; and Frank L. Vivians, Jr., assistant vice president, medical business development officer, Bank of America Practice Solutions. The 2024 Symposium was supported by Williams Group.

 For more information, contact Rodney Peele at  rpeele@aoa.org.

EyeLearn: Professional Development Hub

The AOA’s member-exclusive, centralized education portal, EyeLearn, offers an expanding online catalog of educational modules, webinars and resources to help advance clinical proficiencies, the practice of contemporary optometry and practice management for doctors of optometry, future doctors of optometry and paraoptometric staff. When accessing EyeLearn, members log in with the same username and password used to log in to the AOA website. There is a user guide offered for quick reference as well.

CIP webinars on Practice Matters are available for CE credit in EyeLearn for easy access for student and doctor members of AOA

• Practice Matters: Starting a New Practice
• Associate to Owner: A Path to Success in Independent Practice

Additional AOA EyeLearn courses can be found in the content search bar or through specific course catalogs. For example:

• Practice Success: Implementing Modernized Procedures into Your Practice
• Practice Success: Starting a Private Practice – A Path to Success
• Case Study: When a Patient Chooses a New Doctor in the Practice
• Case Study: Dismissing a Patient

Independent Practice Resources

Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) blocked: Federal law required optometry practices and other businesses with fewer than 20 employees and less than $5 million in receipts to report certain ownership information to the Department of the Treasury.  On December 3, 2024, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a preliminary injunction blocking the CTA nationwide. The CTA was enacted in an attempt for Congress to make it easier for the federal government to crack down on shell companies used for money laundering, trafficking, terrorism or other illegal activity. Although optometry practices are not involved in such activities, many would have been required to report information about their ownership to the U.S. Department of the Treasury by January 1, 2025, or face substantial penalties of up to $500/day. The injunction is preliminary, not permanent, for the federal law but does not affect state laws. The AOA will continue to provide updates on the CTA, including further legal or legislative developments.

Businesses created before 2024 were expected to file ownership reports by Jan. 1, 2025. Businesses formed in 2024 were expected to file ownership reports within 90 days of formation. Businesses formed after 2024 would have had 30 days to file. The federal government previously provided reporting relief to businesses affected by the hurricanes in 2024. Such businesses were granted a 6-month extension to reporting deadlines.

Should optometry practices be required to report, CIP created compliance materials below.  Through EyeLearn, CIP created a presentation to walk through the steps to file ownership reports.

Course Link

Coding & Billing

Federal law requires doctors of optometry and other physicians to use standardized codes in health care transactions. The AOA has important resources and guidance for practicing doctors, especially as state licenses expand to include more services and procedures.

• Ask the AOA Coding Experts
• AOA coding updates
• Fighting clawbacks
• AOA Coding Today

Legal Tips

When starting, joining or expanding an optometry practice, doctors often need legal counsel to best protect their rights and interests. AOA can help doctors find legal assistance, and also provides information on hot topics.

• Federal compliance
• Is your website ADA compliant Q&A
• Antitrust compliance Q&A
• Communication with patients
• Practice cybersecurity
• HIPAA and public emergencies
• Sales incentives

Practice Success

The AOA Board of Trustees has prioritized practice success tools and resources.

• Owning a Practice
• More Practice Success resources
• No Surprises Act

AOAExcel ^®

AOA member doctors, students and staff have access to tools and other benefits to thrive in independent practice through AOA Excel®. For example, with AOAExcel’s partners provide information and discounts for several types of insurance every doctor of optometry should have. AOAExcel also offers financial planning tips and resources.

CIP Steering Committee

AOA Past President Robert C. Layman, O.D., chair
AOA President-elect Jacquie M. Bowen, O.D., vice chair
Southern College of Optometry President Lewis Reich, O.D., Ph.D.
Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry Dean Nathan Lighthizer, O.D.
The Ohio State University College of Optometry Associate Dean for Research Jeffrey Walline, O.D., Ph.D.
University of Pikeville Kentucky College of Optometry Dean Renee Reeder, O.D.
Western University College of Optometry Founding Dean Elizabeth Hoppe, O.D., M.P.H., Dr.PH.
Tara DeRose, O.D.
Aaron McNulty, O.D.
Erick Henderson, O.D.
AOA CIP Executive Director Rodney Peele, J.D.