For New graduates (optometrists)

[iloveoptometry]

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I am just wondering if anyone minds sharing how much they make each month or each year and in which state? I would really appreciate it.
Thanks

 

[reconsider]

I am just wondering if anyone minds sharing how much they make each month or each year and in which state? I would really appreciate it.
Thanks

The going rate is between $35 and $40 an hour Maybe $50 an hour in hard to fill weekend slots. Thats it.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

I am just wondering if anyone minds sharing how much they make each month or each year and in which state? I would really appreciate it.
Thanks

A new OD fresh out of NECO just took over my father's practice. I won't share the exact figures, but, even if he loses 25% of the patients (which he won't, as Dad was the only Davis guy and one of the few VSP providers), he can expect a good deal more than $50 an hour.

Obviously, not everyone can just pick up an established practice, but you'll not hurt for money as long as you don't go to a heavily saturated area.

 

[cpw]

it totally depends on what mode of practice you're in.. and what the demand is in your area.

 

[Ben Chudner]

The going rate is between $35 and $40 an hour Maybe $50 an hour in hard to fill weekend slots. Thats it.

The going rate for my practice and for most of my friends that have recently hired doctors is $250-$350 per day. This is in private practice, not coporate where you could make a great deal more, or a great deal less depending on your location. The more saturated an area is, for example, So. Cal where there is a school and it is a desirable area, the less you can expect to make. It's all supply and demand. Remember, this does not include bonuses based on production goals which a lot of practices offer. Also, this is an entry level position within the practice. If you can grow the practice, the money should increase. Regardless of what reconsider believes there is good money to be made in optometry. It takes time to grow a practice. The fast money is in corporate, but in the long run, private OD's make more plus there are a lot more benefits.

 

[ucbsowarrior]

Optometry is not like working at Mc. Donald's or a factory (no disrespect intended)...it's not a hourly job....and wages / salary should not be considered in this manner.

Optometry is a job where you foster long term relationships with the hopes of improving goodwill. If you can grow (a skill not taught at schools) goodwill or atleast sustain it, your income should increase if all other variables are in your favour. Goodwill is directly proportional to what you will make.

Corporate optometry or commercial:??? Well that all depends. There are different people that preach different things and there's no right or wrong. It all depends on you, your environment and your long term goals. I wouldn't say one is wrong and the other is right....what I would say is that you need to be aware of what you are getting yourself involved with prior to entering into any formal or informal type of business relationship. You are paid, because you can provided a service.....period. Your great personality and awesome looks are good too, but you're not becoming an entertainer....so just remember why you are being paid.

There are many facades / faces to the field of optometry and you want to find the situation that suits you best...just like any long term relationship. Unfortunately....most new od's don't have the logical or business background to become very realistic and logical thinkers when it comes to developing their own career. Most fall into traps that are set for them or are set by themselves - unknowingly. The first 5-7 years usually will determine the next 20....so make all your decisions carefully.

Money? How much per hour???#$# you won't need to worry about that. They'll be plenty of ca$h to go around if you know what you are doing - but most ods don't.

Final thought - There are some od's that make $300k and are miserable and then change their work enviroment and make $150k ...and are a lot happier???

Q. Why are they happier???

A. For you to figure out -

 

[Tasteestuff]

New grads. Please try to be doctors (good or bad, that is up to you) but someone who controls their fate.

Don't become a prostitute and puppet of Luxxotica

Read my comments in this discussion

For God's Sake !!

 

[xmattODx]

New grads. Please try to be doctors (good or bad, that is up to you) but someone who controls their fate.

Don't become a prostitute and puppet of Luxxotica

Read my comments in this discussion

For God's Sake !!

Please show me a private practice opportunity that allows:
1) Me to work part-time (with a schedule that changes every 3 or 4 months)
2) Allows me to request lengthy periods of time off
3) Will hire me with the knowledge that I'm going to skip town in a couple of years
4) Pays me enough to pay my tuition, my loans, rent, and have enough left over to actually buy food

If you show me that opportunity in Atlanta, GA I'll jump at it. In the meantime, kindly quit blaming the problems with optometry on me. Thank you.

 

[Tasteestuff]

Please show me a private practice opportunity that allows:
1) Me to work part-time (with a schedule that changes every 3 or 4 months)
2) Allows me to request lengthy periods of time off
3) Will hire me with the knowledge that I'm going to skip town in a couple of years
4) Pays me enough to pay my tuition, my loans, rent, and have enough left over to actually buy food

If you show me that opportunity in Atlanta, GA I'll jump at it. In the meantime, kindly quit blaming the problems with optometry on me. Thank you.

Sure.. so continue to accept EyeMed vision... $25/eye exam. while Medicare states that we should be receiving around $130.

Let's continue to help Luxxotica become bigger and bigger while VSP (at least an insurance that pays a decent amount [not great] ) get weaker and weaker.

At the end, EyeMed will control the eyecare industry and they will force us to charge $9.99 for eye exams.

Ask doctors who work for chains one thing. "Did you notice that Colevision/EyeMed vision is becoming larger vision insurance than before? I am seeing a significant increase of companies moving from VSP to Cole/EyeMed vision to their employees.

If I was John Doe (CEO of certain company).. Why would I choose UHC or VSP to give vision insurance to my employees over EyeMed? I wouldn't... VSP has to pay their doctors higher fees which in turn needs to charge companies higher premium, while EyeMed pays their doctors $25 so they can charge much less premium to companies..

Ahhhh.... WTF is going on with our profession... Once upon a time, I used to be a nerd/excited Optometry student. Now, all I see is ... Dark and Doom....Very depressing
🙁 🙁

 

[ucbsowarrior]

Please show me a private practice opportunity that allows:
1) Me to work part-time (with a schedule that changes every 3 or 4 months)
2) Allows me to request lengthy periods of time off
3) Will hire me with the knowledge that I'm going to skip town in a couple of years
4) Pays me enough to pay my tuition, my loans, rent, and have enough left over to actually buy food

If you show me that opportunity in Atlanta, GA I'll jump at it. In the meantime, kindly quit blaming the problems with optometry on me. Thank you.

You've only mentioned the 'good' things that you preceive. What are the negatives?

 

[xmattODx]

You've only mentioned the 'good' things that you preceive. What are the negatives?

I never said that commercial optometry is "my thing". What I'm tired of hearing is that because my life situation leads me to have to work commerical that I'm to blame for optometry's problems. I can go on and on about the bad things with commercial optometry and I could then turn around and list all of the bad things associated with a lot of "private" practices most of them would be the same. The truth is there is not enough private practice opportunity for all new grads. You cannot work private with my availability. I need to pay my bills. I work commercial. I guess I should start a support group.

 

[rpie]

Ahhhh.... WTF is going on with our profession... Once upon a time, I used to be a nerd/excited Optometry student. Now, all I see is ... Dark and Doom....Very depressing
🙁 🙁[/QUOTE]



Tastee…. Take a deep breath and relax. 😎 I can see your BP about to hit 200/99. 😱 I understand your frustration and also realize why Matt is working corporate Optometry. While both private and corporate has it’s positive and negatives, I doubt one will over take the other. What you may want to be aware of is that companies must give their employees at least 2 different health insurances to choose from because; in most cases the employee pays at least 20% for their health insurance premium. Most patients if they are happy with your services will wish to stay with you and will try to get on insurance you are on. As you also know, many major medical insurances offer vision dental and chiropractic services as a part of their coverage. UHC is interesting because they recently purchased Spectera in order to provide vision insurance. Medical insurances that I’m aware of that also bundle vision in are Pacificare, Secure Horizons, CCN, Cigna, and Aetna, (although Aetna is associate with eyemed). Our practice is mostly a combination of geriatrics and young teens, so we treat and manage medical eye conditions like glaucoma, AMD, diabetics etc., and contact lens related complications. In some cases our patients have dropped their vision insurance and pay out of pocket for materials because we examine them Q6 months for their medical eye condition.

My personal preference is to have every one in his or her own practice but realize that private practice is not for everyone.

Say Matt, ever though of opening a group practice with your wife? (I think you said your wife is an OD) A hubby and wife practice has a lot of potential. 👍 BTW, I’m impressed that you know, and have worked with an MIO. Reichert last made the MIO in the late1980’s, so most people today don’t know what it is. 🙂

 

[Ben Chudner]

BTW, I’m impressed that you know, and have worked with an MIO. Reichert last made the MIO in the late1980’s, so most people today don’t know what it is. 🙂

I've got three of them in my office collecting dust if you are looking for one 😉

 

[rpie]

I've got three of them in my office collecting dust if you are looking for one 😉

LOL… yea I know what you mean. My father got one for me as a graduation gift before I started my residency at the VA. He thought it would come in handy if I had to examine a wheel chair patient. Since it was a gift I probably will not get rid of it but I believe Matt may be looking for one.

regards-

R-

 

[Chr147]

Originally Posted by Tasteestuff
New grads. Please try to be doctors (good or bad, that is up to you) but someone who controls their fate.

Don't become a prostitute and puppet of Luxxotica


For God's Sake !!

Like I said, no matter how much you hate it, commercial optometry will always be there. There's nothing you can do to stop it. There will always be doctors who will work for Walmart. And like I said, if you can use your internet recruiting parade to get every doctor to stop working for the commercial setting (haha), then say hello to refracting opticians. It's a lose-lose situation. Learn to cope with it instead of living in misery.

It's pretty simple. They want money. And you want money. Putting all that "compassion for my job" stuff aside, it's pretty much about money. You can deny it or accept it, it doesn't change the fact. You want to bring more patients into private offices so YOU can charge them three times the price of Costco instead of working for $50.00 an eye exam. Yes I know, "it's not about the money" and "I love what I do", blah blah blah. I'm sure that you do. If you loved it enough though, then you should be content in being able to live off of doing what you love.

The only way that commercial optometry will stop is if companies like Luxxotica stop wanting money. So you might as well figure out a way to make them do that. Ha.

Until then, I guess optometrists will continue "whoring" themselves (like some of you like to put it).

 

[bcas70]

I am currently looking for an OD in Central Canada (Manitoba). It has a guarantee of $125,000 CDN. (Approx $105,000 US)/ year with an unlimited ceiling for potential earning (ie; the more patients you examine the more you earn). There are no contracts to sign or expenses on the OD's behalf. It is a private practice with 2 OD's. Very modern, new, automated etc etc.The guarantee is based on only 10 patients/ day. You can see as many patients as you would like as we have well over a month waiting list. Your salary could (should) very easily be over $200,000 US. Contact me for more info if you are interested.

 

[rpie]

Oh yes Tasteestuff I really like your Hardware! 👍 Water cooled …REALY IMPRESSIVE! Take long to build or was it a custom build for you? Bet you get excellent performance, any gaming? 😉

 

[drmhyde]

Sure.. so continue to accept EyeMed vision... $25/eye exam. while Medicare states that we should be receiving around $130.

Let's continue to help Luxxotica become bigger and bigger while VSP (at least an insurance that pays a decent amount [not great] ) get weaker and weaker.

At the end, EyeMed will control the eyecare industry and they will force us to charge $9.99 for eye exams.

Ask doctors who work for chains one thing. "Did you notice that Colevision/EyeMed vision is becoming larger vision insurance than before? I am seeing a significant increase of companies moving from VSP to Cole/EyeMed vision to their employees.

If I was John Doe (CEO of certain company).. Why would I choose UHC or VSP to give vision insurance to my employees over EyeMed? I wouldn't... VSP has to pay their doctors higher fees which in turn needs to charge companies higher premium, while EyeMed pays their doctors $25 so they can charge much less premium to companies..

Ahhhh.... WTF is going on with our profession... Once upon a time, I used to be a nerd/excited Optometry student. Now, all I see is ... Dark and Doom....Very depressing
🙁 🙁

dude..first of all EyeMed reimburses $50 for an eyeglass exam. Where did you get 25??
Second this is a vision plan...If you treat medical probs or sign up for medical panels than you can bill appropriatly. My 92004 is $129 my 99204 is $185. I have a walmart practice. I sense you don't know what the hell you are talking about. It's not where you practice but how. Learn the codes and use them well my friend.

 

[xmattODx]

Say Matt, ever though of opening a group practice with your wife? (I think you said your wife is an OD) A hubby and wife practice has a lot of potential. 👍 BTW, I’m impressed that you know, and have worked with an MIO. Reichert last made the MIO in the late1980’s, so most people today don’t know what it is. 🙂

My wife is an optometrist. I am currently enrolled in my second (and FINAL!) year of school at the Rollins school of Public Health at Emory. Once I'm done with my MPH we are planning on buying an existing practice back in the Pacific NW or in Western Canada where my wife (a far better OD than I'll ever be 😍 ) will do optometry full time and I'll do part time. We are looking forward to practicing the way we want to and serving under-served populations (hence my love for the MIO - great on kids and on non-verbal patients when unable to dilate!)

We are sooo ready to get out of commercial optometry BUT are grateful that it existed as we were/are(?) not ready to settle down and be forced to stay in one spot for years.

 

[rpie]

My wife is an optometrist. I am currently enrolled in my second (and FINAL!) year of school at the Rollins school of Public Health at Emory. Once I'm done with my MPH we are planning on buying an existing practice back in the Pacific NW or in Western Canada where my wife (a far better OD than I'll ever be 😍 ) will do optometry full time and I'll do part time. We are looking forward to practicing the way we want to and serving under-served populations (hence my love for the MIO - great on kids and on non-verbal patients when unable to dilate!)

We are sooo ready to get out of commercial optometry BUT are grateful that it existed as we were/are(?) not ready to settle down and be forced to stay in one spot for years.

EXCELLET MATT! Best wishes to you and your wife. Make sure you leave some time to have little ones of your own. They make your day! 😉

 

[Tasteestuff]

dude..first of all EyeMed reimburses $50 for an eyeglass exam. Where did you get 25??
Second this is a vision plan...If you treat medical probs or sign up for medical panels than you can bill appropriatly. My 92004 is $129 my 99204 is $185. I have a walmart practice. I sense you don't know what the hell you are talking about. It's not where you practice but how. Learn the codes and use them well my friend.

OK. Mr. Walmart. 🙄

I will tell you few of the Eyemed insurance payments.
1. Aetna Vision. $25 reimbursement and $10 Copay
2. NVA. $25 reimbursement and $5 Copay or for Ford Retired = $0 copay
3. TeamCare (one of the best Eyemed reimbursement) $28 reimbursement and $10 Copay.

So Mr. Walmart, before you accuse someone of not having the knowledge, please do some research....

Now, I understand that if we (ODs) leave the commercial setting, opticians will lobby for refractive rights (such as in Canada) and there will be difficulties along the way

But, all I am saying is "shouldn't we at least attempt to control our own faith?"
I don't see M.D.s or DDS being hired by Walmart (No matter how much you try to deny saying 'I am an independent contractor crap') You are hired by Walmart. --> of all places... Walmart.. WTF.. Are u next to the nail salon?

Too often, I have seen situations where Walmart or other commercial stores offer a guarantee $ for OD's services while this practice is illegal in many states ("Just pay 10% of your fees collected as rent but we will guarantee you $400/day) Crap.

99204.. Whatever.. How many times have you coded 99204 at Walmart ??? For what ?? Background Diab. Retinopathy? Corneal abrasion? Inability of adapt to your PAL?? Yeah Alright..

Stop fooling yourself. I know you accept Spectera and Spectera has special agreement with Walmart. I believe your reimbursement is around $55 for 92004 and $0 Copay. (interestingly, if private doctors accept Spectera, there is ~$10 copay but with Walmart.. $0) Now, is that F^%$# UP or what??

And your WALMART customers (not patients) pay you $129 for your 92004 services.. right? Sure... I believe you.. Average Vision Exam at Walmart (around the country) is $55. Somehow, you can charge 2.5x going rate than anyone else.. Sure.. what is your zipcode? 90210?? Nice try my friend

And congratulations to you [xMattODx]

 

[rpie]

OK. Mr. Walmart. 🙄

Now, I understand that if we (ODs) leave the commercial setting, opticians will lobby for refractive rights (such as in Canada) and there will be difficulties along the way

While having independent refracting opticians is a possibility, I am not convinced that it will happen because the money and effort to make this happen would be enormous. Some people may think that a large a company like LUX would be willing to back such a program, but still have my doubts because they fought against having Opticians licensed. LUX’s argument was that it would increase operating costs since a licensed Optician will command higher wages.

In order for the refracting Optician to become a reality, all states would first need a uniform educational and degree certification and licensing board for opticians. (In some states a person can be an optician with out any training as long as they are at least 18 Y.O.)

 

[rpatel79]

no pun intended but I've seen several private practices next to nail salons, subways, taco bells.....the point is that there's no point in arguing.

I work both at a private practice and at a corporate practice as an independant contractor.....and I agree with Mr. Walmart (sorry--dont mean to tag)........the bottom line is people work to earn a living.....not to give optometry a bad name even though some people may think that and not all of us have the means or opportunity to jump into a private practice with thousands of dollars in loans.

 

[cpw]

Before you start tagging Dr Hyde as Mr Wal-Mart... you should get to know him. he's one of the most vocal AOA-Pac doctors I have EVER met.

He's also suffered serious damage to both his office thanks to Hurricane Rita and is a personal friend. (and a former TA of mine)

Please stop flaming !! Working in a commercial setting does not make you less of a doctor. I work in THREE offices... one commercial, one private, and one predominantly VA. Yes, patients pay me less in the VA setting (since the VA is paying me)... but, my exams in commerical practice AREN'T cheap.