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AOA Leaders Summit 2026: The Battles, Wins, and Priorities Shaping Optometry
00:47:13
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- [00:00]
Eugene Shotsman
Little bit about the whole not a doctor bill and how that's been impacting work you're doing this year.
- [00:05]
Dr. Terry Geist
Yeah, you know, it's a frustrating situation and so much injustice from, for the whole thing. But now there are 12 states that have not a doctor legislation that has been introduced. We do feel that it's kind of a distraction technique from the opposition, that if we were putting all our resources into fighting non adopter bills, then we may not be having enough resources to do so. Scope extension and began changes and things like that. So many optometrists have stepped up and reached out to the governor at that time to, you know, basically give her opposition and he luckily did not sign that bill. So we were happy with that.
- [00:42]
Eugene Shotsman
But I think it makes a really big case for advocacy and in general how the role of an optometrist can potentially be threatened. And you may not even know that.
- [00:52]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
That'S happening if you're in one of.
- [00:53]
Eugene Shotsman
Those 12 states right now.
- [00:54]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Alluded to earlier, that might not be necessarily advancing, but lots of work goes into protecting the privileges that we have. And we have to be vigilant and we have to be aware. We're fortunate to have a really rock star staff that is watching the airwaves and watching media all the time looking at legislation and finding little hidden inserts like she mentioned, so that we can stomp that down.
- [01:24]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
Welcome to the Power Hour, Optometry's biggest and longest running show. I'm your host, Eugene Shotsman. And today's episode is a special one because it's being recorded on site live at the AOA leaders summit in St. Louis. And I've got three AOA leaders with me in this episode. Dr. Jackie Bowen, the president of the AOA, Dr. Terry Geist, president elect, and Dr. Terry Gossard, the Vice President. And what I want to do with this conversation is kind of pull back the curtain on something that most of us don't get a chance to see every single day, which is the work of how the profession actually gets protected, advanced and move forward. And in the words of the AoA leaders, so this is what's happening at the summit. It's hundreds of volunteers, dozens of committees, and a bunch of decisions and a whole lot of work. The kind of work that eventually becomes reality in the exam lane for many ODs, in the reimbursements that people feel and in the scope of practice, which is what our patients think of optometry when they come to the eye doctor. So in this episode, we get into the biggest problem, pressure points and priorities for the AOA right now. So they talk about vision, plan abuses and reimbursement.
- [02:31]
Eugene Shotsman
Of course.
- [02:32]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
They also talk about legislative fights, some with new technology and also some positive technology. That's a wave of stuff that's coming fast, including what the AOA is leaning into and what they're actively pushing back on in the name of patient safety and doctor patient relationships. So we also talk about their wins from 2025 and also what's coming next in 2026. They cover the meetings that are coming up, AOA on Capitol Hill, Optometry's meeting, and also why the AOA is doubling.
- [03:01]
Eugene Shotsman
On innovation and being a resource for.
- [03:04]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
Practices to educate people on emerging technology for doctors. So if you ever wondered what is the AOA doing for me in 2026, or if you felt the industry shifting and you want a clearer view of what's ahead, I think this is a productive conversation. You're going to want to listen to this one. And before we get into it, quick reminder. Make sure that you are subscribed on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. And if you got a question, feedback, or topic that you want us to cover, I do respond, please reach out to me@eugene shotsman.com or through the Power Hour website. I look forward to hearing from you. And right now, let's go into today's episode.
- [03:37]
Eugene Shotsman
Welcome to the Power Hour AOA Live Event Edition. We're here at the Theater summit and in St. Louis. It's beautiful, I swear. Hello. I think we're all laughing because it's kind of cold, but there's a lot of doctors who showed up to the summit. And my guests today are leaders from the aoa. So why don't you go down the line, introduce yourselves, talk a little bit about your position, and then we'll jump into what's actually going on here at the summit.
- [04:04]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Thank you, Eugen. I am Jackie Bowen. I am the president of the aoa and I live and practice in Greeley, Colorado.
- [04:11]
Eugene Shotsman
Nice, Terry.
- [04:12]
Dr. Terry Geist
And I'm Terry Geist. I practice in Omaha, Nebraska, and I am currently the AOA President Elect.
- [04:18]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
Nice.
- [04:18]
Dr. Terry Gossard
And I'm the other Terry. Terry Gossard. I'm from Cincinnati, Ohio, and I'm vice president at the AOA.
- [04:24]
Eugene Shotsman
One of you has two Rs. One of you has one R. I'm.
- [04:26]
Dr. Terry Geist
The two R. I'm the one R. Okay.
- [04:28]
Eugene Shotsman
All right. Two Rs from Ohio. There. That's how we're going to remember this. No? All right, so let's talk I know. I can only imagine what your, what your leadership meanings are like. Yeah, bare octaves. So let's jump into what happens at the theater Summit and what this is all about. Terry, why don't you start us off?
- [04:49]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Yeah. This is actually a very exciting and energizing kickoff to the year that the AoA has held for as long as I can remember. And it's where we get the opportunity to interface with our over 300 volunteers throughout the country. We have 26 or so committees of hardworking individuals from all different types of scopes of practice, different practice modalities, different career paths, but focus on the main pillars of the association. So, you know, the board kind of gives them some directions, some suggestions and this is the work group that really gets things done. And I think it's exciting to share what we've done in years past, but really exciting to build on that and kick them up this year. So wonderful things.
- [05:35]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Yeah.
- [05:35]
Eugene Shotsman
And so Terry, there's a lot of committee meetings here, so maybe highlight a few of the committees that are present and some of the work that they're doing and we'll zoom in on them shortly. But you know, maybe the. Just list them off in your mind as in terms of some of the.
- [05:49]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Ones all 26 now for better.
- [05:52]
Dr. Terry Geist
Gordon. I mean they, they do so much hard work here and, and they're actually doing work work. And so one of the, and you know, is the evidence based optometry group that goes through and they just finished doing a GLP GLP 1 guideline for us as practicing optometrists. And I think Terry had a stat earlier today when we were talking that 1 out of 11 people used to be on one group. 11 of your patients used to be on one of those medications and now it's up to one in eight. So that is affecting all of our practices and we need to know how to take care of those patients. So those evidence based guideline folks are sitting there doing the work and finding all the research and very hard working committee. We also have our federal relations committee, they have our state government relations committee. Those folks are obviously doing advocacy and that's kind of at the heart of what we do. We have a third party committee which again we talked about BVM reform. That's, you know, that's a whole nother story. But they are doing extremely valuable work and like I said, we cannot gate them their march orders. This is one of my favorite meetings because very energetic and they get to, like I said, start the hard work of the year and all this in a positive note, unless it's really freezing stainless, which a lot of times it is, but that's just an example. There are more committees, but I would bore you if I named all of them.
- [07:13]
Eugene Shotsman
And you know, I think there's a lot of people who brave the weather to come here for these committee meetings. And I got a chance to sit in on quite a few of them of them today. One of the interesting ones that I got dissident on was that I think it's the innovation. I'm going to get this wrong. What's the Innovation Committee?
- [07:26]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Yeah.
- [07:27]
Eugene Shotsman
So that innovation committee is trying to figure out how do, what are some ways that we can educate doctors about AI and identify emerging technologies from an AI standpoint and what are some of the emerging technologies from a clinical standpoint and what are some of the emerging technologies from a retail standpoint. And as you look at some of the conversations that they're having and also who is in the room, you kind of realize like, man, there's a lot of smart people talking about a lot of smart things. And I think they're working hard to try to bring this to the larger AOA community.
- [08:01]
Dr. Terry Geist
Absolutely. And that's the thing is I think that especially in that particular group, it's fairly new that we've formed their marching orders basically. And you know, we want to make sure we embrace the good, but then sift through what's challenging and maybe what is threatening to our profession. So that's what's exciting about that committee. They are have their work ahead of them with all the changing moment to moment technology that's coming out.
- [08:25]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. So we're going to come back to some of the committees in a moment. But Jackie, maybe you can summarize because I think last time you and I talked was sometime in the summer and there were a lot of things that the AOA was working on during the year. So if you had to, I don't know, revisit some highlights from 2025, how would you summarize the year?
- [08:44]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We had a lot of wins in the year and I always like to make note that we do a lot of defending, you know, a lot of the day to day advocacy that AOA does is creating information for legislators that about what we do and try to keep that in check. So some of the wins that we had, optometry specific bills, the optometrist in the VA system had till this point not been compensated similar to other positions. And so starting this year, because of advocacy work, the AOA RVA optometrists are recognized through the pay scale at the physician level. Optometry students have parity with medical, dental and dental hygienist. You know, the loan limits are on target with the rest of the healthcare system, which further secures our position as healthcare providers, you know, beyond just eye care and eyewear.
- [09:32]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. So if you think of. Sorry, no, we'll come back to the third one in a second. But the first one, and I'm sure there's some scope expansion stuff too, but if you think about the first one, how does that VA payment really trickle down or impact everybody else who's not a VA doctor?
- [09:51]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Sure, it's about recognizing optometrist dispositions. We've had parity in the Medicare payer system since the mid-80s. They recognized way back then that what we do is the position of a work. But in another federal program, the VA system, that parity has not been recognized in terms of how we're reimbursed and how we're compensated. So when we are at the state level trying to talk about what optometrists and how we contribute to the healthcare of the community, to be able to point to the VA system, which everybody knows and understands that if optometrists are considered positions there, then of course this is the way that should be in our state.
- [10:31]
Dr. Terry Gossard
I think just to expand a little bit on that as well, we do so much training within the va. This is where our palm tree students learn. So it's very, very important that we have people that are recruited and retained to work within the VA to basically educate the next generation. So by allowing for pay equity with other physician pay scales, it's going to encourage doctors to work there.
- [10:55]
Eugene Shotsman
Got it. Makes perfect sense. So then let's go back to some of the advocacy work from 2025. What were some of the big wins and what are some of the things that are kind of on the go as a result?
- [11:04]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
So we secured a 2.5% pay increase which offset some of the Medicare pay cuts that we've had over the course of the years.
- [11:11]
Dr. Terry Gossard
I think we secured that pass through rate for taxes, so we ensure I got 20%. So there were a lot of successes at the federal level that I think that we're going to continue driving success there. We certainly have a lot of work, more close sponsors than ever on some of our DAC access bills. So basically allowing, or rather making sure that the patient and the doctor relationship is centric as far as when labs and materials are chosen. So there's a lot of great work at the federal level that we're still driving towards. And then of course, Jackie, I'm sure you could talk all about the state level stuff as well too, because I think that's very driving.
- [11:47]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Certainly the two bills at federal level, as you mentioned, are important. We're anticipating several states putting forth legislation to curb the vision plan abuses that we're experiencing too at the state level. We are up to 14 states where optometrists are performing lateral procedures and we're looking for that to grow. We have several states that are introducing scope expansion legislation in 2026 and I'm pretty confident about many of. And we're experienced. You know, we've been through this many times. We kind of know the playbook. We understand what we're going to be hit with. And as our state government relations committee, one of the ones that's meeting here, continues to refine and produce better and better preparatory materials, we're going to see a lot more successes.
- [12:34]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. And Terry, talk a little bit about the whole not a doctor bill and how that's been impacting work you're doing this year.
- [12:40]
Dr. Terry Geist
Yeah, you know, it's a frustrating situation. I think the one that most people are going to be familiar with is the one in Florida that got cleared at the governor's desk basically said that, you know, we can't call ourselves doctors and so much injustice from for the whole thing. But now there are 12 states that have not a doctor legislation that has been introduced. We do feel that it's kind of a distraction technique from the opposition that if we were putting all our resources into fighting not a Dr. Phil's, then we may not be having enough resources to do scope extension and began changes and things like that. So that is something that really in one way has unified. I feel like our professional a little bit and if you want to think of positives because it's just so outrageous for us not to be able to call ourselves doctors. So that's something that we're fighting in all states and we really have to be careful. That's one of the information techniques that we need to talk to. Our state government relations folks are giving information to all the affiliates to make sure they watch like little pieces of legislation that can be stuck into a bill at the last minute and so communicating lobbyists in all the states to watch those. And of course we've got fantastic a way staff that keeps an eye on those things too. So that has been unfortunately it's not a one and done. And once Florida was Finished.
- [14:01]
Dr. Terry Gossard
We were done.
- [14:02]
Dr. Terry Geist
It seems to crop up all over the country.
- [14:04]
Eugene Shotsman
And the Florida one, it just kind of. You defeated it, right?
- [14:08]
Dr. Terry Geist
We did defeat it. There were so many optometrists that stepped up and reached out to the governor at that time to, you know, basically give her opposition. And he luckily did not sign that bill. So we were happy with that.
- [14:22]
Eugene Shotsman
But I think it makes a really big case for advocacy and in general, how the position can, or how. How the role of an optometrist can potentially be threatened. And you may not even know that.
- [14:33]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
That'S happening if you're.
- [14:34]
Eugene Shotsman
If you're in one of those 12 states right now and you may need to be playing a key role to make sure that you are not impacted.
- [14:41]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
Right, Exactly.
- [14:43]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
These are some of the bills that I alluded to earlier that might not be necessarily advancing, but lots of work goes into protecting the privileges that we have. And we have to be vigilant and we have to be aware. We're fortunate to have a really rock star staff that is watching the airwaves and watching media all the time, looking at legislation and finding little hidden inserts. I should not. So that we can stomp that down.
- [15:06]
Eugene Shotsman
So that's a pretty obvious threat to optometry. What are some of the other threats to optometry that are cropping up and what are you doing about them, Terry?
- [15:13]
Dr. Terry Gossard
You know, I think as we move around the country, as we liaise with the. With the different states and affiliates, I think the thing that we hear time and time again are, is rather the challenges that we have due to increased cost of goods and decreased reimbursements. So making sure that optometrists can perform the procedures and have access to the technology is important, but it's also important that we have a sustainable system where we can continue to practice. So certainly all of our work around fare reimbursement strategies throughout the country, vision plans specifically, but all third party payers are critical. I have to say, one of the biggest wins, our third party committee, which is again meeting here today, has been really, really effective over the past year and a half. And we thought we seem to be getting a lot of wins. You know, we have doctors calling, there's a problem with a carrier, there's something that's not getting paid. And we were able to get that money correctly refunded to them. And so we said, let's take a moment and just calculate where we are in that. We return to AOA member doctors over $12 million in the past 18 months through direct advocacy work by the third party committee. And you know, we always talk about tangible member benefits. I think that's a pretty good member benefit that you can hang your hat on. We're really proud of that.
- [16:32]
Eugene Shotsman
And I think what you do is you have like an email address that doctors just email if they feel like they being reimbursed unfairly. For my vision plan.
- [16:41]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Absolutely. Well, a lot of us just like to call Kara Webb, who's the staffer for it, but it's stopvisionplanabuses.org so you can send something to that and certainly it'll get to our attention or just pick up the phone and call the AOA. Certainly presidentoa.org will also get information to us. But a really, really dedicated team of volunteers and staff are working on it.
- [17:01]
Eugene Shotsman
Okay, so that's, that's important and it's a pretty clear threat. What about technology? Are you seeing things that are emerging that are really good for the profession? And are you seeing things that are em, that are not so good for the profession?
- [17:12]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Yes, we have always embraced technology.
- [17:18]
Dr. Terry Geist
We really like it.
- [17:20]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
But we always also make sure that it's doing something to augment the patient experience and augment the exam. Not necessarily just bells and whistles and certainly not a distraction or a detraction from the care that we're giving every day. You know, we use the phrase whack a mole all the time to talk about our discovery of detractors or bad actors in the field of technology. There are rules in place to govern, say a, you know, pop up kiosk sort of a setting. But it takes our advocacy sometimes to let, for example, the Federal Trade Commission know that that technology is out there. You know, so part of it is, you know, we need to watch, we need to send letters, we try to have meetings, we try to really keep our government agencies aware of when patient care is at risk or the doctor patient relationship is at risk.
- [18:10]
Eugene Shotsman
Well, and I think I heard some conversations earlier today about there's a particular company that started setting up kiosks, I mean, Walmart and then so what does that do for some of the local optometrists in that particular community? And so I think that that's one example of a technology that it sounds like AOA is at least advocating against for the good of the profession. Right. What, what other examples are there?
- [18:34]
Dr. Terry Geist
And it's not just the good of the profession, it's the patient psyche. You know, we know that that is not the criterion standard as far as having an in person comprehensive eye exam. So we Know, these kiosks are not. They're doing a disservice to every patient that tries to get an exam or quote, unquote exam for less money and walk away with a prescription, it may or may not be accurate. So I think there's a false sense of security of what they receive out of the kiosk. The Pennsylvania was one of the states that issued a safety recall or safety alert. Basically have folks understand what they're getting and why it's dangerous.
- [19:14]
Eugene Shotsman
But are those kiosks still there or they, as a result of that safety alert, are they going to be moved away?
- [19:23]
Dr. Terry Gossard
They're still there.
- [19:25]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We are not interested in restricting trade.
- [19:27]
Dr. Terry Geist
If they're following the guidelines, using the.
- [19:29]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Proper terminology and ideally making sure that the people they're taking care of recognize that this is not a patient setting, this is not something that replaces a comprehensive eye health exam and that they're following the rules. As far as who's overseeing the delivery of the prescriptions, you know, if the doctor is signing the prescriptions, have certain guidelines that they have to abide by.
- [19:50]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Well, I was thinking they're still there, but we're certainly highlighting and drawing attention to them. Right. So you know, obviously talking to the regulatory bodies that would govern this, that's first and foremost and again that's something that the ARA federal offices are front, they're knocking on doors saying, hey, we've had a problem here. We've had history of this in the past. When you have other online retailers or online commercials basically saying, skip the doctor and just renew your contact lenses here. I mean that's definitely something that the ARA is focused on. But with these kiosks that are popping up in Walmart called ibot, we've had top to top meetings with Walmart saying, hey, do you know what you're doing here? Do you know what this is? And I don't think. Well, it was conveyed that they didn't really quite get what they were doing. Well, this is just a position extender. You'll like this. And you know, obviously we were setting this record straight with Walmart that this is not correct. But the other thing that we've done is work with our student affiliates. So the aosa, the American Optometric Student association, we debrief them on what's going on, understanding that, hey, when you're having conversations with companies that are deploying this type of technology, why don't you ask them about it, why don't you think about it? Do you really want them on your campuses speaking to you and maybe you should talk to your school administrators about that as well. So our OA team is amazing. We have young students. I was just trying to pass class. These kids are way ahead than where we were. But all that to say. So they're very, they understand the breadth that this is to patient care and are really taking action and mobilizing against it.
- [21:25]
Eugene Shotsman
Interesting.
- [21:25]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We really want to differentiate. You know, the doctors who take our patients in Walmart locations are excellent doctors. And so we are also talking with them saying, you have a loudest voice with this corporation. And this is, you know, this is not a substitute freely. So help us in sending that message.
- [21:43]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. All right, great. So when we come back from the break, I want to talk a little bit more about looking ahead for 2026. So what are the meetings that are important? What work are the committees doing that we'll see come to light in 2026? And what technology do you think that your members should be looking at over the course of the next year? So we'll be right back on the Power Hour after the break. Okay, we're back on the Power Hour with Terry, Terry with two Rs and Jackie from the AoA. And I think at this point we're going to turn the conversation to look ahead for 2026. So when you think about meetings, first of all, what's the next one that's coming up?
- [22:24]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
The next one coming up is another AOA on Capitol Hill event. We used to do that annually, but we restructured the cadence of that meeting so that we can do more of a one, two punch with legislators. So last fall we had almost 600 doctors and students on Capitol Hill. And we're going to build on that momentum in a couple about six weeks from the time of this recording, March 14th, 15th and 16th, we are going to be on Capitol Hill again, featuring many more key people. We believe strongly in our grassroots effort and we, we throw that name around a lot. But just to, you know, just to clarify, our effort is to have at least one optometrist in a close relationship with every legislator. So we do a lot of education at that point and, you know, briefings so everybody understands our message is clear and unified. And then we send out, send out this massive group of people to talk about optometry and what's important. This year we're doing something extra as well. Right before we convene for the AOA on Capitol Hill event, we are having an aesthetics course. So it's a day long course looking at some of the very innovative Aspects of aesthetics in optometry. This is a space where we really think optometry should own stemming from dry eye treatments, which involve things as red light therapy, radio frequency, intermittent pulsed light therapy. Those dry eye treatments also have a little bit of an aesthetics effect. And a lot of our patients definitely feel more confident in having their doctor of optometry talking to them about facial aesthetics and treatments. And it's exciting and innovative, and we have a lot of doctors who are really getting on board with that.
- [24:03]
Eugene Shotsman
Do you think regulation is going to catch up to a point where, I mean, I've explored this before in. And I know that we have several clients who are really successful in the aesthetic space, but they've had to get medical directors and other things that they wanted to expand their aesthetics offering. So are you looking to possibly evaluate whether regulation should be potentially expanded to allow optometry interest to expand scope from an aesthetic standpoint too?
- [24:32]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Yeah, absolutely. And we already have. So I'm in Colorado and we have laser privileges and we have made sure that the regulations in our state allow for us to do those things and not be doing something outside of our lane. So it's very important for any optometrist that is looking into doing aesthetics to make sure you understand what may or may not be directly stated or implied in the statute. So, yeah, you gotta know what the rules are before you play the game. And then as we are expanding scope, there are about 17 states that have scope expansion bills coming up in 2026. You know, that's something that our committees are recommending is make sure that you leave room and you make sure that even if you're not performing a static procedure so far, we want to make sure that that's an opportunity for your doctors in the future.
- [25:22]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, interesting. And I mean, it is pretty obvious that you have a patient base that trusts you, and that patient base could potentially benefit from a service that they're probably already getting somewhere else. And often times an injector is got a really minimum level of weekend certification. And the consumer oftentimes has no idea that that's the case when they're purchasing a static services from that. From that provider. So I think dealing with a trusted doctor who they already trust makes perfect sense. So interesting to see you double down. I look to hear more about that event or the feedback you get from that event.
- [25:57]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Some of the regulatory changes involved just bringing common sense to the table. So if you're getting a permanent eyeliner, for example, that means an esthetician or someone with, you know, A very short course in cosmetology related fields can stick a needle right into the tissue next to the eye, but an optometrist can't in that state. So sometimes it requires painting a picture for lawmakers and they're like, oh, okay, well, that makes a lot of sense. And so we have, we build on that knowledge and on that experience and then it helps me things along because, yeah, we're their trusted eye doctors. We should be doing eye things.
- [26:32]
Eugene Shotsman
So during that AOA on Capitol Hill event, Jackie, when you are, when you're saying you're deploying essentially hundreds of optometrists to go talk to all of the different lawmakers, what are those conversations like, what are they trying to accomplish?
- [26:47]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We go in very focused. We're talking points. We know we have a limited amount of time and attention from these lawmakers. So we always, in addition to talking them, we have leave behinds.
- [26:56]
Dr. Terry Geist
You know, we want to leave paper.
- [26:58]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
That we can hand to the staffer or we're talking to a lawmaker so that they can reflect back on the conversation. But our primary focuses are the vision care bills, the doc access, and we have a bill that we're talking about with regard to robocalls as it pertains to online sellers verifying prescriptions. It's called the contact lens Prescription Modernization verification Bill. So we have our primary areas and given enough time, we want to touch on, you know, VA reform issues, we want to touch on Medicare. So we have a very targeted approach. And like I said, the message has to be consistent and concise.
- [27:35]
Eugene Shotsman
So if I'm a doctor who shows up to that event, I'm going to get the talking points and I'm going to get at the politician that I'm supposed to go talk to.
- [27:42]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
And then I, yes, we have briefings. So we should all know going in what we want to talk about. And there's really, you know, we have to, it's a comfort level thing too. Most optometrists are not politicians. And so we shy away and we say, oh, I'm not into politics, but it's really just about relationships.
- [28:00]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, very cool.
- [28:01]
Dr. Terry Gossard
And it's not the, the thing that's so special about this. We have key people assigned to these legislators. This is not a, hi, it's nice to meet you. This is as a follow up from the previous visits that we've had both back in the district and here at the Capitol. I want to touch base on these things again. So it's not going in blind. It's actually, you there's so much work that's been done prior to that visit that it's actually easier than a lot of people think.
- [28:25]
Eugene Shotsman
How do the politicians react usually when, when you talk to them?
- [28:28]
Dr. Terry Geist
Well, politicians are just people like we are. And the thing is it's the relationships. And so not just, you know, we don't just show up when we need something. It's relationship building all through that that's grassroots and so many, many of our legislators have already got great relationships with their key people. And so like you know, I'm in a small state and we know most of our legislators personally and so Hill days sometimes we talk about family and you know, how's this going and you know, those kinds of things and then you know, we get to our points but a lot of times it's just, it's just conversation because we know them personally.
- [29:06]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, that makes perfect sense. That's great. Okay, so that's the AOA on Capitol Hill. And then I think the next one that comes up after that is what optometry is made om will be the.
- [29:15]
Dr. Terry Geist
Next one and that'll be in Phoenix. And it's going to be unseasonably cool that week. It is June 17th couple did that went off. I don't know if it will.
- [29:23]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
Well, it's unseasonably cool for this meeting so clearly you already got it.
- [29:28]
Eugene Shotsman
It's already.
- [29:29]
Dr. Terry Geist
No, it's going to be fantastic. It's actually an AoA plus year and what that means is every three years we have an AoA event and that is we're focusing on bringing as many students as we to the adempt and usually around at least 2,000 students will be there along with new graduates and faculty. And so we want to have programming that is exciting and that they understand the value of membership not just right then as a student, but the long term effects and member benefits for the whole length of while you're practicing. So we want, want that the community that we all feel because we've been part of this more years than we want to talk about but the community that is optometry to family, that is optometry. We want the students to really understand that camaraderie and the resources that we have available. Again not just as a student, but as a new graduate, maybe as a practice owner, as an associate, all the different things. And so we're excited about bringing all those, those younger folks to Phoenix.
- [30:34]
Eugene Shotsman
So for people who haven't been what is the meeting like and what are the kinds of things that it features.
- [30:39]
Dr. Terry Geist
Well, there's fantastic CE we end up having and I'm going to get the numbers wrong. I don't know how many CEE credit hours, but a lot of it is hands on workshops. And that's the exciting part. People really love to get in. And aesthetic courses and small surgical procedures courses, those kinds of things. And practice management courses, you know, so we have a wide variety. And again, I'm not going to give the exact number because I don't can't remember, but there is a lot of CE courses available. We also have a fantastic exhibit hall that brings industry together. And you know, that is something that we're very proud of. There is a lot of different groups that, that have had a hard time bringing industry together and we seem to be growing our exhibit hall every year. So we're very, very excited about that. The big work as far as the aoa, we have our House of Delegates and that's where all of our real work gets done as far as the formal agendas and bylaw changes and governance that we do. So that is something that, like I said, that's the bulk of the governance.
- [31:45]
Eugene Shotsman
Work that we do is as a nonprofit. You have to be able to do.
- [31:49]
Narrator/Host Intro (Eugene Shotsman)
That on a regular basis.
- [31:50]
Dr. Terry Geist
Yes. And what's great is we have representatives again from all the affiliates and we come together and make some important decisions.
- [31:57]
Eugene Shotsman
Got it. Great. And then I hear there's an innovation hub at this year's Outtown Trees meeting.
- [32:02]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Yes, you mentioned it earlier. Our Innovations in Care committee, it's newly minted. We kind of refocused and reshaped a couple of committees and put them together with one of the main work products. We focus on expanding the innovation hub. We piloted it last year with a little to no preparation. We found out that it was an opportunity with about three months to go. And so we capitalized on bringing in newer companies, smaller companies. Maybe they didn't have the portfolio to rent booth space in the exhibit hall or weren't quite ready for market, but we wanted them to come forward and talk to us, talk about what they're developing, how they think it's going to be impactful for the care that we're delivering, both from a clinical point of view as well as an administrative point of view. And it really was fascinating what we were able to do with such a short amount of time. So this year we've had a lot of really smart individuals that are scraping through and combing through all the new technology that's out there that Jackie said it earlier. We'd Never been afraid of technology. But if you think about how our profession, what our exam leans look like today versus when we got out of school 30 odd years ago, they're entirely different. Right. So what are the next 30 years going to look like? So we think it's important that the doctors know. Come to AUA's meeting. We're going to be highlighting the new, the best and really you'll have an opportunity to have a conversation with the people that are really in the primordial soup right now making this stuff and bringing it to market. So we're really excited about it. It'll be the Wednesday of Optometre's meeting, so certainly come make sure you're part of it. I imagine Eugene, you're going to be there and in the front row taking notes.
- [33:38]
Eugene Shotsman
I hope so.
- [33:39]
Dr. Terry Geist
Yeah.
- [33:39]
Eugene Shotsman
And I think one of the cool things that I've heard in some of the conversations is that not just HUD discussions with some of the innovators, but also it seems like there's some panels that are being designed specifically to give people perspective that you know from all different angles of where innovation is headed this year with the entire profession. Really?
- [34:03]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Absolutely. I think it's really easy to be afraid of technology if you don't know what it is. But just in the microcosm that is chatgpt, I mean, I think I look at it at least three or four times a day now for information. So understanding and harnessing the power of AI as well as other technology is really important, but then also understanding its limitations as well. So I think it's going to be a really impactful meeting.
- [34:28]
Eugene Shotsman
I am curious, I'm going to go slightly off target for just a second is we're early in 2026. How are you in each of your individual roles or practices using AI right now? And how would you like to in the near future? Jackie, you go first.
- [34:44]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We'll call it using AI whether we realize it or not. But I'm going to kind of jump to the part of your question, how do we wish it would be? Last year at the Innovation Hub, we were all listening to a group that came in and was talking about how we can take an oct, you know, the scan of the retina and we can get a lot of information from that that has revolutionized retina care and it has absolutely revolutionized optometric care, that we can see that detail. But over and above that, that image can be augmented to identify markers and risks and proteins that may indicate the risk for dementia and Alzheimer's. All Those neurodegenerative diseases up to 20, 25 years before onset of symptoms, that's huge. Optometrists are probably not going to be someday telling people you have Alzheimer's disease, but we are going to be evolving more into that space where we're saying, you know what, Based on what we've got here today, let's make an appointment with a neurologist for some baseline information for you. You know, so for us to be able to, to tackle that kind of care, that's huge.
- [35:47]
Eugene Shotsman
Enhances the value of the eye exam tremendously. And it also is interesting. And I think that's the, that that's the field of oculomics. Right. That we hear about that's constantly emerging. But it is one of those things that it's exciting to hear you talk about it because I think that some people have embraced it. Some people have said, eh, you know, this is, this is not, that's never gonna happen. Yeah, it's not, that's not really gonna affect me at all. What do you think, Terry?
- [36:11]
Dr. Terry Geist
It's fascinating how much it's going to change and how much again, day to day that we use AI without really paying, realizing we are, I think, you know, the chatgpt situation. It's nice to be able to versus again, in simpler times, like my kids say, where we had just books to look things up, you know, we're able to, to have that information at the fingertips. But just like a consumer or patient, we always have to sift through what is good, good information and what's not. But I think it's extremely helpful for us to be able to identify things. I think about how I diagnose patients now versus again, 25 years ago when I started practicing. 25, she said 30 longer. Between 25 to 30 years. Anywho. No, it, it is, it's the, the technology that we have now to help us detect diseases earlier to have more efficient treatment. All of that is just fantastic.
- [37:05]
Dr. Terry Gossard
And I think the predictive analysis is where it's going to be helpful. So, you know, we're very used to, okay, your glaucoma looks stable. We'll see you back in three to six months, depending on the course. But can we utilize technology to look at this eye and say, based on whatever AI is detecting, we have a little concern that you might progress sooner versus later. Long story short, we've got a lot of eye care to deliver. So ways that AI and other technology and help us triage the patients I think is a big win for all of healthcare, including eye care.
- [37:37]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. And I think that if you think about the access to good eye care, especially in rural communities, one of the things that I hear all the time is the doctors are booked out for weeks and weeks at a time. One of the things that you could possibly imagine is that if you insert technology into the practice where a doctor and their staff can see three patients versus two patients an hour and still maintain a really high quality patient experience, because technology is taking care of a large part of that experience or is enabling people to take care of that part of experience efficiently, the patient still feels great, the staff feels like they're doing higher value work and the doctor gets to have more high quality interactions. But if you go from two an hour to three an hour, that's 50% more patients that you can now see in one office. Office, which increases revenue for that office and it increases the value that everybody has in that office, including, okay, now we can pay our staff more, now we can afford better technology, now we can do more things for the community that we serve. And I think, you know, that's what my view on technology is, that at this point, if you can get some of the technology to do things that are inefficient, that are not really best suited for humans, and so that you can free up the humans, the doctor and the staff and the practice to do work that ultimately enhances the patient experience, at that point you have an opportunity to really, really drive the profession forward. And, you know, it's exciting to see some of those technologies emerge.
- [39:12]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
We studied the future and we know that the need for eye care is increasing. The rate of optometrist entering the field is not increasing as rapidly, and certainly the rate of increasing, expanding ophthalmology is not increasing. But the sky is not following or falling on us. The, you know, and to have that the sky is falling attitude is going to hold you back. If we're embracing what you just talked about, you know, we can use AI, we can use new technologies to actually see more patients and really funnel the doctor's attention to the communication and recommendations rather than data collection. We got this.
- [39:47]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, I think that's great. So let's talk about the volunteer opportunities that people have have right now and maybe go back to some of these committees. What are some of the committees doing right now that they need help and they want more volunteers from various states.
- [40:06]
Dr. Terry Geist
Strategic communications is one of them. And, you know, communicating with public and legislators and all of those is kind of under that umbrella. And we have a fantastic campaign called I Deserve more that our board decided in back in 2020, 2021 to start a fairly meager dollar amount to, to start this public, public awareness campaign. And we have grown it exponentially. And the way people can help is when you see those social media posts to, to help us spread the word. So for example, we had PK Hernandez as one of our spokespersons this last year. And I don't know if you follow baseball, but he is major league player that kind of ended up winning the World Series and the Dodgers. But he had a simple eye issue that detected he was not doing well in his batting. And so he went to his doctor of optometry, found out he needed some correction in glasses. It changed his batting average again, ended up winning remote World Series. So we've got that, that motivation and the understanding of why it's important to have an in person comprehensive eye exam. And actually it has grown a lot on social media. So if you ever look at his, excuse me, name on with all of his just his own platform, we could not have dreamt of having such a fantastic reach.
- [41:34]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. And he's a great spokesperson for an im.
- [41:37]
Dr. Terry Geist
He's fantastic. And so we have been able to make sure that people understand the importance of an in person comprehensive by exam and not just in sports, but in life.
- [41:47]
Dr. Terry Gossard
I would say as a Cincinnati Reds fan, I kind of wish that he didn't find out he had astigmatism the until after the playoffs. But, but nonetheless. Yeah, certainly getting the word about. Yeah. I think we all yearn for the day where we don't have to explain who an up what an optometrist is and the services that we provide. Right. So that's another ask that we get as we move around the country. Can you please make sure the public and that's a big public with a capital P. That could be a legislator, an educator, a mom making an appointment for her child, a regulatory body, other healthcare professionals. Can we explain who doctors are about optometry and how impactful we are with a patient and the community that we serve? So Kike is a wonderful example but amplifying and spreading that information out via like and share is really, really important. It's such a small thing, but getting that out to the masses is so impactful. I want to circle back there. Eugene, you know you talk about where do we need help? Well, we all we need help just in membership. Right. We would certainly want to instill the fire and light the fire among all doctors of optometry so that they Understand that their membership is really what fuels the profession for the next generation. So certainly understanding that the AOA is here to basically help you practice and help you practice better and help you be successful in practice, I think is really important. So membership in the AOA is the first way, I think, talking about.
- [43:12]
Eugene Shotsman
And then engaged members, right?
- [43:14]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Absolutely. Absolutely engaged members. And then, you know, we're lucky now because I do think we've created some momentum and Shaki talks about this all the time. We actually have more people wanting to volunteer than we have positions right now. However, if we have more membership, then we have more flexibility to what we can and can't do. So I think the simplest thing you can do is start at a local level, get engaged with your community, get engaged with your local society, then understand what it's like to be at the state level. All of us went through our state leadership and we're presidents of our respective states. And then if you still feel the desire, certainly being on the volunteer committee structure and being on the AOA board, I mean, that's how we all just kind of got here.
- [43:59]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
And it's just really, really important.
- [44:00]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah. And just to be clear, all the AOA leadership positions are all just purely volunteer positions. And so you dedicate your time to this because you believe so much in what you're in. You probably spend a ton of time.
- [44:14]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Way too much time for these two.
- [44:17]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Did I find a bit. A little bit more urgent response might be if you decide you want to function as a federal key person, even if you don't have any experience with that or know what to do, reach out to your state affiliate, say, I want to represent on Capitol Hill in March. We're always taking new key with them.
- [44:36]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, that's great. And, you know, so it sounds like there's a variety of things that are going on. Obviously, there's the advocacy work, there's the innovation leadership work, and there's the education across the board of the value of the profession for students and across the 26 committees that are all here, give or tip, that are doing lots of interesting work. How can people keep up and keep track of what the AOA is up to in between these episodes?
- [45:05]
Dr. Terry Geist
Well, one of the things is we send out on every Thursday, the Week in Focus email to every AOA member. And it basically talks about everything that we've been doing, and it's a great summary and you can read the highlights or you can click on it and read further into the stories. So every AOA member receives that and that's in my opinion, one of the best ways to find out social media. I mean they have a very strong social media presence. So certainly that's another way. And like I said, just ask questions and get involved. I think that's the easiest. But just if you're sitting at home, an email once a week on Thursday. Pretty easy way to stay informed.
- [45:45]
Dr. Terry Gossard
And don't forget the quarterly AOA focus that just came out with our three.
- [45:50]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Pictures on the front of it.
- [45:51]
Dr. Terry Gossard
Trying to forgive.
- [45:54]
Dr. Jackie Bowen
Well, and then to top it all off daily, the first look is. Yeah, now. And I know reading another email daily, but here's how I use that. In all honesty, I look at the headlines and then decide, but if there's just four bullets on there, and sometimes it's optometry specific or eye care specific, but sometimes it's just something going on in healthcare. And I cannot tell tell you how many times patients have asked me a question, I'm like, oh, like two days ago I read that thing, you know, so it makes you look and sound smarter if you're on top of what's happening in healthcare everywhere. That's also where the little red button to click if you need help with a vision or medical benefit claim. You have to remember the stop planabusesoa.org website. If you just go to your first look every day and with red button click, it has help.
- [46:41]
Eugene Shotsman
Yeah, this is great. So thank you all. I'm sure we keep talking for hours if we try to summarize the work that all these 26 committees were doing, but I think you gave us a great insight into what this meeting is all about and then also what the AOA is focused on for the next for the next 12 months. Thank you. Terry with two Rs, Terry with one R and Jackie, for all of the work that you do. Thank you for being on the show and appreciate everything that you're contributing as a professional.