By Staff
Wednesday, January 15, 2020 12:18 AM
MASON, Ohio—
Pearle Vision has been ranked as the nation’s top eyecare franchise company on
Entrepreneur magazine’s highly competitive
Franchise 500 list, according to a Pearle Vision announcement.
By Staff
Tuesday, January 14, 2020 12:18 AM
SACRAMENTO, Calif.—The
California Optometric Association(COA) has noted that as part of the state’s “strong commitment to strengthening the Medi-Cal program” eyeglass benefits for Medi-Cal recipients have been restored, and the association also noted that it will continue in 2020 to advocate for a Medi-Cal reimbursement rate increase for optometrists practicing in the state. “California’s rate is among the lowest in the nation,” a COA official told
VMAIL. “We will be advocating for the rate increase again this year.”
By Staff
Friday, January 10, 2020 12:27 AM
CHICAGO and FLINT, Mich.—
Midwest Vision Partners, which is backed by
Alpine Investors, has announced a partnership with
Michigan Eye Institute (MEI), which represents MVP’s first partnership in the state of Michigan. Michigan Eye Institute is led by Dr. Gary Keoleian, Dr. Jeffrey Diskin and Dr. David Diskin and has a network of 12 providers. The practice employs approximately 110 support staff across six clinical locations, according to an announcement earlier this week. The terms of the partnership were not disclosed.
By Staff
Friday, January 10, 2020 12:18 AM
MONTREAL—
New Look Vision Group Inc. (BCI.TO) has appointed Jason Schonfeld, CFA, to the role of senior vice president, business development. Schonfeld joined New Look Vision in November 2015 as director, corporate development, according to an announcement earlier this week. He has held the position of chief financial officer of Iris, The Visual Group (1990) Inc. since October 2017. Iris is New Look Vision’s optometric division. “Jason’s track record and experience, from external growth to integration of acquired business units, most recently at Iris, are instrumental to support New Look Vision’s current strategic and operating priorities,” New Look Vision chief executive officer Antoine Amiel said.
By Staff
Friday, January 3, 2020 12:24 AM
ST. LOUIS—The
American Optometric Association (AOA), in response to “information disseminated by various individuals and organizations regarding upcoming changes to coding and reimbursement” for evaluation and management services (E/M services), has provided an update about this topic for optometrists. Given the importance of E/M services in patient care, it's critical that all optometrists “are aware of these changes,” the association noted in the post on its website. According to the AOA post, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2018 proposed to reduce the payment variation for office/outpatient E/M visit levels by paying a single rate for office/outpatient E/M visit levels 2 through 4 (one rate for established patients and another rate for new patients), while maintaining the payment rate for office/outpatient E/M visit level 5.
By Staff
Friday, January 3, 2020 12:18 AM
DALLAS—
Eyemart Express, an optical retailer founded in 1990 by Dr. Doug H. Barnes and now a group of 218 office locations in 40 states nationwide, will celebrate more than just clear vision in 2020. The optical retailer turns 30, “a milestone in the retail and optical industries,” according to an announcement this week. Eyemart Express, which calls itself “the fastest provider of glasses in the industry” with its onsite labs, will launch a “2020 Glasses Giveaway” as part of its anniversary celebration. Customers who shop at Eyemart Express locations starting Jan. 1 will automatically be entered to win a $2020 gift card.A customer’s winning ticket will be selected each month this year, according to the announcement. (The gift card can be used to purchase any of the more than 2,000 frame options carried in every Eyemart Express, as well as sunglasses, lens treatments or accessories.)
By Staff
Friday, December 27, 2019 12:30 AM
RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif.—
VSP Ventures, a care-focused practice transition partner and a business unit of
VSP Global, announced Thursday the acquisition of
Brookside Optometric Group in Stockton, Calif. Founded in 1998 by the late Craig Hisaka, OD, Brookside Optometric Group was established after the five largest optometric practices in Stockton merged together, according to the announcement. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. VSP Ventures was launched in March 2019 as part of VSP Global’s expanded retail strategy, as
VMAIL reported.
By Staff
Monday, December 23, 2019 12:15 AM
RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif.—The
VSP Global Premier Program has announced a partnership with
Tura, Inc.
By Staff
Wednesday, December 18, 2019 12:21 AM
LONGARONE, Italy—
Marcolin Group and
GCDS, a clothing and accessory brand founded by brothers Giordano and Giuliano Calza, have announced an exclusive global partnership for the design, production and distribution of sunglasses and eyeglasses under the Calza brothers’ GCDS brand. The partnership will last for a five-year period from 2020-2024. Marcolin Group manufactured their first eyewear collection for GCDS in 2019, and the collection was then shown at GCDS’s September 21, 2019 fashion show.
By Staff
Tuesday, December 17, 2019 12:21 AM
KINGWOOD, Texas—
Vision Source, under the auspices of its Vision Source Next program, said a unique series of events for optomerty students this year has resulted in Vision Source practices hosting “approximately 20 percent of the nation’s optometry students” for local field trips to visit member practice locations. One of the objectives of the initiative is “to perpetuate private practice optometry,” Vision Source said in its announcement. Vision Source Next, launched in 2018, is a “professional advancement program shaping the future of independent optometry by providing a path to start, buy or work in private practice,” according to the announcement.
By Staff
Monday, December 16, 2019 12:24 AM
CALGARY, Alberta—
FYidoctors, a leading optometrist-owned eyecare company based here, today announced
Muskoka Vision as the latest clinic to join the company. This addition marks the company’s 40th location in Ontario. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Established in 2010, Muskoka Vision is a full-service vision center led by Dr. Colin Bowser. It offers eye exams, contact lenses and eye surgery co-management, and is known to deliver comprehensive eyecare and high-quality, affordable products, according to the FYidoctors announcement last week.
By Staff
Friday, December 13, 2019 12:30 AM
GREEN BAY, Wis.—With the support of a focused team, an efficient plan and an experienced investment group,
Shopko Optical said this week that it has opened 80 free-standing optical centers in 180 days, and that the company plans to open an additional 35 optical centers in 2020, according to its announcement. Shopko Optical, which is backed by the investment firm Monarch Capital, has been a leading provider of eyecare services to Midwest communities for more than 40 years. The optical company was acquired out of bankruptcy court for $8.5 million in mid-May by
Monarch Alternative Capital LP, a private investment firm with offices in New York and London, as
VMAIL reported.