02/28/2025
Hello Uptowne Eyecare Friends and Family,
The Alberta Government announced reductions to Eye Care Coverage January 2025. They have reduced or eliminated funding for many optometric services, effective Feb 1, 2025. Some coverage has been eliminated others reduced by as much as 32% from 2017.
At Uptowne Eyecare we have been proud to offer the highest quality eye care covered by Alberta Health Care. Unfortunately, these cuts affect seniors and children, as well as patients who have macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetes and more. Up to now, with careful budgeting we have been able to cover our costs using Alberta Health Care, without charging a co-pay.
Optometrists have not received any funding increase from the government since 2017, despite inflation of over 21% during this
period.
What does this mean for our wonderful patients?
-Patients age 65+ will have $45 co-pay
-Partial eye exams may have an additional co-pay, as funding was eliminated
-Medically necessary imaging more than once a year has been eliminated. There will be fees ranging from $20-$65 for testing required to monitor glaucoma, diabetes, macular degeneration, dry eye, iritis and more.
Fortunately medical visits for any reason, including sudden vision loss, eye infections, red eyes, dilated fundus examinations, eye injuries, foreign body removal, pre-operative and post-operative care will mostly be covered by Alberta Health Care.
Why are we charging these extra fees?
At Uptowne Eyecare we believe in providing the highest standard of care to our patients. The burden of additional fees across our patient base allows us to keep the costs as low as possible, while continuing to strive for top quality technology and customer service. Our patients deserve nothing less than the best to prevent, monitor and treat many eye conditions.
Thank-you for your continued support as we navigate these changes. We feel equally upset about the lack of support for eye care as our patients. We are deeply concerned about these changes affecting the frequency, and quality of care the citizens of Alberta will receive. We encourage you to contact your MLA to discuss these changes as they are unfortunately beyond our control.
Thank-you for trusting us with your sight,
XO
Uptowne Eyecare
