Photos are such an important part of the exam. there are times that you will be asked to repeat photos of a patient if they did not come out clearly at the beginning of the exam. Some patients are known to consistently not take clear photos until after dilation. the eyewear stylist will be asked to take photos before sitting the patient for their dilation check.
We take photos of the back of the patient’s eye so that we can make sure no diseases are building up and so we can keep track of the patient’s eyes over the years. Typically, the doctor will take photos every year for the patient.
If the photos are marked as fundus photos (on the routing sheet), that means they are medically necessary and we can bill it through medical insurance. Fundus photos retail at $95 and we charge the specialist copay listed on the patient’s medical insurance card.
If they are screening photos, they aren’t medically necessary, but we still want to do the photos to monitor the patient’s eye health over time. These photos are $39 for the patient. This is what our office charges for them. Most vision plans show a $39 copay for retinal imaging, however some do have a lower copay. We only bill screening photos through vision insurance, and we only do so if the plan lists a lower copay than our $39 charge.
The doctor will put a note in the routing sheet if you need to retake photos for the patient. After we have done the whole patient experience we go and get the camera ready for patient. Then call them back and take the photos before seating them in the dilation room with the doctor.
Some locations have different machines to take photos. Make sure to practice how to take photos on all machines. Also, when you have your exam done you will have photostaken of your eyes. Remember from the side of the patient what the machine looks like so you can easily explain it to them when you are taking photos.