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FLORENCE MAXWELL LOW VISION CLINIC

How do you know if you need a low vision evaluation?

Do you have difficulty…

  • Seeing faces?

  • Reading newspapers and magazines?

  • Reading bills, mail and medication bottles?

  • Managing your finances?

  • Signing your name?

  • Using your computer?

  • Watching TV?

If you respond yes to any of these, then you are a good candidate for low vision services. The Florence Maxwell Low Vision Clinic can help:

  • A specially trained optometrist will evaluate your usable sight and make recommendations for enhancing your quality of life and independence. Low vision evaluations are provided by Dr. Jon Forché, Dr. Jamie Gallagher, Dr. Sarah Dille Lee, Dr. Kim Vuong, and Dr. Esther Yang. Meet our optometrists below.

Dr. Jon Forché graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.A. in Biological Sciences from Miami University. He received his Doctorate in Optometry from The Ohio State University College of Optometry and completed his residency in Low Vision Rehabilitation/Ocular Disease at the Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

In 2012, Dr. Forché was given the Beacon of Hope Award by the Georgia Lions Lighthouse for his work with visually impaired and uninsured patients, and in 2013, he became a Diplomate of the American Board of Optometry. In addition to working with the Center for the Visually Impaired, Dr. Forché is a vision rehabilitation consultant with the following organizations: Vision Rehabilitation Services of Northeast Georgia; VISTAS in Athens, Georgia and The Vocational Rehabilitation section of the Georgia Department of Labor.

Dr. Jon Forché is a member of the American Optometric Association and the Georgia Optometric Association and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, an organization dedicated to excellence in eye care. His hobbies include running, skiing, hiking and camping and he spends much of his free time with his young children, Hayden and Adelyn.

Dr. Jamie Gallagher, OD has been with CVI since 2014. She enjoys working with the visually impaired and helping school aged children with vision impairments improve their education through assistive devices and therapy. A 1994 graduate of Southern College of Optometry, Dr. Gallagher also completed residency training through the UAB optometry school and the Tuscaloosa and Birmingham VA Health Centers in low vision and hospital-based optometry. She also worked with the state of Delaware providing low vision services to Delaware residents before moving to Georgia. In 2004, Dr. Gallagher moved to Georgia and became a provider in the Low Vision Department at the Emory Eye Center.

Dr. Gallagher also works with Vision to Learn, a nonprofit organization that provides eye exams and glasses free of charge to children in underserved communities.  She is a mother of four who enjoys spending time with her family, taking walks with her two Weimaraners and traveling.

Dr. Sarah Lee, a pediatric optometrist, specializes in providing eye care services to children. Dr. Lee has been working with children and their visual needs for over a decade. She graduated with Honors from the University of Georgia (UGA) and went on to get her Doctorate of Optometry at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Optometry. She completed a residency in pediatrics at SUNY College of Optometry in New York where she worked with a diverse patient population, both at the school and in the Woodhull Medical Center in Brooklyn. She has worked on faculty at both the UAB School of Optometry and the UAB School of Medicine Ophthalmology in the pediatrics department where she has examined a wide range of patients between ages 6 months and 18 years old. While on faculty, she completed a Master of Science in Public Health in Health Behavior. She was involved with teaching both optometry and ophthalmology residents in pediatrics and binocular vision, conducting pediatric eye research, and running pediatric and vision therapy clinics. She moved back to Atlanta to be closer to family and worked at Emory University in the Pediatric Ophthalmology Department. Now she is practicing pediatric eye care throughout Georgia. She has a family with three young children.

Dr. Kim Vuong graduated from the University of California Berkeley School of Optometry in 2011. She completed her residency in low vision and primary care at the Tucson VA Medical Center and went on to complete a fellowship in low vision and optometric research at the Boston VA Medical Center.

In addition to seeing patients at the Center for the Visually Impaired, Dr. Vuong also works at Smyrna Eye Group. She serves on the board of directors for the Valley Center for the Blind in Central California and is a member of the American Optometric Association. Dr. Vuong enjoys spending her free time exploring national parks and going on road trips with her husband, young son and German Shepherd.

Dr. Esther Yang graduated from Emory University with a B.S. in Biology. She received her Doctorate of Optometry from the New England College of Optometry in Boston, Massachusetts. Prior to relocating to Georgia, she worked at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a Harvard teaching Hospital in Boston, where she worked with a diverse patient demographic providing care to a wide range of ocular and visual pathology. Additionally, she has experience working with low vision patients from the Boston University Eye Associates and Jamaica Plain Veterans Affairs Hospital, where she tailored management for the visually impaired with the use of low vision assistive devices.

While in Boston, Dr. Yang was awarded the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship where she designed a service project to provide vision screenings for the elderly population in the Southwest Boston area. She was also awarded the Hyman Kamens Award and the Robert Soltes Scholarship.

Dr. Yang is excited to return to the Atlanta area where she calls home. She enjoys running and spending time wither her sons. Pre COVID-19, you could find her jetting off to explore other parts of the world.

  • An occupational therapist (OT) with a specialty in low vision will introduce you to lighting and magnification options for reading, writing, and performing daily activities that best fit your goals and needs.

  • We will help you learn to use devices and techniques for everyday activities such as meal preparation, financial management and medication organization.

  • We will recommend other CVI services that can help you maintain your independence and continue activities you enjoy.

Our client services team is ready to speak with you – call 404-875-9011 to make an appointment.

CVI is now offering appointments at our NEW Satellite Clinic locations!

CVI is growing to meet the needs of people impacted by vision loss. To increase access to care for people further from Midtown, we now offer satellite clinics at seven locations. CVI’s Client Services Team is ready to help you learn more and book your clinic appointment. Our current satellite locations include:

  • Georgia Retina, Gainesville

  • North Georgia Eye, Gainesville

  • Eye Physicians and Surgeons, Decatur

  • Eye Consultants of Atlanta, Cumberland

  • New Rock Day Treatment, Covington

  • ViewPoint Health (Crews Center), Lawrenceville

  • Southwest Christian Care, Union City

  • Hope Haven of Northeast GA, Athens

We welcome referrals from doctors or other community service providers. You can refer your patient or client to CVI via this online referral form, or if you prefer, download, print, and complete the referral form and fax it to 404-875-4568.

We also provide low vision evaluations for school age children in our Midtown clinic or we can organize a clinic at local area schools. To schedule an onsite school clinic, contact the Outreach Relationship Manager at 404-875-9011.

CVI accepts Medicare, Medicaid, and most Medicare Advantage and private insurance plans in Georgia. We also offer private pay options for services not covered by your insurance.

Financial assistance is available based on income and household size. Please see below for more information.

  • Low Vision Exams
  • Certain items in the VisAbility Store (check with store for details on qualifying items)
  • Orientation and Mobility, Independent Living Skills, Braille, Assistive Technology, and other Vision Rehabilitation Services
  • Functional Vision Assessments for preschoolers, and school age children
  • Educational, social and enrichment programs for school age children

Your insurance policy may cover all or part of the cost of a low vision exam for individuals ages five and up. Your insurance may NOT cover rehabilitation services or training related to blindness or low vision. You may fund the cost of these services yourself or apply for financial assistance.

Fee reductions are based on a sliding scale. To be eligible, you must first supply documentation showing your individual and/or household gross income for the most recent tax year. For consideration, you must provide the following documentation to CVI:

  • The first page of your federal tax return showing all gross income and household dependents for the most recent tax year if before April 15 or the current tax year if after April 15.
  • For clients 17 and younger whose family does not file taxes, the parent/guardian must submit a letter from the IRS confirming a status of non-filing along with documentation of income (such as a Social Security benefit letter) in order for the family to be considered for financial assistance.
  • For adult clients who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and who do not file income taxes, you must submit a benefit verification letter from the Social Security Administration for the year in which the fee reduction is being requested. If you have active Medicaid coverage, this will also serve as proof of income and will be approved for financial assistance (please provide CVI with your Medicaid member ID during the intake process so your policy can be verified).

Applicants can obtain required income verification documents from the IRS or Social Security Administration at the following websites or by calling the numbers below:

Internal Revenue Service (IRS):

Online:  https://www.irs.gov/individuals/transcript-types-and-ways-to-order-them

By Phone: 1-844-545-5640 or for automated ordering of tax documents 1-800-908-9946. If you are unable to complete the IRS transcript request form, you can make an appointment to visit a local IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center to obtain any required tax document(s) (such as a Proof of Non-Filing Status letter).

Social Security Administration (SSA):

Online: www.ssa.gov/myaccount/proof-of-benefits.html

By Phone: 1-800-772-1213.

Income documentation must be presented to CVI and verified before any fee discounts will be approved. CVI will accept all documents via email or they may be dropped off at the CVI building located at 739 West Peachtree Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30308 (if dropping off documents, please write the applicant’s name on the envelope). Also, please mark out all Social Security number(s) on tax or Social Security documentation. These numbers are not required for proof of income, only the applicant’s full name is needed to be listed on documents.

The documentation from clients to CVI for consideration for a fee reduction must accurately reflect the client and/or their family’s current financial situation at the time of the fee reduction request. Any attempt to mislead or conceal your true financial situation may result in the inability to apply for such discounts in the future. These requirements are intended to ensure that precious financial assistance funds go to as many clients as possible who qualify for fee reductions.

Once income verification is complete, your approved discount will be applied, and you will be contacted to schedule the initial evaluation and any subsequent training.

Payment for services must be made before an evaluation and/or training can begin. Clients may pay with cash, credit card or debit card. Clients may pay prior to their service in the VisAbility Store or inside the Florence Maxwell Low Vision Clinic at the check-in window.

If you are interested in financial assistance, please contact Client Services at 404-875-9011 or email Barbara Williams at bwilliams@cviga.org.

Our Client Services team can now arrange for translation services. This service is available in multiple languages and eliminates a meaningful barrier to receiving low vision care. Clients may request translation services by calling 404-875-9011.

CVI is grateful to Georgia’s Drive For Sight program which supports clinic services in Georgia communities. Georgia drivers may choose to donate one dollar for this program at the time of their initial or renewal application for motor vehicle drivers’ licenses.