National Association of Vision Care Plans

What National Association of Vision Care Plans does

National Association of Vision Care Plans (NAVCP) is a nonprofit trade association founded in November 2002 and incorporated December 23, 2002, that serves as the unified voice for managed vision care plans in the United States. The organization represents approximately 65 percent of Americans with vision benefits — more than 220 million people — through member companies operating in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. Since 2011, NAVCP has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Association of Specialty Health Organizations (NASHO), preserving its brand identity and board governance while sharing administrative infrastructure.

NAVCP's core offerings center on three functional pillars: federal and state legislative advocacy (including operation of a political action committee established in 2017), administrative simplification (most notably the Universal Credentialing Alliance, a multi-plan credentialing platform built with partner Gemini Diversified Services that has aligned credentialing for more than 57,000 eye care professionals and cut provider credentialing costs roughly in half), and industry education (Benchmark Survey research since 2014, the annual Vision Care Retreat, the Vision Health Summit since 2017, Provider Council program, monthly FOCUS newsletter, and the StateLink legislative portal). The association maintains Primary Membership (voting, board-eligible) for managed vision care plans and Allied Membership (non-voting) for adjacent industry stakeholders such as lens manufacturers, retailers, and providers.

NAVCP generates revenue through membership dues and event-related income; pricing is not publicly disclosed and is quoted upon inquiry. The organization operates with 1-10 employees from a headquarters in Tucker, Georgia, and is governed by a board comprising executives from major vision care members including VSP Vision Care, UnitedHealthcare Vision, EyeMed, Versant Health, Avesis, SKYGEN, Unum, and EssilorLuxottica. The organization has no external investors and is member-funded. Notable recent activity includes successful First Amendment litigation against Texas HB 1696 (preliminary injunction March 2024, Fifth Circuit affirmation May 2025, permanent summary judgment block February 2026).

Name

National Association of Vision Care Plans

Legal name

National Association of Vision Care Plans

Website

https://navcp.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

NAVCP is a nonprofit trade association, founded 2002 and now a subsidiary of NASHO, that represents approximately 65 percent of Americans with vision benefits through member managed vision care plans. It delivers federal and state advocacy, the Universal Credentialing Alliance platform serving 57,000+ providers, and industry education services to vision insurers and allied stakeholders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Care Management & Population Health Program Administration (HLAEALAG)

Keywords

• Managed vision care
• Trade association advocacy
• Vision benefits industry
• Provider credentialing services
• Healthcare policy advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Tucker

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

NAVCP is a nonprofit trade association that provides federal and state legislative advocacy, administrative simplification services (notably the Universal Credentialing Alliance for eye care providers), and industry education for managed vision care plans and related industry stakeholders. Its membership-based offerings include advocacy representation, standardized provider credentialing, policy updates, educational events, and industry research for companies that market, manage, or administer vision care benefits.

Product overview

NAVCP is a trade association representing managed vision care plans, not a product company. It offers membership services including the Universal Credentialing Alliance (a streamlined provider credentialing solution), StateLink (legislative/regulatory portal), Provider Council (industry education program), FOCUS Newsletter (policy updates), annual Vision Care Retreat events, and Benchmark Survey research. These services are bundled under membership tiers (Primary and Allied) rather than sold as discrete commercial products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Universal Credentialing Alliance (UCA) A streamlined credentialing service for eye care professionals that reduces administrative burden by allowing providers to enter information once and aligning credentialing dates across participating vision care plans, using uniform primary source verification. Designed for managed vision care plans and credentialed eye care providers.
• StateLink A legislative and regulatory portal providing NAVCP members with federal and state legislative updates and policy information. Designed for managed vision care plan members seeking timely policy intelligence.
• NAVCP FOCUS Newsletter A monthly newsletter providing federal and state legislative and policy updates to NAVCP members. Designed for managed vision care plan professionals seeking ongoing policy and regulatory intelligence.
• Vision Care Retreat An annual industry summit featuring education, networking, and governance meetings for NAVCP association members and industry stakeholders.
• NAVCP Benchmark Survey An annual research survey established in 2014 to demonstrate industry growth trends and the importance of vision care and vision benefits to employers and employees.
• Provider Council An educational program that expands dialogue and understanding between managed vision care plans and eye care professionals from various practice settings through regular in-person and online interactions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 87% of Americans with a vision benefit intend to get an eye exam within 12 months vs. 67% without a benefit
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Gemini Diversified Services (GDS)coreTechnology or Integration · 2 December 2019NAVCP partnered with Gemini Diversified Services to launch an enhanced version of its Universal Credentialing Alliance (UCA) provider credentialing service. The UCA was launched on December 1, 2015 and helps align credentialing dates of providers participating in multiple managed vision care plan networks, reduce redundant primary source verification costs, and lower administrative workload for eye care professionals. GDS provides the technology infrastructure to support this streamlined credentialing process.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Dental Association (ADA): ADA is the national professional association for dentists, with parallel structure to the AOA on the dental side. It is comparable to NAVCP's relationship with optometric/ophthalmologic associations and serves as a useful structural analog for how a specialty provider body interacts with a managed-plan trade body (NADP) — the dynamic NAVCP navigates with AOA and AAO.
• America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP): AHIP is the national trade association for the health insurance industry, covering medical, dental, and vision carriers. It is comparable to NAVCP as the broader umbrella advocacy body for health plans, of which NAVCP's members are typically also AHIP members; AHIP operates at significantly larger scale.
• Blue Cross Blue Shield Association: BCBSA is a national federation of 33 independent Blue Cross Blue Shield companies, several of which offer managed vision products represented by NAVCP. It is comparable as a member-funded association of health insurers with shared advocacy and administrative services, though it operates at vastly greater scale.

Direct peers

• National Association of Dental Plans (NADP): NADP is the trade association for the dental benefits industry, structurally identical to NAVCP: nonprofit, member-funded, represents managed dental plans, engages in state/federal advocacy, and offers administrative simplification programs. It is the most direct analog in the adjacent specialty health benefits vertical.
• The Vision Council: The Vision Council is a nonprofit trade association representing the optical industry (manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers). It is comparable to NAVCP as a vision-sector trade body, though it represents the supply side rather than the managed-care/plan side — making it a complementary rather than competing trade association.

Others

• American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO): AAO is the largest national membership association of ophthalmologists. It is comparable to NAVCP as a vision-sector association, but represents the physician/provider side rather than the managed-vision-plan side, with overlapping interests in policy and reimbursement.
• National Association of Specialty Health Organizations (NASHO): NASHO is NAVCP's parent organization — a trade association for specialty health organizations that also houses AAPPO. It is directly comparable as a specialty-health trade-association umbrella and the structural parent providing NAVCP's administrative and governance backbone.

Emerging players

• American Optometric Association (AOA): AOA is the professional association for optometrists in the U.S. It is comparable as a vision-sector membership organization, but represents the provider/eye-doctor side rather than the managed-plan side; NAVCP and AOA frequently engage on overlapping policy issues (e.g., scope of practice, telehealth reimbursement).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/navcp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Association of Vision Care Plans