Which one makes more? Orthodontist or Optometrist?!
Question: And why?
Answers: And why?
I'm a dentist.
I'd venture to say that an orthodontist on average makes three times what an optometrist makes.
In fact, of all the types of doctors (medical or dental), orthodontists probably have the highest income per hour. They typically work four days a week. They don't take call and they virtually never encounter emergencies that require off-hour office visits.
Moreover, the nature of their work is stress-free. They don't have to give injections or do things that cause significant pain (the way other dental professionals do). Also, their treatment progresses very slowly, hence, if they screw-up, there's plenty of opportunity to catch their mistake and fix it. And to top it all off, their work is relatively simple! There are many general dentists out there who have learned to provide orthodontic care, simply by taking continuing education courses.
So, why do orthodontists make so much money? Because they provide a service that is often considered a luxury that MANY people are willing to pay for...especially when it's for their kids. Also, and more importantly, orthodontists hold a virtual monopoly on providing orthodontic care. Hence, they can charge an arm-and-a-leg for braces. As I said above, many general dentists provide orthodontic care, but the vast majority do not. Dental schools teach dental students exceedingly little about orthodontics, specifically to ensure that general dentists are incapable of competing with orthodontists.
When you combine the public demand for braces and the orthodontists' monopoly, that makes for a lot of revenue.
And, to top it all off, because of this public demand, orthodontists less-frequently need to participate with insurance policies. Hence, they never have to deal with insurance capitation of their fees. Basically, what an orthodontist's practice charges for braces, he gets. Your general dentist's practice, on the other hand, may have a fee of $900 for a crown. When a Delta-Dental patient comes in, the dentist is not permitted to charge that patient $900. He is only permitted to charge the patient around $800. Get the idea?
No comparison. Orthodontists make more than optomestrists. And an orthodontist who worked as many hours as a plastic surgeon? He'd make more than the surgeon....and for doing more simple work.
That's why orthodontics is so competitive. It's an unbelievably cush job.
Just a hunch that it's Optometrist, because of the specialization of skills required to work with the human eye.
Well, my daughter's glasses and contacts cost me about 250-300 a year. Her braces cost me 5000 in less than 2 years. You do the math.
i would say orthodontist..
they are always so busy! i actually went to the orthodontist today. and when we scheduled another appointment the next available date was Feb 26!
think about it.. the optometrist basically prescribes glasses and contacts right?
the orthodontist does, braces, retainers, head gear, and so much more.
plus braces alone cost over 3,000 dollars.
yeh i would say orthodontists. they get so much money, my parents paid my orthodontist heaps when i had braces. but im sure optometrists would be getting a large large amount of money too.
It is not even close. Most Orthodontists make a LOT more money than most Optometrists. Superficial 'beauty' versus 'vision'. What a sad commentary on our society's health priorities that we are willing to spend thousands of dollars to look pretty, but only a few hundred dollars to see clearly.