Eye and Vision Services Providers / 152W00000X
Individual · classification · Medicare specialty 41
152W00000X Optometrist
152W00000X is the taxonomy code for Optometrist, in the NUCC group “Eye and Vision Services Providers”. It is a code for individual providers — the kind used on a Type 1 NPI. Medicare maps it to specialty 41, Optometry, under which 46,119 practitioners are enrolled.
- 1Taxonomy code 152W00000X
- 2Level Classification
- 3Medicare specialty 41 Optometry
- 4Codes in this group 17
Definition
Doctors of optometry (ODs) are the primary health care professionals for the eye. Optometrists examine, diagnose, treat, and manage diseases, injuries, and disorders of the visual system, the eye, and associated structures as well as identify related systemic conditions affecting the eye. An optometrist has completed pre-professional undergraduate education in a college or university and four years of professional education at a college of optometry, leading to the doctor of optometry (O.D.) degree. Some optometrists complete an optional residency in a specific area of practice. Optometrists are eye health care professionals state-licensed to diagnose and treat diseases and disorders of the eye and visual system.
— NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy, version 26.1
Where 152W00000X sits
- Group: Eye and Vision Services Providers — code 1 of 17 in the group
- Classification: Optometrist 152W00000X
This is the general code for Optometrist. 6 more specific codes sit beneath it; pick one of those when the provider's training or certification matches it, and this one otherwise. A provider may report more than one taxonomy code on an NPI but marks one as primary.
Medicare
CMS's taxonomy crosswalk links 152W00000X to Medicare specialty 41 (Optometry). That specialty — not the taxonomy code itself — is what Medicare enrollment records and uses for payment. 46,119 practitioners are enrolled under it nationally, and 6 other taxonomy codes map to the same specialty.
Other codes under the same Medicare specialty: 152WC0802X Corneal and Contact Management Optometrist; 152WL0500X Low Vision Rehabilitation Optometrist; 152WP0200X Pediatric Optometrist; 152WS0006X Sports Vision Optometrist; 152WV0400X Vision Therapy Optometrist; 152WX0102X Occupational Vision Optometrist.
Related codes
| Code | Optometrist — specializations |
|---|---|
| 152WC0802X | Corneal and Contact Management |
| 152WL0500X | Low Vision Rehabilitation |
| 152WX0102X | Occupational Vision |
| 152WP0200X | Pediatrics |
| 152WS0006X | Sports Vision |
| 152WV0400X | Vision Therapy |
History of 152W00000X
NUCC's earliest recorded change to 152W00000X is from 2006 (definition modified).
- 2006-07-01 — definition modified
Find providers with 152W00000X
Using 152W00000X
The code goes in the taxonomy field of the NPI application in NPPES, and on claims where a payer asks for it — box 24J (shaded) or 33b on the CMS-1500 with the ZZ qualifier, or the PRV segment of an 837 electronic claim. Payers match it against the taxonomy on the NPI record and, for Medicare, against the specialty on the enrollment, so all three should agree. To see which code a provider uses, search their NPI in the lookup.
Sources: NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy code set, version 26.1 (CSV); CMS Medicare Provider and Supplier Taxonomy Crosswalk, August 2026; CMS Medicare Fee-For-Service Public Provider Enrollment, extract of 2026-09-29. Checked 2026-10-24. Methodology.