The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its proposed 2022 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) earlier this summer. The agency proposed insufficient reimbursement to providers to cover the cost of providing a combination glaucoma and cataract surgical care. Because the insertion of an aqueous drainage device is performed concurrently with cataract and intraocular lens (IOL) surgery, new CPT codes (669x1 and 669x2) were created for 2022 that combine cataract surgery with implantation of a glaucoma stent.
The FSO supports the position of the American Academy of Ophthalmology as outlined here and encourages FSO members to contact CMS about this issue.
The Academy joined more than 50 health-related organizations and societies in a joint statement Monday pushing for mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for all healthcare and long-term care employees. With increasing concerns about the Delta variant and rising COVID-19 cases, we are advocating to protect workers, their colleagues, families and patients—particularly vulnerable groups such as unvaccinated children and those who are immunocompromised.
“On behalf of the Florida Society of Ophthalmology (FSO), I would like to thank members of the Florida House and Senate that worked very hard this session to protect the citizens of Florida by ensuring that dangerous optometric surgery legislation did not pass.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – (July 12, 2021) – Glaucoma and cataract specialist Javier Perez, MD, was installed as president of the Florida Society of Ophthalmology (FSO). Elections were held during the FSO Annual Business Meeting, which took place in Palm Beach on Saturday, July 10.
The latest edition of The Florida Ophthalmologist is now available. Get the latest updates from the President as well as other important updates on Advocacy, Education and Outreach.
To read the latest copy click here. You will be prompted to login to your FSO account. If you need assistance, please contact the FSO membership manager.
The AmazonSmile Foundation and the For Eye Care Foundation
Please consider the For Eye Care Foundation (FECF), the Florida Society of Ophthalmology's charitable-arm, when shopping online at Amazon. The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from eligible purchases made back to the FECF. The purchase price is the amount paid for the item minus any rebates and excluding shipping & handling, gift-wrapping fees, taxes, or service charges. Use this link to start shopping and giving back: https://smile.amazon.com/ch/59-3051564.
There has been a recent change in the Florida law regarding co-management of patients. The new law took effect on July 1, 2013. The Florida Society of Ophthalmology (FSO) and its general counsel have worked closely with OMIC to develop two sample forms to aid you in compliance with the new law.
Because Florida law currently fails to describe the recognized risks of cataract surgery, a substantial number of "recognized risks" associated with cataract surgery continue to be improperly reported to regulators as "Code 15" adverse incidents.
Crosswalks between ICD-9 lists of covered diagnoses for certain services and the comparable ICD-10 diagnoses were imperfect in some LCDs, such as the Visual Field Testing LCD. First Coast Service Options was made aware of this problem and corrected the disparities with assistance provided by the FSO Third Party Liaison Committee.
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