September 2010 - President's Message

As a reminder to all Maryland optometrists, President Barack Obama signed the Medicare fee legislation "fix" earlier this summer in order to override a 21% cut to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. This "patch" legislation will actually provide physicians with a 2.2% increase in reimbursement rates through Nov. 30 of this year.

Most claims that had already been submitted for processing should not need to be resubmitted. Additionally, claims that had been paid with the lower rates will be reprocessed (if they haven't already) by CMS automatically.

Keep in mind that this is just a six-month temporary reprieve from a huge impending cut that will impact us all. In order to obtain a permanent fix to the SGR (Sustainable Growth Rate) formula, every optometrist must contact his or her federal legislators as soon as possible.

I am urging everyone to please sign into the AOA website and click on "Healthcare Policy Advocates." Then, scroll down to the "Legislative Issues" section and in bold red print you will see the AOA call to action to "Fix Medicare Physician Payment System Now!"

The time to get involved by every member optometrist is now! Help us ensure a permanent solution to this very important issue.

Sincerely,

Rob Stutman, O.D., MBA