The American Board of Optometry (ABO) announced its board certification program has been accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) for a five-year period. Read the rest of this entry »
‘Codes for Optometry’ 2013 again offered as CD
January 9, 2013
Orders for the 2013 edition of “Codes for Optometry” – the AOA’s comprehensive coding and billing manual for optometric practices – are now being accepted by the AOA Marketplace.
For the fourth year, “Codes for Optometry” is being made available in a searchable CD-ROM format. Read the rest of this entry »
A half century of advocacy
January 9, 2013
William R. Elizondo, O.D., a regular attendee of the AOA Congressional Advocacy Conference in the nation’s capital each year, has been a staunch advocate for optometry for more than a half century. This image taken by Alexander Arroyos on Nov. 21, 1963, at a League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC) gala at Houston’s Rice Hotel chronicles what was likely the first time a U.S. president officially acknowledged Latinos as an important voting bloc as well as the last evening appearance by President John F. Kennedy. Read the rest of this entry »
PQRS reporting required in 2013 to avoid 2015 payment cuts
January 8, 2013Physicians, including optometrists, who do not report Medicare Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) quality measures during 2013 will see their Medicare reimbursements reduced 1.5 percent in 2015, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Read the rest of this entry »
IRS confirms eyeglasses, CLs exempt from new device tax
January 8, 2013Affirming yet another AOA health reform victory, the federal government last month released final regulations confirming eyeglasses and contact lenses is exempt from the new 2.3 percent excise tax on most medical devices. Read the rest of this entry »
Registry 101–Part 2: Clearing up confusion about the Optometric Registry coming in 2013
January 7, 2013By Jeff Michaels, O.D., chair of the AOA Registry Committee, and Coby Ramsey, O.D., Registry Committee member
Last month, we presented the first in a four-part series addressing the optometric registry scheduled for release in 2013. In it, we discussed the questions “What is a registry, why do I need a registry and who is using registries?” To read the complete article, visit http://bit.ly/UyuC57. Read the rest of this entry »
On your mark, get set, go!
January 7, 2013It is already a new year, and that means it’s time for me to make a new list of resolutions. Not because I completed my list from last year, but because I have been using the same list for many years and that list is now faded and worn out. So a new year and a new list! Read the rest of this entry »
