EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/111385
24 EW NEWS & OPINION February 2013 Insights Back to the Buick? by J.C. Noreika, M.D., M.B.A. J.C. Noreika, M.D., M.B.A. O h dear, those numbers! The Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate reduction? 26.5%. Payment cuts to providers stemming from the Affordable Care Act? $716 billion. Additional reductions to Medicare���s doctors, hospitals, and big pharma? $400 billion if you���re a Democrat, $600 billion if you���re a Republican. These numbers are nonsense, abstract, too large for the 2-pound-and-change homo sapien brain to grasp. Let���s try this. How much does $1 million of $100 bills weigh? Rounding up, that���s 22 pounds of Benjamins. The Affordable Care Act���s impact on Medicare would weigh 7,876 tons of C-notes! Not tangible enough? Think Boeing���s newest 747-8I���34 of them. Early on, Buick was known as ���the doctor���s car.��� My point? Writing about healthcare���s economics in a prescriptive way is fruitless. The problem of healthcare spending eludes comprehension because anything perceived in ���bazillions��� is meaningless. Not that academia won���t try. A PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of 1,202 voters conducted after last November���s election found that ���half of voters said cutting payments to doctors and hospitals should be the top priority to reduce federal spending on healthcare.��� Almost 70% of respondents cited reducing costs as the federal government���s No. 1 priority. Doctors have a public relations problem like WrestleMania Inventor of LASIK eye surgery receives National Medal of Technology and Innovation by Ellen Stodola EyeWorld Staff Writer Gholam A. Peyman, M.D. G holam A. Peyman, M.D., was named as one of the recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the University of Arizona College of MedicinePhoenix reported in late December. President Obama announced that Dr. Peyman and 10 other recipients had been chosen for the award, which is given annually to scientists, engineers, and inventors. In addi- tion to these 11 inventors who received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, 12 researchers received the National Medal of Science honor. Dr. Peyman is an ophthalmologist and vitreoretinal surgeon, as well as a faculty member at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix. He is well known as the inventor of LASIK eye surgery, but he is also responsible for numerous other inventions and patents for medical devices, surgical techniques, methods of diagnosis and treatment, as well as other key topics in ophthalmology. He is known as a pioneer in his field, with studies on intraocular drug delivery and refractive and vitreoretinal surgery, as well as with laser and photodynamic therapy. In addition to LASIK surgery, Dr. Peyman was responsible for the development of some key devices for glaucoma and treating macular disease. He developed the Krupin vale, which was the first pressure-controlled valve for glaucoma surgery, and he developed the first telescopic IOL for macular disease. Dr. Peyman has been recognized specifically in the ophthalmology field with many honors and awards. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame of Ophthalmology, and he is included in the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery Hall of Fame. He has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, as well as the first translational re- search award from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation recognizes those who have contributed to America���s competitiveness and quality of life, as well as helped to strengthen the nation���s technological workforce. The recipients of this year���s award were announced along with recipients of the National Medal of Science, which recognizes those making a contribution to science and engineering. Dr. Peyman and the other recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation are expected to receive the award at a White House ceremony. EW