Eyeworld

36 | EYEWORLD | APRIL 2022 About the physician Richard Hoffman, MD Drs. Fine, Hoffman & Sims Eugene, Oregon within our practices. ASCRS and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) were suc- cessful in getting many of the cuts in cataract and combined cataract/glaucoma surgery reduced or postponed, however, I think this will be an ongoing battle with the sustainability of physician participation in Medicare at stake. My second goal was updating our current bylaws. Our bylaws were written in the 1980s, and many of the structures within our organiza- tion have changed. The structure of the orga- nization has grown immensely, and the bylaws should reflect what we are currently doing within the organization. My third goal was to update the video li- brary on the ASCRS website in order to make it a more useful resource for members. ASCRS is currently working on a new mobile app that will enhance the ability of members to interact with the society's resources—and each other—and I would ultimately like to use the video teaching skills of our talented members to enhance the video library and make it a major resource for any member wishing to learn new techniques or review older techniques. EyeWorld: What are some of the most import- ant recent initiatives from ASCRS? Dr. Hoffman: The fight for maintaining our reimbursement and alleviating the need for prior authorizations has been important, and similar political issues will continue to arise in the future. I think the effort with AAO to organize a combined Eyecelerator meeting before each organization's annual meeting has helped to improve our association with industry. This endeavor has allowed physicians the opportu- nity to stay up to date with treatments of the future, in addition to connecting entrepreneurs, companies, and investors at the forefront of new pharmaceuticals and technologies. EyeWorld: What do you see as some of the biggest challenges facing ophthalmology in the coming years? ANNUAL MEETING PREVIEW ASCRS NEWS Outgoing ASCRS President Richard Hoffman, MD, discusses his time as president E yeWorld spoke to ASCRS President Richard Hoffman, MD, about his time as president, the challenges faced, goals, and more. EyeWorld: This past year has continued to see challenges from the pandemic for ophthalmol- ogists both on the personal and professional level as well as for the society and the medical community as a whole; can you speak to that? How have physicians and the society adapted to move forward? Dr. Hoffman: The initial challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic have, for the most part, been alleviated with masking, social distancing, slit lamp screens, and temperature and symp- tom screenings within our practice. Although we are not back to 100% patient volume, we are close, and as the pandemic eases, things should return to normal in most practices. One of the things that struck me during the pandemic was how reliant all medical societies are on their an- nual meetings, and ASCRS is no different. The Annual Meeting is the life blood of our organi- zation, and although we were able to maintain the education and sharing of resources with a virtual meeting and other outreach, the virtual education was no substitute for a live, in-person gathering. EyeWorld: Did you have specific goals coming in as president and were you able to accomplish them? Dr. Hoffman: As incoming president of ASCRS, I had three soft goals. The first was to assist in fighting the various political battles that are going on regarding reimbursement and Aetna's prior authorization mandate for cataract surgery. The Aetna battle is still being waged, and I think we will ultimately be able to reverse this decision with a combination of ophthalmic society pressure and grassroots efforts. There is strong support within Congress for passing legislation on prior authorization that will ben- efit our patients and reduce unnecessary work Contact Hoffman: rshoffman@finemd.com

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