Eyeworld

DECEMBER 2022 | EYEWORLD | 3 by Sumit "Sam" Garg, MD Chief Medical Editor ASCRS, the bill did not reach the ballot. Gover- nor Gavin Newson vetoed the bill. I bring these recent events up to highlight the importance of advocacy and supporting our professional societies in their advocacy efforts. I urge all of our membership to support our government relations efforts by contributing to eyePAC. As a professional society, ASCRS is also changing. Spearheaded by Steve Speares (pun intended) and the Executive Board, our or- ganization adopted new bylaws in 2022. The organization is committed to greater transpar- ency, increased inclusiveness, and continued evolution to better represent our membership. I thank the many pioneers who have dedicated themselves to allow ASCRS to flourish through the years. Finally, this issue will be the last for our four current section editors. EyeWorld has evolved under their guidance and leadership. I want to thank Rosa Braga-Mele, MD, Cataract Editor, Vance Thompson, MD, Refractive Editor, Clara Chan, MD, Cornea Editor, and Nathan Radcliffe, MD, Glaucoma Editor, for their ded- ication, knowledge, and labor. We are keeping them on in emeritus roles to help guide our new section editors. Please join me in welcom- ing Mitch Weikert, MD, as the new Cataract Editor, Karolinne Rocha, MD, PhD, as the new Refractive Editor, Julie Schallhorn, MD, as the new Cornea Editor, and Manjool Shah, MD, as the new Glaucoma Editor. I am super excited to work with the new section editors and look forward to their bright ideas, insights, and leadership. In closing, the times they are a-changin'. Some change is good, some not so good. Sometimes tried and true is best, but sometimes pushing boundaries and embracing change and innovation allows us to progress. I hope you enjoy and learn from the great contributions in this issue. As always, if you have any sugges- tions for topics, improvements, etc., feel free to reach out to me at gargs@uci.edu. O ne thing I know for sure is ophthalmolo- gy is always chang- ing. I can honestly say that the way I approach things in my practice is different now than when I first started. The way I look at things is also different. Some of this change comes with age and experience, and some comes with advancements in the technology and therapeu- tics we have to offer our patients. Whether it's a new diagnostic, medication, surgical technique, or IOL, there is always something "hot" in oph- thalmology. Sometimes "hot" topics include re- visiting a well-known topic with a new perspec- tive. In this issue of EyeWorld, we cover current hot topics including ergonomics, monovision, ICLs, epithelial mapping, vaccination (and re- lated corneal events), endothelial cell therapies, OSSN, and combination MIGS, among others. Another aspect that continually creates change in our practice is regulatory policy. Fol- lowing a year-long advocacy battle from ASCRS and AAO, Aetna recently rescinded its policy to require prior authorization for all cataract surgery, in every state excluding Florida and Georgia. This was a big win for us and our pa- tients. Had this somewhat arbitrary requirement for prior authorization been upheld, there could have been numerous patients with preventable morbidity due to unnecessary administrative delays in care. We also continue to face signifi- cant Medicare reimbursement cuts. ASCRS and the medical community are working together urging for Medicare payment reform. Among the changes, they are urging for an inflation update for physician payments and the need to address budget neutrality. In California, we recently avoided a scope of practice creep with optometry. Assembly Bill 2236 would have allowed optometrists in California to perform laser surgery, remove eyelid lesions, and per- form collagen crosslinking. Again, through the advocacy efforts of multiple groups, including Ophthalmology is always changing

• Blank Page
• Blank Page (1)