Eyeworld

EW NEWS & OPINION March 2017 27 Kerry D. Solomon, MD, ASCRS President • Preserving the sanctity of the doc- tor–patient relationship • Medical liability reform The Medicare Patient Empower- ment Act (introduced by Rep. Price) that would allow any Medicare beneficiary to enter into a private contract with a Medicare-partici- pating physician for any Medicare covered service. Under this act, the contracting physician could opt-out of Medicare on a case-by-case basis, Dr. Solomon shares his message from a January 29, 2017, EyeConnect conversation I 'd like to clear up some con- fusion with the recent email exchange on EyeConnect. As I mentioned in an earlier correspondence, this past elec- tion was certainly full of surprises. The new administration is transi- tioning into place, President Trump has finished his first week in office, several new executive orders have been signed with more to come, and significant change is occurring. Healthcare, as you know, is front and center. We have 14 members of the new Congress who are physi- cians—an all-time high. Rep. Tom Price is undergoing evaluation and soon hearings, and we hope he will be confirmed for the position of head of Health and Human Services (HHS). Rep. Price is an orthopedic surgeon, is a friend of medicine, has been a champion of the preservation of the doctor–patient relationship and "fee-for-service," and an author of numerous bills including the Patient Empowerment Act. ASCRS has supported Dr. Price's initiatives in the past. ASCRS has officially supported Rep. Price's nomination for head of HHS and has officially signed onto a support letter with the Alliance of Specialty Medicine as an- nounced in the Washington Watch a few weeks ago. Collectively, the sup- port of the Alliance will carry more weight for Dr. Price than any one specialty could achieve alone. Please understand that medicine does not speak as one voice. In fact, not all of medicine is supportive of Dr. Price's nomination. ASCRS is steadfast in our support of Dr. Price, and we look forward to working with him, and the new Congress, as new healthcare changes are proposed. A replacement for the Af- fordable Care Act (the ACA or Obamacare) has not yet been determined. While there is much uncertainty about the new health- care changes being proposed, there is also opportunity. In fact, I don't think there has ever been a better time in the last 10+ years to have an impact on healthcare than will likely occur in Washington, D.C., in the very near future. While we don't yet know what new healthcare changes will be proposed, there are a few key principles, as I mentioned in our earlier correspondence, that ASCRS firmly believes are at the core of our advocacy. • Decreasing the regulatory burden placed upon physicians • Preserving the "fee-for-service" and the free market • Supporting a patient's right to choose the doctor of their choice Clarifying ASCRS in a time of change but the beneficiary would maintain his or her Medicare benefit as partial payment for the contracted service. ASCRS opposed the ACA when it was originally passed. However, once it was passed into law, ASCRS has advocated to make the most of the ACA to best meet our needs as physicians as well as the needs of our patients. Now that the ACA is The innovative Operio Mobile is a clean air zone unit, which produces a directed, non-turbulent ultra-clean air flow to the surgical site during ophthalmic surgery and to the sterile instruments used during surgery. The Operio Mobile circulates ambient air through a HEPA filter which prevents dangerous, airborne bacteria carrying particles from coming into contact with the wound, as well as surgical instruments near the wound. The Operio Mobile guarantees < 5 cfu/m 3 air inside the clean air zone. For more information, please call or visit: www.vitreq.com Distributed by: Vitreq USA Inc., 51 Church St, Ste 1, Kingston NH 03848 Phone 603 347 5590, Fax 603 347 5583, info@vitrequsa.com Protect your Sterile Zone from Airborne Contamination Overall size: 24"L x 18"W x 51-67"H, 92 lbs ASCRS president's corner of the world continued on page 28 " While there is much uncertainty about the new healthcare changes being proposed, there is also opportunity. In fact, I don't think there has ever been a better time in the last 10+ years to have an impact on healthcare than will likely occur in Washington, D.C., in the very near future. " —Kerry Solomon, MD

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