Regulatory/Legislative News

The World Council of Optometry announced that its new president, Uduak Udom, OD, MPH, was inducted during the WCO/FEDOPTO First World Congress of Optometry in Medellin, Columbia.

More than 230 doctors of optometry and state leadership met in Denver in October, advocating for the American Optometric Association and working together to respond to new challenges and opportunities facing the field.

This week may mark the turning point in the health insurance exchange program. United Healthcare Group has announced a sizable expected loss related to the exchange business and is considering withdrawing from the program next year. Other major insurance companies have also reported financial problems related to their health care exchange products.

Recent research in JAMA Pediatrics found that preventive medical and dental care visits were more prevalent among children insured by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program compared with privately insured children.

It is a condition once considered relatively rare, but has now been diagnosed in upwards of 30 million Americans, with as many as 30 million more affected. It is a condition once thought to involve only the elderly or those with severe autoimmune disease (Sjögren’s), but is now recognized among a much wider demographic. It is a condition once considered more of a “nuisance,” but is now viewed as a chronically debilitating disease with huge quality of life implications.

The signature aspect of the Affordable Care Act is the list of essential benefits that are required for the health care exchange. These benefits, however, are moving beyond the marketplace of the exchange programs and becoming the standard for all health care products. These benefits are a big step away from the traditional insurance-based programs that require sickness or injury to make a “claim” and toward health maintenance programs that focus on prevention, wellness and health.

CMS will add “certifying board” to its provider credentials next year, and the American Board of Optometry will be included in the list of those boards on Physician Compare at Medicare.gov.

The American Optometric Association submitted formal comments to the Federal Trade Commission responding to the commission’s 10-year review of the Contact Lens Rule and the Ophthalmic Practice (Eyeglasses) Rule, advocating fairness to patients, doctors and retailers.

The Federal Trade Commission is seeking public comment on the Contact Lens Rule, which requires eye care providers to give consumers a copy of their prescription upon completion of a contact lens fitting and to verify or provide prescriptions to authorized third parties.

From international law firm Arnold & Porter LLP comes a timely column that provides views on current regulatory and legislative topics that weigh on the minds of today’s physicians and health care executives.