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A note from the President
IOA President
Upon returning from another wonderful weekend at our Okoboji Conference I needed to touch base with all of you again. The dog days of summer are here and it has been a busy few months since IOA Congress. Our Okoboji meetings were good. I encourage any of you who have not been up to the Okoboji meeting in a few years or have never attended to consider coming next year as it is a very fun and relaxing way to receive continuing education hours, exchange ideas and relax with family.
First order of business is to continue to embrace and use our "See Your Optometrist for That" public relations campaign by using the video developed by our Public Relations Committee. This will be very important in showing ACO organizations, insurers, and employers the many conditions that optometrists treat. There are so many places that we can use the video and future materials developed by the PR Committee. Think about giving a Rotary program or going to the school nurse. Maybe the local physicians could be further educated with a viewing while they sit in your chair. Contact the IOA if you have any trouble using the video or if you need one.
I had the opportunity to attend Optometry's Meeting in San Diego in late June. I was very busy with House of Delegates, Presidents Council, and serving on the Nominating Committee. Significant highlights included electing two new trustees, discussion of Non-Covered Services bills passed in a few states, and ACOs. The AOA is going to release an "ACO Kit " to help doctors understand how to be involved. We know that optometry will be necessary to serve the needs of eye health care but we need to be aggressive to ensure that we are able to practice at our full capabilities. Reimbursements will need to be monitored also. A recent White Paper was published establishing that employers can save nearly 90% in eye related emergency room visits by using optometry. We can continue to grow as a profession by using our knowledge and skills instead of a smoke and mirrors approach.
Senator Tom Harkin received the Apollo Award for his work on the non-discrimination Amendment as part of the Affordable Care Act. Although he could not be there he did send a 10 minute video acceptance and mentioned the IOA as an important part of his support of eye health issues.
The Iowa DOT used an obscure method to change policy and avoid legislative scrutiny. Online renewals with minimal acknowledgement of visual concerns took effect July 1st. Mainly a cost saving measure, drivers will be asked to police themselves as they answer online questions about their vision. The IOA was to be working with the DOT to develop policy but instead they chose to adopt emergency rules, thus avoiding any input from outside groups. We have expressed our concerns and will pursue this issue.
It is a busy time of year but optometry in the state of Iowa continues to grow and move forward because of the efforts of our members and a great staff at the IOA. Continue to take care of that patient right in front of you and we will stay strong as the health care landscape continues to change. Enjoy your summer and make time for family and friends before it comes to a close.
Sincerely,
Scott |
Optometry's Meeting in San Diego
Optometry's Meeting was held in San Diego this year. Representatives from Iowa attended education, President's Council and the AOA House of Delegates.
 
IOA President, Scott Bowker and IOA President-Elect, Craig Rock representing Iowa at the AOA House of Delegates.
Dr. Bowker and his family enjoy a San Diego Padres game.
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2013 Okoboji meeting
Continuing the tradition, the IOA held its' summer meeting in relaxing Okoboji. This is the 48th year that this meeting has been in Okoboji. If you've never been to the Okoboji meeting, we encourage you to plan ahead and join us next year. The dates for next year are July 18th - 20th, 2014 so mark your calendars.
115 ODs attended the education provided by Dr. Melanie Denton and Jones Eye Clinic. We had wonderful weather this year for our outdoor cookouts and hospitality rooms around the pool. New this year - we went "techy" and doctors are now scanning QR codes with their smartphones for CE credit. It worked really well and we will be doing it again at Hawkeye so plan ahead and download the OE Tracker app now. (Email Jill at the IOA if you want instructions on how to do this.)
 
Beautiful weather for our picnics down by the lake.
Executive Director, Gary Ellis, cooked the steaks to perfection.
Attendees scanning the QR codes following education.
The Saturday afternoon golf tournament was held at Emerald Hills and the golf tournament results are below. Congratulations to all the winners!
First Flight
1st Place - Dr. Al Klepper & Dave Jochims (62)
2nd Place - Dr. Sam Butler & Ryan Burns (65)
3rd Place - Dr. Paul Beaver & Rees Beaver (67)
Second Flight
1st Place - Dr. Larry Ellingson & Sue Ellingson (76)
2nd Place - Dr's. John Kiernan & Morris Kuhlman (77)
3rd Place - Dr's. Mike Kruger & Jeff Neighbors (78)
IOA Board Members enjoying an afternoon golfing.
Left to right: Drs. Craig Rock, Don McKim, Mike Korthals and Kelly Norland.
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Keep track of your CE hours at www.arbo.org
For those of you that attended the Okoboji meeting, you know that we are now using QR codes to help track continuing education hours. We encourage you to go to the ARBO website (www.arbo.org) to make sure that you received the appropriate credit(s) for continuing education.
If there are any discrepancies, please contact Grace at the IOA office.
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What About YourPreparations for ICD-10?
Charles B. Brownlow, OD, FAAO
October 1, 2014 is the date that ICD-10 will replace ICD-9 for reporting medical conditions in patient records and on insurance claims in the US. Anyone paying attention to the vendors of educational/informational/training products and services for ICD-10 implementation would think that the changeover will be extremely complicated, the training will be deep and wide, and that it will cost thousands of dollars to get an office converted to the new coding system.
Rest assured that ICD-10 is different, very different, completely different than ICD-9. It offers over 70,000 potential choices for coding diagnoses, causes of medical conditions, etc., compared to about 17,000 choices in ICD-9. It is the complexity though, that will make the preparation easier. I know that doesn't sound logical, but it's true. The system is so complex that one will need to rely upon software to aid in the choices. The software that currently exists already makes the process simple. In the near future, you will be able to purchase subscriptions for 'ICD-10 calculators' that take the guesswork out of the process. In the near future, offices utilizing electronic medical records systems will have ICD-10 capablility built right into the EHR, automatically choosing (or recommending) ICD-10 codes just as they currently recommend choices of ICD-9 codes, based on the content of the patient's record for the day. The choice of ICD-10 code will be an automatic, single-entry system, converting the words of the diagnoses into ICD-10 codes.
Most ODs receive at least one email a day; unsolicited, of course; from some consulting group offering to train doctors and staff in your practice via webinars, face to face seminars, online consultation, whatever, for the low fee of $295/person, $495/session, $999 for six monthly online sessions with the consultant, etc. Please continue to ignore those ads, but don't ignore the need for preparation.
Here's what I suggest you do to prepare your doctors and staff for the October 1, 2014 ICD-10 Implementation:
- Go online soon and Google 'ICD-10 calculator' or ICD-10 preparation. You'll see lots of great opportunities for consultants to separate you from your money, but you'll also find a couple of free 'calculators. Log on and test it out. Type in primary open angle glaucoma, or diabetic retinopathy. Type in a common ICD-9 code and convert it to the ICD-10 code, etc. You will be surprised at how well software does the job.
- Examples: http://www.aapc.com/icd-10/codes/ or http://www.icd10data.com/ . By entering an ICD-9 code, eg 365.11, the calculator provides the ICD-10 code and description, H40.11XX, primary open angle glaucoma, stage unspecified. All that's left to the doctor/staff is to indicate right/left/both eyes where the X appears in the third space after the decimal point, (1=right eye, 2=left eye, 3=both eyes) and to specify the stage as the final digit (0 = unspecified, 1 = mild, 2=moderate, 3=severe, and 4=indeterminate.)
Note: The 'X's' are used as placeholders, indicating that other information is needed to choose the correct code, such as laterality or severity of condition, etc.
- Visit the CMS website for more good, practical, unemotional information on this important subject: http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Coding/ICD10/index.html
- Call one of your semi-annual monthly staff meetings to discuss ICD-10...January 2014 will be early enough...Seriously. In the meantime, try to encourage doctors and staff in your practice to concentrate on current challenges and worry about ICD-10 less. My prediction is that when October 1, 2014 arrives, you will be very happy that you did not obsess over ICD-10 and that you didn't drop tons of money on training and preparations for the 'big day'.
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August proclaimed Children's Vision and Learning Month
Governor Terry Branstad has proclaimed the month of August as Children's Vision and Learning Month. Click here for a printable copy of the Proclamation.
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Dr. Michael Ohlson published on Optometry Times
Dr. Michael Ohlson of West Union recently published an article on Optometry Times. The article is about primary care optometry in the 21st century. Click here to read the article.
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National Veterans TEE Tournament
The 20th annual National Veterans TEE (Training, Exposure, Experience) Tournament, a golfing experience for visually impaired and disabled veterans will be held in the Iowa City area this year. They are looking for volunteers starting September 9th to assist with the Pro Am tournament. The TEE Tournament will be held in Riverside September 9th - 13th. The locations for the golfing activities are Lake McBride, Quail Creek, Blue Top Ridge, Elks and West Liberty golf courses.
If you are interested in volunteering, please click here for a Volunteer Registration Application or you may also call 319-338-0581 with questions.
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Please welcome these new members to the IOA!
Dr. Daniel Clousing
Practice location: Sioux Center
Optometry school: SCO
Dr. Abigail Derby
Practice location: Undecided
Optometry school: IAUPR
Dr. Kaila Egan Practice location: Waterloo Optometry school: SCO
Dr. Heidi Fouch
Practice location: Clive
Optometry school: SCO
Dr. Benjamin Iwai
Practice location: Burlington
Optometry school: UM-SL
Dr. Jesse Kahnk
Practice location: Ankeny
Optometry school: OSU
Dr. Katherine Murphy
Practice location: Davenport
Optometry school: ICO
Dr. Derek Vogelpohl
Practice location: Burlington
Optometry school: ICO
Dr. Joel Weis
Practice location: Creston
Optometry school: SCO
With Sympathy
Our condolences go out to Dr. Dennis Vannatta, IOA Board Member and his family for the loss of his father Darrel Vannatta of Le Mars. Darrel died Friday, July 12, 2013 at Good Samaritan Society in Le Mars.
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IOA member golf outing - September 12th
Join us for the IOA member golf outing!
The outing will be held at the Fort Dodge Country Club on Thursday, September 12th. It is a 1:00 PM shotgun start with dinner following at 5:30.
This event is available to IOA members only.
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Mark your calendars - important dates
2013
- September 12th - IOA Member Golf Outing, Fort Dodge Country Club, Fort Dodge
- October 17th - 18th - Hawkeye Institute. Cedar Rapids Marriott, Cedar Rapids
2014
- January 28th - Legislative Steak Fry, Embassy Suites Downtown, Des Moines
- February 14th - 16th - Heart of America Contact Lens Society. Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center in Kansas City, MO
- March 28th - 30th - Annual Congress. Embassy Suites Downtown, Des Moines
- July 18th - 20th - Okoboji meeting. The Inn, Okoboji
- October 16th - 18th - Hawkeye Institute. Cedar Rapids Marriott, Cedar Rapids
2015
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The IOA offers free advertising to its' members. Click on IOA Classifieds to access equipment for sale, practice(s) for sale and practice opportunities. If you would like to place an ad, please email the information to jillg@iowaoptometry.org. If you have placed an ad previously and you no longer want it posted, please let us know so that we can remove the ad. Thank you! |
Have you donated to IOA PAC? Your personal support makes a difference! Click here to donate today!
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MSG Payment Systems, the IOA-endorsed payment solutions provider, is dedicated to providing IOA members with targeted education about the payment industry's most current and up-to-date topics so that business owners can make informed decisions. Here are a few of the more popular topics trending in the payments industry right now:
- Visa Fixed Acquirer Network Fee: Effective April 2012, Visa implemented its Fixed Acquirer Network Fee (FANF), which is a cost that merchants pay to be a part of the Visa network. Fees are based on a formula that takes into account, among other things, merchant size and location. The Fee can range from $1.00 to $20.00 per merchant account, per month.
- MasterCard Network Fee: Effective June 2012, MasterCard implemented its Annual License and Registration Fee. MasterCard will calculate the fee(s) for each merchant individually based on processing volume from the previous year, and they may be charged annually or monthly.
For more information about these topics or to request a free competitive analysis of your current credit card processing program today, contact MSG Payment Systems at (888) 697-8831 or email hello@msgpay.com.
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Stay Connected
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Iowa Optometric Association | | jillg@iowaoptometry.org | http://www.iowaoptometry.org 6150 Village View Drive Suite 105 West Des Moines, IA 50266 1800-444-1772
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