ODWire Petition: Any Willing Provider

[prettygreeneyes]

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Hey guys,

I just wanted to pass on some information about a petition created by Dr. Jeffrey Martin, OD regarding medical insurance panels and the exclusion of optometrists. If you guys are interested, here is the link to the petition and more information!

Thanks!

The petition: http://www.odwire.org/petition/petition.php?pt=4

 

[jefguth]

Bump 🙂

Any student with an interest in treating their future patients MEDICAL conditions should be signing this petition.

While OD's may be licensed to treat ocular disease, in many cases they can't. Why? Because many insurers discriminate against OD’s by not allowing them to bill on behalf of the patient. Either you perform your services without payment (BAD for you) or pass the patient along to another provider on the insurance panel (BAD for you & profession).

Why do we need this petition? To motivate our sometimes anemic optometric leaders to take proactive steps towards protecting our future profession.

Thanks for signing everyone!

 

[prettygreeneyes]

Thanks for the bump!!! 😀

 

[Ryan_eyeball]

I definitely agree if you have any desire to be an OD you should sign this petition. If you want to treat glaucoma for instance you'll want to bill insurance for the exam, pachymetry, photos, gonio, VF, and GDx/OCT at some point in the year. You could probably only afford some of those if you could get reimbursed from ins. to even consider purchasing, esp. a digital fundus camera, and GDx. Why should a patient stay with a doctor not on their insurance panel when they can go to a OMD on it. I wouldn't pay out of pocket for this care, and I'm glad I'll be in a state in the next two months that won't discriminate against me for this.


Just my 2 cents. =)

 

[Ben Chudner]

duplicate...sorry

 

[Ben Chudner]

I wouldn't pay out of pocket for this care, and I'm glad I'll be in a state in the next two months that won't discriminate against me for this.

Unfortunately, moving to a state that won't discriminate is no guarantee. The reason this petition came to be is because the federal government is trying to pass legislation that will result in changing the classification of insurance companies. This change in classification will allow insurance companies to exclude specific types of providers (such as optometrists) and will supercede state law. Therefore, no state's "any willing provider law" will have meaning anymore.

 

[Ryan_eyeball]

Unfortunately, moving to a state that won't discriminate is no guarantee. The reason this petition came to be is because the federal government is trying to pass legislation that will result in changing the classification of insurance companies. This change in classification will allow insurance companies to exclude specific types of providers (such as optometrists) and will supercede state law. Therefore, no state's "any willing provider law" will have meaning anymore.

Your correct Dr Chudner in the current legislation that is trying to be passed to supercede state law. I messed up on that one.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

There have only been 265 views of this thread. This is a crucial issue facing optometrists. I'm hoping that everyone who regularly posts on this board has already signed the petition. Anyone have questions? Comments? Something? Anything? If you want to bill for medical procedures and actually use some of the medical training you will receive in school... you MUST sign this petition!!! 👍

 

[jefguth]

This thread looks like it need a bump! Please consider signing if you haven't done so already, This is quite possible the most significant issue facing the practice of optometry at the moment, I know all of you have heard Dr. Elder's suggestion that getting onto medical panels is essential if you wish to start your own practice.

 

[pippistrellodaq]

Bump.
Come on people!
I spend the day shadowing an optometrist who also said that getting involved and fighting is the only way that this dynamic profession will continue to improve. Good point. How hard is it to take a minute to sign this?

 

[still_confused]

Bump.
Come on people!
I spend the day shadowing an optometrist who also said that getting involved and fighting is the only way that this dynamic profession will continue to improve. Good point. How hard is it to take a minute to sign this?

ive signed it, but as students, i dont know if we will help or hurt the cause. i hope every bit helps!

 

[cpw]

I signed a few days ago... just so ya know 😉

 

[KHE]

I signed a few days ago... just so ya know 😉

Every single one of you on this forum should sign that petition because THAT ISSUE RIGHT THERE IS BY FAR AND AWAY THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING OPTOMETRY TODAY!

It's not student debt load, or over supply, or Walmart, or 1-800 contacts, or Lenscrafters, or VSP, or malpractice premiums or fighting with ophthalmologists.

It is the discrimination of a large number of insurance companies against ODs. I've said that for YEARS.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

*Gets on soapbox*

Anyone who has the time, ability, and desire should email this petition link to their classmates in optometry school. I know that someone at Indiana has already done it, but what about the other 15 schools? If you have access to the "listserve" for the entire optometry school... use it! The petition was posted on May 30, 2006. A full 20 days later... only 872 signatures. The petition's creator, Dr. Jeffrey Martin, has caught the attention of the AOA with this petition. We need to present a united front to organized optometry that THIS ISSUE is the one we care about!

Do your part.... pretty please???? 😍

*Climbs off the soapbox and takes a breathe*

 

[rkl_OD2be]

*Gets on soapbox*

Anyone who has the time, ability, and desire should email this petition link to their classmates in optometry school. I know that someone at Indiana has already done it, but what about the other 15 schools? If you have access to the "listserve" for the entire optometry school... use it! The petition was posted on May 30, 2006. A full 20 days later... only 872 signatures. The petition's creator, Dr. Jeffrey Martin, has caught the attention of the AOA with this petition. We need to present a united front to organized optometry that THIS ISSUE is the one we care about!

Do your part.... pretty please???? 😍

*Climbs off the soapbox and takes a breathe*

I just forwarded this link to Dr. Brown at UMSL. I made the point that everyone at our school should consider signing this petition. Hopefully she will see the wisdom in forwarding it out to everyone!!!

👍

 

[ddown]

We've all read about the various issues effecting optometry today, some of which are very depressing....instead of just reading about them we, as students, can actually DO SOMETHING by signing this petition. Let's invest in our future profession! Why spend all this time and money learning how to manage medical conditions of the eye if we don't work to preserve our ability to, and compensation for, performing them.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

I just forwarded this link to Dr. Brown at UMSL. I made the point that everyone at our school should consider signing this petition. Hopefully she will see the wisdom in forwarding it out to everyone!!!

👍

😍 👍 👍 👍

 

[rkl_OD2be]

I just forwarded this link to Dr. Brown at UMSL. I made the point that everyone at our school should consider signing this petition. Hopefully she will see the wisdom in forwarding it out to everyone!!!

👍

I just sent the link to everyone in the class of 2010 at UMSL. Dr. Brown said she'd forward it to the other classes when she returns from her vacation next week.


👍 👍 👍

 

[Schroder79]

We saw this one at PUCO a month or so ago. It's getting support there. 🙂