AOA-Led Group Urges Obama to Increase Health Care Access, Affordability by Combating Provider Disc...(nd choice. The PARCA coaliti...),Health

The PARCA coalition's position was outlined in an open-letter sent to President-elect Obama and to key leaders in Congress today. In part, the letter stated:

"As you go about the important work of improving the existing employer-based reimbursement system...we request that you lend your support to the adoption of appropriate legislative provisions that would prevent existing healthcare plans, as well as any new federal plan, from discriminating against classes of health care providers with respect to plan participation, indemnification, and reimbursement....The elimination of such discrimination and the establishment of a 'level playing field' for all providers would more appropriately focus the provisioning of patient care towards those issues dealing with the efficiency of care delivery and the important need to improve quality outcomes."

The legislative safeguards that the AOA and the coalition seek would also prevent insurance plans from discriminating against providers when it comes to the reimbursement of services provided by non-MD health professionals.

"Optometrists and our patients see the systemic costs of discrimination against providers by health plans. Such discrimination defies principle, is anti-competitive in nature, denies patient choice, restricts access to care and, in general, results in a weaker health delivery system with inferior outcomes," Dr. Kehoe added.

About the American Optometric Association (AOA)

The American Optometric Association represents approximately 36,000 doctors of optometry, optometry students and paraoptometric assistants and technicians. Optometrists serve patients in nearly 6,500 communities across the country, and in 3,500 of those communities are the only eye doctors. Doctors of optometry provide two-thirds of all primary eye care in the United States.