Robert A. Nozar

Washington, DC-The addition of insurance coverage for prescription drugs in the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act signed by President Bush is being called an historic victory for seniors.

Washington, DC-The New Year brings with it a new chapter in fair reimbursement for physician Medicare fees.

The very best institutions in ophthalmology continued their long-time holds on the top rungs in the 8th annual survey of Best Programs conducted by Ophthalmology Times.

New York-Patients in need of treatment for retinal diseases and other maladies can now come to the New York Eye & Ear Infirmary's (NYEEI) state-of-the-art Retina Center.

Baltimore-Effective July 1, Peter J.McDonnell III, MD, leaves his post as chairman of the ophthalmology department at the University of California-Irvine to take the helm as director and William Holland Wilmer Professor of Ophthalmology at the Wilmer Eye Institute.

Baltimore-Morton Goldberg, MD, will enter a new phase of his career this month when he will step down as director of the Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Effective July 1, Peter J. McDonnell III, MD, chairman of the ophthalmology department at the University of California-Irvine, will take the helm as the institute's new director (See Page 10).

If ophthalmologists and other physicians are looking to the nation's capital for assistance in dealing with the jury awards that far exceed actual economic losses by plaintiffs, one doctor believes it is a colossal waste of time.

An agreement reached by both VISX and Nidek aims to resolve all litigation between the parties worldwide, including patent and antitrust lawsuits in the United States.

As of July 1, a new marketing code adopted by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) takes effect. The code would put an end to gifts and dinners for doctors and their staffs, and even cash giveaways, in addition to all forms of recompense that have nothing to do with patient education.