Letter from the President
MARLIN SCHUL, MD, MBA, RVT, FAVLS
PRESIDENT, AMERICAN VEIN & LYMPHATIC SOCIETY
A
s you review the 2019 program, you will see some differences from previous years. The Chair of the congress is Dr. Steve Elias who has brought some interesting twists by getting LIVE and interactive. You will see sessions where we will come together for cutting edge content and find the scientific aspect to have reached a new level again this year. I hope you will find this format to be educational and fun. We look forward to your feedback.
updates this year as we work to keep you updated on matters that you should be aware of and the potential impact on our practices. Some crazy changes Marlin Schul, MD, MBA, RVT, FAVLS in coverage have been positive, as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama has transformed from one the most difficult policies to one that offers wide access to care.
As a member of the American Vein & Lymphatic Society, you should recognize the three pillars of our mission and vision; Advocacy, Research, and Education. These pillars are interrelated and touch the many stakeholders within our Society, the field and most importantly our patients. Let me bring you up to speed on what has happened over the past year and what you can look for in 2020. Let’s start with our Advocacy efforts.
The coming year will be busy. Relationships are evolving as more societies seek representation with the AMA, as we share so much common ground. We are building our bench for the CPT and RUC anticipating additional procedures that will likely fall under review. Advocacy for our society centers on 1). Assuring Access to Care; 2). Supporting reimbursement for wellestablished Saphenous Vein ablation techniques; and 3). Staying informed through AVLS newsletters and updated. If you would like to learn more about advocacy and how you can get involved, talk to any HAC member wearing the BRIGHT ORANGE ribbons to get details.
AVLS ADVOCACY IN ACTION The Healthcare Policy and Advocacy effort requires a village. The AVLS has a seat on the AMA House of Delegates along with seats on the AMA RUC and CPT advisory committees. Our Advocacy Standing Committee has well over 60 years of experience, and we cannot possibly have enough. Advocacy success requires experience and relationships, and we have vastly grown this outreach in 2019. There are stakeholders everywhere, and we have addressed important issues with Medicare MACs [Noridian, Novitas, Palmetto, and Wisconsin Physician Services (WPS)], Independence Blue Cross, and have met with CMS administrators and the FDA. Our advisory committee is large and well distributed as to address payor and policy issues as they evolve. Hopefully you have noticed Advocacy specific messaging and
RESEARCH IS ROLLING FORWARD AND COUPLED TO ADVOCACY Big registry news as we have transitioned from ACP PRO VEIN 1.0 to AVLS PRO 2.0, allowing a platform better suited to address research questions being posed. Dr. Joe Jenkins and Michael Thompson, AVLS Director of Research have spearheaded the development and transition of our legacy data to the new platform with a query engine that allows immediate flexibility to address emerging threats and 4
