In order to participate in the listserv, you must agree to the terms and conditions outlined in the Listserv Disclaimer, below.
Why can't we discuss salaries, fees or collective action on the listservs?
AAOE members participating in the listserv are doing so as members of an organization of competitors in the eyes of federal and state enforcers of antitrust laws. While one ophthalmologist can ask a colleague what she or he pays staff or charges to perform Lasik, these issues cannot be discussed in a forum sponsored by a professional society. The government views such pricing and other economic discussions as a way that competitors can fix prices, supply costs, salaries, and other economic measures in a noncompetitive manor that violates state and federal antitrust laws.
Participants can discuss Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement and codes, as these are the same for everyone. Discussions about concerted action towards private payers, insurance contract clauses and private payer reimbursement cannot be discussed. These rules protect AAOE, its members and the Academy from costly legal actions and potential fines by the Federal Trade Commission or the Department of Justice. For this reason, a poster who violates the rules will be barred from participating in the AAOE listservs and may, at the sole discretion of the AAOE Board of Directors, lose his or her membership in AAOE.
Netiquette
AAOE listservs are intended to discuss business issues. Members should refrain from posting forwarded emails, contests and other emails that are not relevant to the business aspects of ophthalmology practice.
- Be forthcoming in your messages about any potential financial conflict of interest.
- If you repost something from another source, it is only ethical and helpful to give credit to the original poster along with the full citation. If you forward something from one of the other listservs, make sure you give credit to the original poster and/or source.
- DO NOT post any copyrighted material to any of the lists unless you have acquired permission to do so from the holder(s) of the copyright.
- Keep your messages short to conserve bandwidth and encourage others to read your messages.
- Remember, no emphasis or emotional tone gets transmitted through email. Jokes and sarcastic comments may be insensitive to others. Any criticism, personal attacks, and use of profanity are unwanted and will result in your removal from the listservs. You are responsible for what you post.
- Use a descriptive subject line. Avoid subject lines such as “question” or “coding question.” Many people decide whether they want to read a message based on the content of the subject line and vague subject lines make it difficult to search the archive.