Ann: Private equity discussions cease , page-13

jnash I can assure you that I know a great deal more about the industry than you. Its true that bills can mount up for glaucoma patients undergoing regular visual fields, gdx, OCT, SLT etc - this is precisely the reason that a significant number of patients do not comply with regular private follow for glaucoma and many other chronic eye conditions because of the out of pocket costs. How many patients with diabetic retinopathy do you think a VR or med ret specialists sees privately compared to how many are seen in the hospital........very few is the answer. Many patients attend an initial appointment and are often surprised regarding the magnitude of out of pockets costs and subsequently do not return, preferring to see follow-up in the public hospital - spend half a morning in any public hsopital glacuoma, anterior segment clinic and you will soon see how many patients started off in the private sector only to rapidly shift due to costs.

Your naivete regarding the impact of the medicare ruling astounds me. Perhaps you should try speaking with any general ophthalmologist in Australia now and observing the panic that has set in during their coffee table discussions.

the failure of medicare to endorse OCT scan reimbursement is another big restrictor of revenue also. The more recent medicare ruling also limits the rebate for intravitreal injections for macular degeneration, combined with cataract ruling and the OCT ruling there is simply no prospect of growth and every likelyhood of decline