Fairfax, VA– The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) today announced the appointment of Emily L. Graham, RHIT, CCS-P, CPC to the newly created position of Associate Director of Regulatory Affairs, where, in addition to regular duties, she will focus on emerging issues related to Medicare’s quality improvement initiatives and advancements in health information technology (HIT).

“As a result of our strategic planning process, we have decided to strengthen our focus on Medicare’s quality improvement initiatives and the regulatory aspects of health information technology,” said Priscilla Arnold, MD, Chair, ASCRS Government Relations Committee.  “Ms. Graham’s background and expertise ideally suite our requirements in this area, and we are happy to announce her appointment.” 

Ms. Graham joined ASCRS as Manager of Regulatory Affairs in April 2003.   Since then she has focused on a variety of regulatory issues that affect ophthalmology, including Medicare physician reimbursement.  In that capacity she has regular dealings with representatives of the Department of Health and Human Services, to include the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Ms. Graham serves as the Chair of the Regulatory Committee for the Alliance of Specialty Medicine, a coalition of 11 medical specialty societies that focus on specialty physician issues.  She also serves as a staff liaison to the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Editorial Panel and Relative Value System Update Committee (RUC). 

Ms. Graham also serves in a volunteer capacity on the finance committee for the Northern Virginia Regional Health Information Organization (NV RHIO) and is the Legislative Liaison Project Manager for the District of Columbia Health Information Management Association (DCHIMA). In addition she is an active member on the Health Information Management (HIM) Program Advisory Committee at Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC).

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