“Big Data” continues to be “big news” in ophthalmology. That’s been particularly true since the 2015 launch of IRIS, the AAO’s national database. AAO members can submit Medicare- and Medicaid- related patient information to IRIS to meet their physician quality-reporting system requirements. Big Data’s appeal lies in its potential to help physicians improve patient care, track efficiencies and maximize reimbursement. IRIS gave physicians further incentive to adopt EHRs, a trend already going strong thanks to government initiatives such as the Medicare Electronic Health Record Incentive Program (the federal mandate more commonly known as “Meaningful use”).
