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The Society maintains tight fiscal management and, although there have been some significant cost increases over the past year, the only increase in dues costs for 2007 is a very small inflationary adjustment. Part of the increased expense for the society is an increase in the proportion of our dues which are passed on to pay for the American Journal of Rhinology, a critical part of the educational mission of the Society. Of the dues paid by members, nearly 47% goes to pay for the costs of the journal. As I am sure you have noticed, the journal has significantly increased the number of pages and manuscripts per issue over the past two years, and part of the increased costs associated with this change have been passed along from the publisher to the society.
A second additional cost to the society has been legal fees associated with the Patient Advocacy Committee. This committee has been working to ensure that the voice of our patients is heard as CPT codes affecting rhinologic disorders are revised by CMS. To this end, I am very pleased that Mike Setzen's efforts have been worthwhile, with some victories in regard to reimbursement for computer assisted navigation and in other areas.
We are pleased to report that the slated 5.1% across the board reduction slated for Medicare in 2007 has been avoided. The potential exists for a 1.5% increase in payments July 2007 based upon compliance with some yet to be fully defined quality reporting measures. Considerable attention and work on the part of the Society will need to be paid to this area in the years ahead to ensure that our patient's surgical services are adequately covered. In preparation for this, I am pleased to report that the overall balance of the operating account has grown modestly over the past year, although significant expenses are anticipated in the arena of patient advocacy in the years ahead.
As you are probably aware, the Society keeps a second Corporate Affiliates Account for monies provided by industry donated to support research within the field of rhinology. I am delighted to report that the Society was able to pay out $70,000 in research support based upon peer review through the Academy's Core Grant review process during the past year. This is a major commitment to our mission of supporting additional research within our subspecialty.
Overall, the Society remains in sound financial shape although we have maintained a commitment to tightly control costs and to maintain only a limited treasury sufficient for its short term needs. The educational and research missions of the Society are well covered and the meetings have been very well attended. The significant erosion of reimbursement for surgery in our field is of real concern to the Society, our membership and our patients. This will require a concerted effort on the part of both the Society and our membership in the years ahead and we anticipate that these efforts will incur some sizeable expenses. You will be hearing more about these efforts in the coming months as this effort gains momentum.
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