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Show DoD studies offering laser eye surgery to military by Army Staff Sgt. Kathleen American Forces Press Service T. Rhem WASHINGTON (AFPN) Defense officials are looking into Department the possibility of offering laser eye surgery to military beneficiaries. Several studies are under way to determine if laser vision correction stands up to the rigors of military life, said Dr. John Mazzuchi, deputy assistant secretary of defense (health affairs) for clinical and program policy. Our first concern is for the active-dut- y force, Mazzuchi said. If this method works for them, the eye is stable over time, and the military envi- Providing the service to family members is a different ball game. While laser eye surgery might become readiness issue for the active-dut- a y force, Mazzuchi said, it would be elective cosmetic surgery for others. Laser eye surgery might be beneficial, but doing purely cosmetic procedures means having to take care of all medical necessities first, he said. For the near future, at least, I think this is not going to become a covered benefit. The military healthcare system already has to struggle to operate within its budget, he explained. However, he added, that doesnt neces- I sarily mean these laser procedures think this is something we will do for would be out of reach of military beneficiaries. them as a readiness issue. Our facilities are going to have to He said officials would probably revisit the issue in two to three years, do a number of these procedures when preliminary data are available because we have ophthalmology trainfrom ongoing studies. New DoD pol- ing programs, Mazzuchi said. The icy allows individuals who have had way weve normally done cosmetic laser vision surgery to obtain a med- surgery is to make it available at our ical waiver before joining the military; teaching centers, but the beneficiary previously they were barred altogether. .has to pay for it. ronment doesnt harm them, then Under current regulations, outpacost tient surgical procedures would medabout $270 per day in military ical treatment facilities, he said. So, that would be the cost of a 15-minu- te laser operation considerably cheaper than the $4,000 to $6,000 charged by civilian providers. We dont want to deny a new medical breakthrough to our beneficiaries, but when its purely cosmetic and not medically necessary, we cant make it available at no cost, he said. We would try to balance our training needs and the desires of our beneficiaries to try and make this available at a rea- sonable cost. Mazzuchi said the military keeps tabs on emerging medical technologies for several reasons. For one, its the best thing to do for DoD beneficiaries. For another, an exciting atmos- phere helps attract quality medical professionals. We want to attract and retain the medical people the counOne of the best ways to offer. has try to do that it is with really good train best-qualit- y ing programs and with exciting medicine, Mazzuchi said. Cutting-edg- e medicine attracts the best and keeps the best. He said whether or not DoD is interested in a certain procedure or technology depends somewhat on the readiness implications of the procedure. One of the reasons laser eye surgery is so important to us is that it may free us from having to rely on glasses, Mazzuchi said. That has tremendous implications for military operations. However, the desire for cutting-edg- e techniques has to be balanced with fiscal constraints. 'The taxpayers expect us to spend their money wisely, he said. 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