Contact Information for the National Glaucoma Society
National Glaucoma Society (NGS)
P.O. Box 4092
Andover, MA 01810
Telephone: 978-470-3500
Toll-free: 877-825-2020
Fax: 978-470-4520
e-mail: info@nationalglaucomasociety.org
Janet Swartz, EdD
Executive Director
J. James Thimons, OD, FAAO
Chairman
Bud O’Leary, OD
Director
Upcoming Programs
September 28, 2022
Dr. Justin Schweitzer will present "MIGS and Thermal Eyecare Treatment: Better Together" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific) on Wednesday, September 28.October 1-2, 2022
The National Glaucoma Symposium 2022 will be a virtual program on Saturday and Sunday, October 1-2. Lectures include 6 hours of COPE-approved glaucoma (GL) CE and 2 hours of treatment and management of ocular surface disease (TD).October 12, 2022
Dr. Eric Schmidt will present "Roadmap for the Medical Management of Glaucoma" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).October 19, 2022
Dr. Brad Sutton will present "Taking the Mystery Out of Oral Medications" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).November 2, 2022
Dr. Mitch Ibach will present "Perimetry Primer: Fundamentals of Visual Fields" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).November 16, 2022
Dr. Nate Lighthizer will present "Floaters: A New Solution to an Old Problem" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).November 30, 2022
Dr. Danica Marrelli will present "Strategies for Better Diagnosis of Glaucoma" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).December 7, 2022
For the last webinar of 2022, Dr. Daniel Epshtein will present "Glaucoma Masqueraders" as a live webinar from 8:00-9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (7-8 PM.Central / 5-6 PM Pacific).Your Registrations
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News
6-MONTH NGS MEMBERSHIP NOW AVAILABLE
In addition to $250 annual membership in the National Glaucoma Society, there is now the option for a 6-month membership. This option is available for new members or for renewals of existing membership. The $150 6-month membership includes the twice-a-month Wednesday one-hour webinars offered from September-May, reduced prices at other NGS virtual programs, and access to members-only postings on the NGS website.NATIONAL GLAUCOMA SYMPOSIUM VIRTUAL IN 2022
The National Glaucoma Symposium will be a virtual program in 2022. We are working on a program with 8 hours of COPE-approved CE for Saturday-Sunday, October 1-2. More information is posted under Upcoming Programs.
LIVE WEBINARS = LIVE CE IN MASSACHUSETTS
At their Decmber 15, 2021 meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Optometry specified that a live webinar where speakers and attendees can interact in real-time are considered to be live CE. The Board clarified that distance learning CE courses, which are limited to 6 hours per renewal cycle, are those where the licensees are reading content or observing media on their own with no interaction with the instructor. Thus, the COPE-approved interactive NGS webinars count as live CE for MA optometrists.NEW HAMPSHIRE ALLOWS 100% VIRTUAL CE IN 2022
The New Hampshire Board of Optometry has issued has a new standing order dated January 11, 2022 that authorizes all credit hours of continuing education to be obtained through virtual or alternative means in 2022. A copy of this order can be found on the New Hampshire Board of Optometry website (oplc.nh.gov) under Laws and Rules.
CE BROKER FOR TEXAS OPTOMETRISTS
The NGS will submit attendance data to CE Broker for Texas optometrists who attend our webinars. We will continue to mail CE certificates so attendees have a copy for their records and also will send attendance data to ARBO's OE Tracker.NEW COPE RULES FOR INTERACTIVE WEBINARS
COPE has announced a transition period from January through June, 2022, while they develop new guidelines for online CE. ***This transition period has been extended through December 31, 2022.*** During this transition period, live, interactive webinars will go back to being considered Interactive Distance Learning, but post-course tests will NOT be required. Thus, the NGS live webinars will be COPE approved as Interactive Distance Learning CE starting in January 2022. A number of states consider live, interactive webinars to be live CE, without restrictions on the number of credits, including: California, New York, Minnesota, Texas, Virginia and Vermont. For optometrists in those states, the COPE changes will not have an impact. Other states may consider the live webinars to be live CE (e.g., Pennsylvania for this renewal cycle) or may treat the live webinars as online CE with restrictions on the number of hours. Check with your State Board to determine how these hours will be treated for 2022.PENNSYLVANIA CONTINUES TO ALLOW ONLINE CE
The NGS has just been notified that the Board of Optometry will continue to allow all CE to be online for the renewal period that ends November 30. 2022. There was communication that the waiver in Pennsylvania that allowed all CE to be virtual will end on September 30, 2021. However, to avoid confusion in the middle of the renewal cycle, the Board has decided to continue to allow all CE to be online.CALIFORNIA ALLOWS LIVE WEBINARS AS LIVE CE
The California Board of Optometry now recognizes interactive courses offered live over internet platforms such as WebEx as Live CE toward the 30 hours of live continuing education required for license renewal. Courses can be live COPE courses offered by COPE's June 30, 2021 deadline or courses approved by the Board.NGS LIVE WEBINARS = CATEGORY 1 ABO
We have received confirmation that the NGS live webinars now count as Category 1 Education towards American Board of Optometry (ABO) certification.Join Our Email List
