Medicare’s Zeiter Eye cancellation explained [The Record, Stockton, Calif.]

Dec. 21--STOCKTON -- When health inspectors for the federal government showed up in October, they didn't know what to think. They were at the right address, the place was loaded with surgical equipment -- but something was amiss. So they canceled the surgery center's Medicare contract -- and published a legal notice in The Record last week.

"Notice is hereby given that the provider agreement between Ambulatory Surgery Center of Zeiter Eye located at 117 North San Joaquin Street, Stockton, CA and the Secretary of the Department of Health & Human Services as a provider services in the Health Insurance for the Aged and Disabled Program (Medicare) is to be terminated at the close of December 16, 2011."

People noticed.

Turns out, that particular surgery center -- operated for many years downtown by the well-known, philanthropic Zeiter family of ophthalmologists -- was closed five years ago in favor of their modern eye surgery center on March Lane. The March Lane center remains an active, authorized Medicare provider.

"We were certified the last time in 1993 for Medi-Cal. That was the last time (inspectors) ever came by our downtown office. We used it until 2006," John Zeiter said Monday. As for the surgical equipment in the San Joaquin Street office, it was being collected and stored there for a humanitarian mission to Afghanistan, he said.

"That was probably our fault for not terminating it on our own," Zeiter said.

An official with the federal Medicare program in San Francisco who issued the public notice of termination agreed with Zeiter's assessment this week, noting the action has not resulted in any access-to-care issues for Medicare beneficiaries.

Zeiter said the March Lane center provides 5,000 surgeries annually, with a majority of the procedures performed on geriatric patients. As many as 70 percent are covered by Medicare, he said. Zeiter Eye continues to operate a medical office downtown at 255 E. Weber Ave.

As for the action taken by the government, Zeiter took it in stride.

"They are doing what they have to do. Once they discovered it had been closed for five years, they didn't stay too long at our place," he said.

Contact reporter Joe Goldeen at (209) 546-8278 or [email protected]. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/goldeenblog.

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