Providers are encouraged to apply for the latest round of Provider Relief Fund (PRF) support. Applications will be considered regardless of whether your organization was previously eligible for, applied for, received, accepted, or rejected prior PRF payments. For this newest phase, funding will be allocated to providers based on assessed financial losses and changes in operating expenses caused by COVID-19. For more information about the Phase 3-General Distribution, please visit the Provider Relief Fund webpage.

As of October 13, in the U.S., there have been 7,787,548 confirmed cases of COVID-19 detected through U.S. public health surveillance systems in 50 states. CDC provides updated U.S. cases daily. Locally, Philly has recorded 38.8k cases out of 439k tests taken. All-time race/ethnicity case distribution: 41% African American (3 points higher than pop. share); 18% white (14 pts lower); 14% Hispanic (1 pt lower); 3% Asian (4 pts lower); 20% unknown. You can find more updates at phila.gov.

Nearly one in two adults have hypertension, and only about one in four people have it under control-placing millions of Americans at heightened risk for heart disease and stroke, the first and fifth leading causes of death in the U.S. You can read the entire "Call to Action" and the three overall goals to support improvement in hypertension here. (Pdf)

The Women in Medicine Legacy Foundation will honor Vivian W. Pinn, MD, a pioneer in women's health, as the 2020 recipient of the Alma Dea Morani Renaissance Woman Award. The ADM Award recognizes an outstanding contemporary pioneer in the medical sciences. It was named for Alma Dea Morani, MD, the first woman admitted to the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and an advocate for humanism in medicine and former PCMS member. Dr. Pinn will accept this prestigious award virtually on Thursday, November 19, 2020 between 4:00 - 5:15 PM EST. You can register online to attend here.

Active-retired licenses must be renewed every even-numbered year on the same schedule as an active-unrestricted license. The renewal deadlines are Oct. 31 for DOs and Dec. 31 for MDs.

In 2020, the renewal fee for DOs is $330. The renewal fee for MDs is typically $360. At its September 2020 meeting, the State Board of Medicine voted to waive renewal fees for this renewal period. Additional information on this waiver will be included with MD renewal notices.

Physicians with an active-retired license are exempt from the 100-credit CME requirement that physicians with active status must meet but are required to complete 2-credits of CME in child abuse recognition and reporting as well as 2-credits of CME in pain management, identification of addiction, or the practice of prescribing or dispensing of opioids.

The two-hour pain management CME requirement does not apply to a prescriber who is exempt from the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) requirements for registration under its applicable laws and regulations (as well as any state law) and who does not use the registration of another person or entity as permitted by law to prescribe controlled substances in any manner.

The exemption applies unless a physician has a DEA registration number or prescribes under another individual or entity's DEA registration number.

To maintain access to Novitasphere Portal, CMS requires that you access their Portal at least once every 30 days. Any user IDs that do not take this step will be considered inactive and the Novitasphere role will be removed. After a role is considered inactive and removed, you will be required to re-request the Novitasphere role in EIDM to re-gain access to Novitasphere. By taking a few minutes out of your day, you can avoid spending time re-requesting access once it's removed.

At least once every 30 days, access Novitasphere at https://www.novitasphere.com and log in.

The Philadelphia County Medical Society congratulates Natalia Ortiz MD, DFAPA, FACLP, FPCP, Chief of Clinical Psychiatry, Lewis Katz Temple School of Medicine and PCMS President for being selected as Concilio's (The Council of Spanish Speaking Organizations of Philadelphia, Inc.) "Essential Worker of the Year" in recognition of her tireless work during the COVID-19 pandemic. She was recognized at Concilio's annual awards ceremony held on Thursday, October 15, 2020.

PCMS also congratulates Eric Gokcen, MD, Associate Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University for being selected as the PAMED 2020 Physician for International Voluntary Service Award. Dr. Cokcen invested over seven years of his career improving the lives of the poor in developing countries such as Kenya and Ethiopia, where he performed thousands of surgeries for children with disabilities. He will be awarded this honor at the upcoming PAMED House of Delegates on Saturday, October 22, 2020.

October

22 - Jefferson Health Department of Medicine Grand Rounds Date: Thursday, October 22 Time: 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM This upcoming Grand Rounds is part of the Philadelphia Diabetes Prevention Collaborative and covers the topic of pre-diabetes. The activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credits. The Zoom meeting link is available here: https://Jefferson.zoom.us/j/98676353487 To dial in, call: 1-312-626-6799 The meeting ID is: 986 7635 3487

23 - MOUD Preceptor Program Date: Friday, October 23 Time: 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM This mini-residency training is free (including CME) and offers didactic training followed by an individually scheduled onsite observation or online clinical consultation with a faculty preceptor. It also offers content that is not covered in the buprenorphine waiver training, including: diversion, continued substance use, benzodiazepine use, point of care testing, harm reduction and pain management. Registrants must have already completed their waiver training and submit their license, resume, and waiver certificate prior to receiving their observation dates or consultation session. Click Here to Register

November

11 - The Child Abuse Prevention Training Program Date: Wednesday, November 11 Time: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM All physicians renewing their license are required to submit documentation evidencing the completion of at least two hours of approved continuing education in child abuse recognition. This is a live, state approved program that meets the requirement for the 2020 licensing cycle. The program will be conducted as a Zoom video conference. This program is FREE for all PCMS physician, resident, and medical student members. The fee for non-members is $125. Attendance is limited to 75. Click Here to Register