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Summary for week of April 13-17
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Ohio ACEP Sends a Big "Thank You" to All The #HealthcareHeroes Fighting to Save Lives

Dr. Howard Werman donates convalescent plasma

It's an honor to serve Ohio's EM physicians! Your tireless commitment to your patients is an inspiration to us all. As you endure long hours and difficult circumstances on the COVID-19 front lines, know that we will always have your back!

#InThisTogetherOhio

Ohio ACEP COVID-19 Member Update

Friday, April 17, 2020

Ohio News


Latest Figures from Ohio Department of Health
On Friday, the Ohio Department of Health reported reaching 401 confirmed deaths and 8858 confirmed cases. This compares to 268 and 6881 on Monday, respectively. Cases have resulted in 2424 hospitalizations and 740 intensive care unit admissions.
In-depth data and the ODH dashboard can be accessed by visiting coronavirus.ohio.gov.

To comply with new CDC guidelines recommended by the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, Dr. Acton has issued an amended Director’s Journal Entry with updated reporting requirements for COVID-19, requiring that both confirmed and probable cases (based on clinical and epidemiological evidence) be reported within 24 hours to the local health district in which the person resides. Until this new CDC guidance was issued, only COVID-19 cases confirmed with a laboratory test were reportable to public health officials. On its www.coronavirus.ohio.gov website, the Ohio Department of Health is reporting COVID-19 confirmed and probable cases and deaths separately and  in total. 
 
The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) has opened a COVID-19 public hotline, which can be reached seven days a week from 9 am to 8 pm. The number is 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634). There is also a website at www.coronavirus.ohio.gov.

Reopening of the state economy
Beginning May 1, 2020, the state will begin a phased-in reopening of the state economy.  The plan will be fact-driven over a long period of time to minimize the health risk to business owners, employees, and their customers. In consultation with Dr. Acton, Lt. Governor Jon Husted will lead the governor’s board of economic advisors to identify best practices, similar to the current requirements on essential business operations to ensure Ohioans health and safety as businesses begin the process of reopening.Governor DeWine reiterated today that Ohio's recovery phase will be not start and end overnight. As Ohio begins to reopen, Governor DeWine stressed the need to balance: compliance with public health measures; implementation of safeguards in business; and protections for the most vulnerable Ohioans. 

Rapid Testing: Governor DeWine cautioned companies in Ohio that are purchasing rapid antibody tests to ensure that they are purchasing tests that are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
"Antibody testing is one piece to the puzzle on determining when employees can return to work, but it is not the sole answer," said Governor DeWine. "I caution all companies looking at this option to ensure they are only buying FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)- approved anti-body tests. Without this FDA Emergency Use Authorization approval, there is no way to know if the tests are valid."
A list of FDA-approved rapid testing kits is available at fda.gov. 

Ohio Medicaid
Monday we were notified of updates to Ohio Medicaid telehealth policies. Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to submit an email inquiry at Medicaid@medicaid.ohio.gov. Also see Telehealth Billing Guidelines During COVID-19 State of Emergency. Please note: this document does NOT apply to OhioMHAS-certified providers.
 
MEDICAID WAIVER APPLICATION:
In addition to previous emergency measures taken by the Ohio Department of Medicaid to help increase access to healthcare for millions of Ohioans, Governor DeWine announced that his administration is submitting its first waiver application to the federal government, known as 1135 or Appendix K, to provide the needed flexibility to address this crisis.
This waiver will allow Ohio to:
•          Bolster the use of telehealth and other technology for health assessments and care planning;
•          Waive signature requirements for a variety of providers to ensure safe distancing without compromising access to care;
•          Ease obstacles to access nursing home care;
•          Allow services to be provided at alternative locations; and
•          Remove staffing-level requirements to give providers more flexibility.
* Waive penalties under EMTALA to allow emergency department screening in other locations and by electronic means (video etc.) (link to
 
"Removing restrictions like these during this pandemic will allow health care workers to focus on meeting the needs of Ohioans," said Governor DeWine.
Upon approval, the waiver will be retroactively applied from March 1, 2020.   
 
Chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine:  There continues to be questions about Chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine. These are the Ohio rulings from the state pharmacy board.


Ohio ACEP Resources Webpage
Ohio ACEP also will keep members up to date on our COVID-19 Resources page, available at www.ohacep.org/covid19.


From National ACEP


ACEP’s COVID-19 Field Guide is a living resource. They have recently updated the following sections: Regulations/Liability, Imaging (Chest X-Ray, CT) and the ICU Care in the ED. 

Still the Best Place for Emergency Care: ACEP recently put out this press statement communicating to the public that the emergency department is still the best place for emergency care: "Amidst COVID-19 Concerns, Emergency Physicians Urge Public Not to Delay Necessary Medical Care".  We have updated our public facing website: emegencyphysicians.org with this information.  We are also conducting some public opinion polling around the topic, so expect more soon.
 
Surprise Billing Alert: ACEP has successfully slowed movement on surprise billing legislation during the COVID-19 crisis, but certain factions are pressing to pass something soon. We sent a letter to Congress and now we urge you to contact your members of Congress to explain why now is not the time to include one-sided, insurer-favored surprise medical billing provisions in COVID-19 relief legislation.

In response to a CNN news report of an ACEP member who is facing custody issues because of her job as an emergency physician, ACEP put out the following press statement that highlights Bill's letter of support: www.emergencyphysicians.org/press-releases/2020/....
 
Virtual Hill Day/Advocating for You
Talk COVID-19 with your legislators. We're going virtual for Hill Day on April 28 so you can participate in state-specific calls with Congress about what it's like on the front lines. It's free for ACEP members, but limited to 600. Half the slots are already taken, so act quickly. Register by April 22
  • Ohio ACEP is hosting a Virtual Town Hall on Monday, April 27th at 9:00 am so we can carry your message to ACEP’s virtual Hill Day!  Register to talk with Ohio colleagues about their current COVID experience and needs! To register for the Ohio ACEP Member Town Hall: Advocating for Our Members during the COVID-19 Crisis please click here.

ACEP Partners offering help for healthcare
Hilton and American Express have partnered to donate up to 1 million free hotel nights to ACEP members and other frontline medical professionals so you can have a safe and welcoming place to stay as you support those impacted by COVID-19. 

ACEP and AMA advocate for additional liability protections and other actions supporting physicians.

CARES Act Provider Relief
Last Friday, you or your emergency medicine group should have received a payment that was automatically deposited in the bank account that you have on file with Medicare. This payment was part of an overall $30 billion that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) distributed to physicians and other health care providers (including hospitals) based on providers’ 2019 Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) spending. However, you are now expected to agree to certain terms and conditions within 30 days of when you received the payment.
Read the blog to learn more about these payments and the terms and conditions that go along with them: https://www.acep.org/regsandeggs. 
The CARES Act Provider Relief Fund Payment Attestation Portal  is now open. Providers who have been allocated a payment from the initial $30 billion general distribution must sign an attestation confirming receipt of the funds and agree to the terms and conditions within 30 days of payment.

More from ACEP
Daily COVID-19 updates from ACEP are available here.


 
                    
Ph: (614) 792-6506  |  Web: www.ohacep.org |  Email: bulletin@ohacep.org
Ohio ACEP
5980 Venture Dr, Suite B
Dublin, OH 43017

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