On March 30, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the implementation of sweeping temporary regulatory changes that are intended to better equip the American healthcare system for dealing with the current COVID-19 pandemic. As the number of patients presenting to hospitals continues to surge, these new rules and waivers of preexisting federal requirements are designed to make sure hospitals and healthcare organizations have the capacity they need to adequately respond.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) on March 14, 2020. Then last week Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act with overwhelming bipartisan support. As expected, it was signed into law by President Trump on Friday, March 27, 2020. While the FFCRA is intended to make it easier for businesses to provide employees with sick leave and family leave, the $2 trillion CARES Act stimulus package is intended to lessen the financial and economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis on both businesses and individuals.

While it is true that most specialty practices are currently faced with partial closures due to COVID-19 isolation orders, many providers are still doing what they can to care for their patients. To help our readers minimize the risk of exposure in their practices while still providing necessary care, we’ve outlined several suggestions for safeguarding both patient and practice health.

Managing a remote team of employees can be difficult, especially for managers who have always been able to see their employees in the office during the work week. How do you delegate tasks properly? How do you maintain order and efficiency? How do you know your employees are even working when you have no way to watch them? These are all common concerns for those new to the management of remote teams. In order to better serve healthcare providers, this blog article is intended to provide our readers with basic tips and best practices for forming, organizing, and maintaining your team in a remote work environment.

On Tuesday, March 17, 2020, the Trump Administration announced a number of temporary measures that are meant to help combat the spread of COVID-19 under a newly passed bill called the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act. Unanimously approved by Congress, parts of this bill are intended to expand the uses of telehealth while relaxing HIPAA constraints for healthcare providers. In this blog, we will take a look at these temporary measures in order to keep our readers informed on maintaining compliance during the current COVID-19 public health state of emergency.

For specialty providers, the odds of needing to actually treat patients with COVID-19 are incredibly low. However, there are still certain actions that specialty providers should be taking to minimize the risk of exposure for staff, patients and themselves.

Attending a medical conference can add value to both your professional abilities as well as your practice. That being said, most of us would probably agree that, on at least one occasion, we have returned from a conference feeling that it did not provide the return we expected. Conferences are an investment of not only your time, but also money for things such as airline tickets, hotel stays, food, registration fees, etc. Therefore, we should expect to come back from a conference with some tangible returns such as new skills, new best practices and/or new strategies to implement.

As the leading cause of vision loss and blindness in the United States, glaucoma is a top concern across the ophthalmology community. Early disease identification, along with proper care management, are essential to limit ocular damage and preserve vision. It is critical for patients who have or who are at risk of getting glaucoma to regularly receive a comprehensive eye exam with dilation. January is Glaucoma Awareness Month, presenting a prime opportunity for ophthalmologists to review their glaucoma care processes and assess whether they are proactive and preventive. Technology can be an asset in this effort. An ophthalmology practice’s electronic medical record (EMR) and practice management (PM) systems, for example, can enable smoother, more reliable care and ensure patients receive the necessary treatment in a timely manner. Here are several ways these systems can elevate a practice’s approach to glaucoma management.