AMA Releases COVID-19 Volunteer Guide for Health Care Professionals
The American Medical Association (AMA) has released a guide that includes information for physicians and health care professionals who want to support communities severely impacted by COVID-19. It tells how and where to volunteer—and things to consider before registering.
For state agencies and institutions, the guide includes information on third-party organizations that can identify and match volunteers accordingly as well as resources for credentialing in an emergency.
The MAVEN Project
The MAVEN Project is a nonprofit organization specializing in connecting volunteer physicians to underserved clinics and frontline providers via telehealth to enhance local care capacity. The MAVEN Project is aggregating physician volunteers for deployment in areas of greatest need—including at the state level—to support COVID-19 response efforts.
Guide for retired physicians
The AMA has curated a selection of resources to provide guidance to senior and retired physicians who may wish to return to work or are called upon to do so during the COVID-19 outbreak. This resource includes guidance on licensing, providing assistance that does not involve direct patient care, re-entering practice, managing professional liability and consideration of retirement status.
Other resources
Licensure
Many states have temporarily relaxed licensure requirements related to physicians who are licensed in another state, retired or clinically inactive. This includes waiving licensure requirements or offering a temporary expedited license for out-of-state or retired physicians. Many, but not all, of these measures apply to physicians providing telemedicine across state lines.
The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) is tracking executive orders related to licensure and providing details on licensing inactive or retired physicians who wish to become active during the pandemic. Please contact your state board of medicine or department of health for up-to-the minute information.
- Licensure guide on licensing inactive/retired physicians in each state.
- States that are declaring emergency declarations with details on licensing waivers.
Resources for medical staff
The National Association for Medical Staff Services (NAMSS) is monitoring the evolving COVID-19 pandemic and is committed to serving the medical services profession. The NAMSS guide for medical staff professionals includes topics such as the emergency system for advanced registration of volunteer health professionals, blanket waivers and more.
Organizations providing gratis access to data to verify credentials for physician volunteers
The AMA is extending access to its Physician Profile service to all state medical licensing boards and eligible state and federal agencies verifying physician credentials in response to COVID-19. If you are a medical licensing board, learn how to set up your account (PDF). If you are a state or federal agency, contact the AMA at ProfilesLevel2@ama-assn.org.
Physicians may also access their AMA credentials wallet and request to have their Physician Profile sent directly to a state medical licensing board at the AMA Profiles Hub.
The FSMB sent a letter to United States Vice President Michael R. Pence (PDF) on its intentions to make licensure and disciplinary information available in response to COVID-19.