2021 COVID-19 Policy and Health Plan
The PME-NA43 Local Organizing Committee is excited to welcome you to Philadelphia this October 14-17. We are taking a variety of steps to promote health and reduce risks at the conference, and we believe that we can provide a safe environment for all our attendees. We are monitoring the status of the pandemic closely and may update these plans based on changes in government guidance.
- For the safety of our in-person attendees, we will be enforcing a vaccine mandate. All registered in-person attendees must show proof of full vaccination before checking in to the conference. You can upload your proof of vaccination when you register for the conference (if you are already registered but did not upload proof of vaccination at the time of registration, use this link: https://bit.ly/pmenacovid). Attendees unable to be vaccinated can present proof of a negative covid test obtained within 72 hours of the start of the conference (but we still encourage you to get vaccinated if possible).
- For anyone who feels that their health (or their family’s health) would be put in jeopardy by in-person attendance at the conference, we encourage you to register for our virtual experience – just $150 for faculty or $75 for students if registered by August 31! (This is also the best option for anyone unable/unwilling to show proof of vaccination or negative test.) We will be providing a robust conference experience for virtual attendees, with the option to join every research report, brief report, and working group live through our conference website. We also offer virtual presentation options (described more fully at: http://www.pmena.org/2021-hybrid-plan/) for authors and presenters.
- PME-NA will not be providing coronavirus testing onsite, but we will provide information about opportunities for covid testing near the conference hotel.
- Currently, Philadelphia has a citywide mask mandate for public indoor spaces. In alignment with that policy, we will require masks in all our meeting rooms and hotel spaces. (Note: we will continue to require masks even if the citywide mandate is lifted before the start of the conference.) We are also keeping physical distancing in mind as we plan our conference events and room layouts.
Other health and safety practices:
- We are working closely with our hotel partner (the Sheraton Downton Philadelphia) to promote health and safety at the conference site. Masks are required in all public spaces within the hotel. Information about their current covid policies can be found at: https://whattoexpect.marriott.com/phlws
- For meals, we are working with the hotel to provide flexibility and promote safe practices during meals. Included conference meals will be served buffet-style with enhanced safety procedures (e.g. social distancing in buffet line, disposable food safety gloves provided/required to reduce possible touch contamination, etc.), and attendees will be welcome to take their food to their own hotel room, or wherever they feel most comfortable eating. The meals will be served in a large room with plenty of space for social distancing.
- We will provide information about covid-safe dining options in Philadelphia, including restaurants that require vaccination and options that don’t require visiting indoor restaurants.
- In line with the newly-revised PME-NA Cancellation Policy, registrations are fully refundable (minus a $50 processing fee) until three weeks before the conference starts. Within three weeks of the conference, registrants will be able to change their registration type from in-person to virtual and will receive a refund of the difference in price between those attendance types (again, minus a $50 processing fee). This revised policy is designed to provide flexibility for anyone experiencing health issues close to the date of the conference. Anyone who is experiencing covid-19 symptoms or who may have been in contact with a positive covid-19 case should not attend in person, and should request a change to virtual attendance.
- Hand sanitizer will be provided in your check-in packet and at stations throughout the hotel and meeting spaces.
We hope that this information will help your decision-making for the conference. If you need any more information, please email us at 2021pmena@gmail.com.