Acronym du jour:
Here’s a fun one — PECOS. That stands for Medicare Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System. For pages of more acronyms explaining the PECOS system and provider enrollment process, visit the PECOS FAQ page.

Beware the Lassa Fever:
It’s not as deadly as Ebola, but, like Ebola, Lassa fever is a hemorrhaggic fever and is spread through contact with infected bodily fluids. A New Jersey man recently died of the diesease after returning from a visit to Liberia, and 150 peole with whom he had contact now are being watched closely for symptoms of the fever, which include sore throat, back and abdominal pain, facial swelling, vomiting, hearing loss and tremors. Learn more at the CDC’s Lassa fever website.

Carolinas Healthcare Visits the White House:
Tomorrow officials from Carolinas Healthcare will visit the White House with a select group of organizations to participate in the White House Forum on Antibiotic Stewardship. The Forum will engage top leaders from a range of industries — including health care, diagnostics and food — in conversation about ways to leverage their industry expertise to more aggressively combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria at the national level.
“Carolinas HealthCare System is excited to contribute to this larger conversation on preventing and combatting the overuse of antibiotics, both in healthcare and other settings,” said James C. Hunter, MD, chief medical officer for the System, who will attend the Forum. “We are proud of the work we are already doing in this area and applaud the White House for placing additional emphasis on this important topic.”