August 26, 2020

Dear PAS Community,

After thoughtful deliberation, the PAS Board of Directors has concluded that the  PAS 2021 Meeting will be entirely virtual. No in-person PAS Meeting activities will take place in Vancouver, April 28-May 5, 2021. Although we will miss seeing you in person for the second year in a row, changing our focus to a virtual event at this time will allow us to develop an exciting and innovative PAS 2021.

We are confident this decision is in the best interests of our attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and staff. First, and most importantly, the continuing pandemic creates critical concerns about our ability to provide for the health and safety of PAS participants. Second, the city of Vancouver is not permitting conventions until wide vaccination or community immunity or broad successful treatment is in place, and the Canadian border is currently closed to US visitors for an indefinite period. Given event planning lead times, transitioning to an alternate location in the U.S. is not an option. Finally, institutional travel restrictions continue and in some cases are being extended into 2021.

As we meet in new ways in 2021, our vision remains unchanged: The PAS Meeting will be the premier North American scholarly child health meeting. As we fulfill this vision, we remain committed to providing access to the high-quality research and knowledge that physicians, researchers, and educators expect from PAS – while keeping everyone safe in their homes and communities. We are excited about the new benefits and opportunities the virtual format offers, which we have seen amply demonstrated in the very successful PAS 2020 Summer Webinar Series. We will share more information about new opportunities in the weeks ahead. Please watch for further information beginning in September as we open our first call for scholarly content.

As we plan for PAS 2021, we welcome your feedback. Frequently asked questions can be accessed here.  Please feel free to contact us, if you have any comments or immediate questions. We are very grateful for your support of the PAS, and we look forward to meeting with you – virtually – in 2021.