Dear Members of PHBA:
It is with much disappointment that I must inform you that the 2020 PHBA National Convention will be canceled. This decision comes after much research. The President of the United States has declared a National Emergency and the rise of cases of the Corona Virus is escalating rapidly. We have been monitoring the situation closely and you should know that the Illinois Legislative building has been closed along with other state facilities in the Springfield area. In addition legal counsel has been in touch with the Illinois Department of Health and they have advised us not to travel to Springfield.
I encourage each of you to cancel any hotel reservations that you have in a timely manner to avoid any charges. Cancellations must be made at least 24 hours prior to your scheduled arrival to avoid charges.
The Executive Board takes this situation very serious and will be working in the days ahead to come up with a plan for handling the business of PHBA. Until that time, I would ask that you please not flood the PHBA office with questions concerning any aspect of the convention as they will not have answers for you until the EB puts a plan in place. Please feel free to email any suggestions and ideas to me (lmcdowell4@gmail.com) and I will present those to the EB.
Thank you for your patience in this matter and rest assured that the entire EB and PHBA’s legal counsel is working in the best interest of PHBA and its members. Please be safe!
Sincerely,
Lowanda McDowell
2019-2020 PHBA President