Coast Guard/Public Health Service Update

Coast Guard/Public Health Service Consultant Report

Coast Guard/PHS Consultant’s Report

Consultant’s Report – Spring 2023

Coast Guard/Public Health Service
Preciosa P. Pacia-Rantayo, MD, FAAFP
USCG Base Cape Cod Kaehler Memorial Clinic

As we just wrapped this year’s conference, let us remind ourselves of our theme: Strong, Diverse and Flexible. We are stronger together. There is truly power in numbers. Our role in caring for our patients while meeting other commitments are inherently possible when we join hands. Secondly, our acceptance of each other’s uniqueness and differences (diversity) empowers us. It adds to our academy’s foundation and is an important bedrock for what we stand for. And lastly, we are flexible: we adapt. The complexities of our health care system with its own administrative burden can be significantly daunting. Still, we find ways to be effective, we persevere, and we make changes. In the end, we as Uniformed Service of Family Physicians continue to excel.
In this edition, we have only a few brief updates from both the USPHS and USCG.

UPDATES FROM THE COMMISSIONED CORPS:
Below are summary points from the three most recent DHS Commissioned Corps meetings:

  • Appointments must be made if officers are wishing to come to Commissioned Corps Headquarters (CCHQ) in-person. This can be done by reaching out to eCMCS or to the appropriate email box. Commissioned Corps Management Information System (psc.gov)
  • In the Fall, we announced the addition of the Deployment Preparation Plan (DPP) to our annual requirement for Readiness. Each officer should have submitted the first DPP form. It was due on March 31, 2023. Officers who are missing a DPP will be designated as “Not Qualified”.
  • The USPHS Retirement policy has been updated. It is under Commissioned Corps Instruction (CCI) 384.03 and it combines regulations pertaining to Mandatory, Voluntary and Involuntary Retirement.
  • Officers assigned to non-HHS agency are required to submit the form, “Statement of Counseling –Acknowledgement of Conditions of Details to Non-HHS Agencies”. The form allows the officer to acknowledge the potential that he/she may be returned to Health and Human Services (HHS) by a non-HHS agency. It was due on March 15, 2023.
  • PHSPay has replaced the paper pay stub. It is available through the Access Management System (AMS), under the Open Access Internet Section.

First step is to LINK PHSPay Application to AMS
Log into AMS via https://ams.hhs.gov/amsLogin/SimpleLogin.jsp

  • For accountability and visibility, officers are asked to notify the Office of the Commissioned Corps Liaison (OCCL) when they travel overseas for personal reasons.

UPDATES FROM THE US COAST GUARD

  • Operation Vigilant Sentry (OVS) continues in Key West, Florida. It is mainly involved in the deployment of personnel, air and surface assets in response to illegal maritime migration in the Caribbean region of the US.
  • ALCOAST 052/23 was published recently. It was to solicit both enlisted and officer applications for consideration to attend the Uniformed Services University of the Health (USUHS).

As my term on the USAFP Board of Directors ends this Spring, I would like to thank the entire USAFP family for allowing me to serve. Thank you for the opportunity.

Best to all of you!