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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Planets Orbit The Sun

Planets Orbit The Sun Ellipse

Diagram Of Planets Orbits

Planets Orbit The Sun Like The Moon

The orbit of a planet is an ellipse with the Sun at one of the two foci. A line segment joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time. The square of a planet's orbital period is proportional to the cube of the length of the semi-major axis of its orbit. Anyway, the basic reason why the planets revolve around, or orbit, the Sun, is that the gravity of the Sun keeps them in their orbits. Just as the Moon orbits the Earth because of the pull of Earth's gravity, the Earth orbits the Sun because of the pull of the Sun's gravity.

This site brings you face to face with the solar system as it is now.. and also how it was and how it will be.

NEW : Events Calendar - The Next Big Solar System Event will be:

Total Lunar Eclipse

Starts: 2021/05/26 08:47:00The Moon will barely edge into total eclipse for just 14 minutes and 30 seconds. With the Moon just barely inside the Earth's umbral shadow, the Moon may be quite bright, but even so, this should be worth seeing for observers from the western Americas, the Pacific, Australia, and south-east Asia. The partial eclipse will last for 3 hours and 7 minutes in total. LinkEnds: 2021/05/26 13:49:00

Have you ever wondered 'Where are the planets right now?'

For people interested in astrology the current positions and movements of the planets are very important and can give you a clue into how you are feeling and how your day is going to pan out. For astronomers, it's equally important to know where the planets are so that they can observe them. For others, getting an understanding of where the Earth is in relation to the Sun and moon and planets is just, well, sort of nice to know. If you've ever sat outside at night and got into an discussion about whether that bright star is actually a planet, and if it is - 'Which planet is it?', then this site might help narrow down the options!

This online orrery (Note: an orrery is a machine that shows planetary positions) will hopefully help you to understand what's going on out there.

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Our live Solar System Map - Getting Oriented

Planets Orbit The Sun Ellipse

If you have our desktop version enabled on your computer, then the application shown above plots the position of the Earth and planets using data from this NASA's JPL website and is accurate between 3000 BCE and 3000 CE. If you have our mobile version enabled then we'll be showing you a simpler view of the solar system showing you the current planetary positions with the option of moving up to 30 days forwards or backwards.

Solar System Map of Current Planetary Positions

Both apps show a solar system map - a 'plan view' of the planets laid out in the plane of the ecliptic (the flat plane in which all the main planets move about the Sun).

Dwarf planet positions are also shown - but it should be realised that these objects often rise far above and below the plane of the ecliptic. This is because their orbital planes are tilted with respect to the ecliptic - by more than 40 degrees in some cases. So be aware that just because the app may occasionally show a planet and a dwarf planet to be very close to each other in the plan view, they may, in fact, be separated by a large perpendicular distance.

Earth's Tilt

As you may know, the Earth's axis is tilted over by 23.4 degrees and the Earth's North Pole currently points at the star known as Polaris - the North Star. The app is arranged so that the view is fixed to the stars and that Polaris is always off the top of the screen (and not shown). This means that the Earth's north pole is (currently) pointing towards the top of the screen, and the south pole towards the bottom. During the summer months of the northern hemisphere the north pole is pointing more towards the Sun and so the Earth is shown below the Sun. During the summer months of the southern hemisphere, the south pole points towards the Sun and so the Earth is shown above the Sun.

Unlike other online orreries in which you can look at the solar system from all angles, this site always shows the same view to try and help you keep your orientation. A north/south control allows the view to be changed from looking 'down' at the northern hemisphere to looking 'down' (or is it 'up'?) at the southern hemisphere. This allows you to tailor the view to the hemisphere you are in so that you can more easily relate the planetary positions as shown in this app with what you are seeing in the night sky. Seaborn python cheat sheet. In both views the North Star is kept towards the top of the screen.

Yearly Clock - or 'Where is the Sun?'

Because the display is locked with north tilting upwards, it acts rather like a clock face in which one revolution of the Earth about the Sun is one year, and each of the constellations approximately map to months of the year with January being when the Sun is mostly in Capricorn and December when the Sun is mostly in Sagittarius, etc.

The Zodiac, Equinoxes and Solstices and the seasons

Solstices and Equinoxes

December SolsticeMarch EquinoxJune SolsticeSeptember Equinox

The Zodiac display is centred on the Earth and oriented with the tilt of the earth. This display shows in which sign of the zodiac the Sun lies at any time. The sign of the Sun at a persons birth is called that person's Star Sign.

The Zodiac is locked to the tilt of the earth in this way: Because the earth is tilted the Sun lies in the northern hemisphere for six months and then in the southern hemisphere for six months. When the Sun crosses from the northern to the southern hemisphere this is called the Vernal Equinox and this event defines the direction between Aries and Pisces and hence the orientation of the whole Zodiac for the following year.

Currently, the winter and summer solstices occur as the Sun crosses the vertical zodiac line and the spring and autumn equinoxes when the Sun crosses the horizontal zodiac line. So, to use our anti-clockwise clock analogy (e.g. with the app in northern hemisphere mode) the winter (December) solstice is when the Earth is exactly at 12 o'clock from the Sun, the spring (March or Vernal) equinox is when the Earth is at 9 o'clock from the Sun, Summer (June) Solstice - it's at 6 o'clock and autumn (September or Autumnal) Equinox - it's at 3 o'clock from the Sun.

The longest and shortest days occur at the Solstices. At the Equinoxes, the day is almost exactly the same (12 hours long) all over the world.

UTC date and time of solstices and equinoxesyearEquinox MarSolstice JuneEquinox SeptSolstice Decdaytimedaytimedaytimedaytime20152022:452116:382308:202204:4820162004:312022:352214:212110:4520172010:292104:252220:022116:2920182016:152110:072301:542122:2220192021:582115:542307:502204:1920202003:502021:432213:312110:0320212009:372103:322219:212115:5920222015:332109:142301:042121:4820232021:252114:582306:502203:2820242003:072020:512212:442109:2020252009:022102:422218:202115:0320262014:462108:252300:062120:5020272020:252114:112306:022202:4320282002:172020:022211:452108:2020292008:012101:482217:372114:1420302013:512107:312223:2721

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Solstice and Equinox Data Courtesy of Fred Espenak, www.Astropixels.com

The Zodiac - and 'Hey.. That planet is in the wrong place!'

The zodiac in the desktop version always shows which sign of the zodiac the Sun is in. However it may not be correctly showing which sign each planet is in. 'How can that be?' you may ask. The reason is that the app has a slider control which changes the orbits of the planets from a diagrammatical view (i.e. all the planets in nice neat, equally separated, circular orbits) to a real view (i.e. all the planets in elliptical orbits with all the inner planets squashed in next to the Sun and the outer planets being widely spaced). Only when the orbit realism slider is in the real position (against the tick icon) are all the planets definitely shown in the correct sign of the zodiac. For info on the desktop version controls, click here.

Diagram Of Planets Orbits

This page by default shows the diagrammatic view. The Astrology page by default shows a geocentric view in which all the planets are shown where they are relative to the Earth - but without distances. This makes it easier to see where they are in the sky, and also means they are always shown in the correct sign of the zodiac.

The Zodiac - and 'Hey.. That planet is not in the star constellation shown!'

Sometimes people look into the night sky and expect that a planet shown to be in the zodiac sign of say 'Cancer' will be sitting over the star constellation Cancer. This is not always true since zodiac signs and constellations do not match up one to one. The reason for this is that for one, the constellations vary in size whereas zodiacs are all the same and for two, the constellations have moved (or rather the direction the Earth's north pole points has changed) since astrology began.

Planets Orbit The Sun Like The Moon

Indeed the direction the north pole points changes by 1 degree every 72 years (it's called precession), and completes a whole circle about every 26,000 years. This means that although the stars (mainly) stay in the same place, the solstices and equinoxes (which are defined by the movement of the Sun with respect to the Earth's axis) change by 1 degree every 72 years with respect to the stars. And because the position of the zodiac is defined by the equinoxes, it also rotates by 1 degree every 72 years with respect to the stars.

Our desktop app shows this precession in the zodiac. As time is wound forwards the Zodiac rotates in a clockwise direction (northern hemisphere view). The positions of the all planets (including the Earth) are shown with respect to the stars and so are unaffected by precession.

For more detailed explanations on other sites click here and if you'd like to see a video on all the complexities of the Earth’s motion and hence the positions of the stars, take a look here.

Which Planets are in Retrograde?

When the zodiac display is enabled, glowing indicators appear on those planets that are in retrograde - which means the planet is appearing to be moving backwards from its normal motion when viewed from Earth. The image to the left shows Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune in retrograde because Earth is speeding past on the inside orbit.

In Astrology, it is very important to know when the planets are in retrograde, and also when they stop and start to move forwards again (called the Stationary Direct) because it is believed that this motion can reverse and enhance the effect of the planet. For Astronomy, retrograde motions have no importance since they are simply the result of the motions of the planets relative to Earth.

Future Developments

This software is still under development with additional features being added when we can. Please feel free to let us know if there are any features you would like added or questions about the solar system you would like answered, or give us any comments on the application.

email: [email protected] or facebook:

Other Free Online Orreries and Solar System Simulations

For some reason 2 of the 3 online orreries I used to list here are no longer running which is a real shame. Anyhow, until I find some more good online orreries out there here is a good one:

3D Fun With lots of 3D features this application allows you to explore the solar system with many basic facts thrown in. Download guitar pro 6 keygen. It also allows you to see all the stars and constellations.

Altas Interactive Another nice online orrery, similar to ours.

Solar System Maps

To see a some interesting solar system maps including 'Space without the Space' and 'If the moon were only 1 pixel', visit our Solar System Maps page.

Additional reading at www.astronomynotes.com

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

First Law

Kepler was a sophisticated mathematician, and so the advance that he made in the study of the motion of the planets was to introduce a mathematical foundation for the heliocentric model of the solar system. Where Ptolemy and Copernicus relied on assumptions, such as that the circle is a “perfect” shape and all orbits must be circular, Kepler showed that mathematically a circular orbit could not match the data for Mars, but that an elliptical orbit did match the data! We now refer to the following statement as Kepler’s First Law:

The planets orbit the Sun in ellipses with the Sun at one focus (the other focus is empty).

For more information about ellipses, you can read in gory mathematical detail the page hosted at Mathworld, and there is also information on ellipses in Wikipedia.

Here is a demonstration of the classic method for drawing an ellipse:

The classic method for drawing an ellipse using a loop of string around two tacks separated by a small distance.

The two thumbtacks in the image represent the two foci of the ellipse, and the string ensures that the sum of the distances from the two foci (the tacks) to the pencil is a constant. Below is another image of an ellipse with the major axis and minor axis defined:

Diagram of a drawing of an ellipse, showing definition of major and minor axes and foci.

We know that in a circle, all lines that pass through the center (diameters) are exactly equal in length. However, in an ellipse, lines that you draw through the center vary in length. The line that passes from one end to the other and includes both foci is called the major axis, and this is the longest distance between two points on the ellipse. The line that is perpendicular to the major axis at its center is called the minor axis, and it is the shortest distance between two points on the ellipse.

In the image above, the green dots are the foci (equivalent to the tacks in the photo above). The larger the distance between the foci, the larger the eccentricity of the ellipse. In the limiting case where the foci are on top of each other (an eccentricity of 0), the figure is actually a circle. So you can think of a circle as an ellipse of eccentricity 0. Studies have shown that astronomy textbooks introduce a misconception by showing the planets' orbits as highly eccentric in an effort to be sure to drive home the point that they are ellipses and not circles. In reality the orbits of most planets in our Solar System are very close to circular, with eccentricities of near 0 (e.g., the eccentricity of Earth's orbit is 0.0167). For an animation showing orbits with varying eccentricities, see the eccentricity diagram at 'Windows to the Universe.' Note that the orbit with an eccentricity of 0.2, which appears nearly circular, is similar to Mercury's, which has the largest eccentricity of any planet in the Solar System. The elliptical orbits diagram at 'Windows to the Universe' includes an image with a direct comparison of the eccentricities of several planets, an asteroid, and a comet. Note that if you follow the Starry Night instructions on the previous page to observe the orbits of Earth and Mars from above, you can also see the shapes of these orbits and how circular they appear.

Kepler’s first law has several implications. These are:

The distance between a planet and the Sun changes as the planet moves along its orbit.

The Sun is offset from the center of the planet’s orbit.

Second Law

In their models of the Solar System, the Greeks held to the Aristotelian belief that objects in the sky moved at a constant speed in circles because that is their “natural motion.” However, Kepler’s second law (sometimes referred to as the Law of Equal Areas), can be used to show that the velocity of a planet changes as it moves along its orbit!

Kepler’s second law is:

The line joining the Sun and a planet sweeps through equal areas in an equal amount of time.

The image below links to an animation that demonstrates that when a planet is near aphelion (the point furthest from the Sun, labeled with a B on the screen grab below) the line drawn between the Sun and the planet traces out a long, skinny sector between points A and B. When the planet is close to perihelion (the point closest to the Sun, labeled with a C on the screen grab below), the line drawn between the Sun and the planet traces out a shorter, fatter sector between points C and D. These slices that alternate gray and blue were drawn in such a way that the area inside each sector is the same. That is, the sector between C and D on the right contains the same amount of area as the sector between A and B on the left.

Click on this image to launch the animation in Windows Media Player. It shows a planet sweeping out equal areas in equal times. Kepler's 2nd Law

Since the areas of these two sectors are identical, then Kepler's second law says that the time it takes the planet to travel between A and B and also between C and D must be the same. If you look at the distance along the ellipse between A and B, it is shorter than the distance between C and D. Since velocity is distance divided by time, and since the distance between A and B is shorter than the distance between C and D, when you divide those distances by the same amount of time you find that:

A planet is moving faster near perihelion and slower near aphelion.

The orbits of most planets are almost circular, with eccentricities near 0. In this case, the changes in their speed are not too large over the course of their orbit.

For those of you who teach physics, you might note that really, Kepler's second law is just another way of stating that angular momentum is conserved. That is, when the planet is near perihelion, the distance between the Sun and the planet is smaller, so it must increase its tangential velocity to conserve angular momentum, and similarly, when it is near aphelion when their separation is larger, its tangential velocity must decrease so that the total orbital angular momentum is the same as it was at perihelion.

Third Law

Kepler had all of Tycho’s data on the planets, so he was able to determine how long each planet took to complete one orbit around the Sun. This is usually referred to as the period of an orbit. Kepler noted that the closer a planet was to the Sun, the faster it orbited the Sun. He was the first scientist to study the planets from the perspective that the Sun influenced their orbits. That is, unlike Ptolemy and Copernicus, who both assumed that the planet's “natural motion” was to move at constant speeds along circular paths, Kepler believed that the Sun exerted some kind of force on the planets to push them along their orbits, and because of this, the closer they are to the Sun, the faster they should move.

Kepler studied the periods of the planets and their distance from the Sun, and proved the following mathematical relationship, which is Kepler’s Third Law:

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The square of the period of a planet’s orbit (P) is directly proportional to the cube of the semimajor axis (a) of its elliptical path.

P2∝a3This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

What this means mathematically is that if the square of the period of an object doubles, then the cube of its semimajor axis must also double. The proportionality sign in the above equation means that:

P2=ka3This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

where k is a constant number. If we divide both sides of the equation by a3This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers. , we see that:

P2/a3=kThis equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

This means that for every planet in our solar system, the ratio of their period squared to their semimajor axis cubed is the same constant value, so this means that:

(P2/a3)Earth=(P2/a3)Mars=(P2/a3)JupiterThis equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

We know that the period of the Earth is 1 year. At the time of Kepler, they did not know the distances to the planets, but we can just assign the semimajor axis of the Earth to a unit we call the Astronomical Unit (AU). That is, without knowing how big an AU is, we just set aEarth=1AUThis equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers. . If you plug 1 year and 1 AU into the equation above, you see that:

(P2/a3)Earth=(P2/a3)Mars=(P2/a3)JupiterThis equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

So for every planet, P2/a3=1This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers. if P is expressed in years and a is expressed in AU. https://agencyfox423.tumblr.com/post/655791848098496512/cares-act-copay. So if you want to calculate how far Saturn is from the Sun in AU, all you need to know is its period. For Saturn, this is approximately 29 years. So:

(P2/a3)Saturn=(29years)2/(aAU)3=1This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

(aAU)3=841This equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

(a AU) = 3√ 841 = 9.4 AUThis equation is not rendering properly due to an incompatible browser. See Technical Requirements in the Orientation for a list of compatible browsers.

So Saturn is 9.4 times further from the Sun than the Earth is from the Sun!

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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Ebay Garage Sale

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October 19, 20070 found this helpful

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I would say it really depends on what you are trying to sell. A garage sale is some setup and one weekend of intense work. It is good if you have a lot of things that you want to get rid of but aren't really worth a lot of money. Also, you should really do the garage sale during the nicer weather because you will get more traffic. If you are just trying to clean out the garage, consider having really cheap items or a free box to get the stuff to people who will use it. I did this with a couple packages of pull ups that we didn't need. I couldn't see selling them but someone grabbed them right away in the free bin.

Garage Sales By Zip Code

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Ebay is good if you have things that you need to get a specific price for or are worth more money. Keep in mind that you have no guarantee of selling anything on Ebay but it will cost you for the auction, no matter what. The work and cost is more spread out. If you do decide on Ebay, be sure to post good photos because you are more likely to get bids. Selling things in batches is often a good way to go because you seem to get more bids, because the shipping is less per item. You also need to make sure to send off items right away so that your rating doesn't go down.

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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Vsee Messenger

1-1 CHATS AND CALLS

All chat messages will be automatically archived by the system after 30 days.

1. Open the VSee Messenger app.

Description VSee gives you free 4-way group video calls, screen sharing and instant messaging, with a clean and simple design. VSee calls are secure, low bandwidth and work great on 3G, 4G and WiFi networks. Features:. 4-way Group Video Chat: see everyone at once. Screen Sharing: view apps and desktops shared from Mac and PC while video. Open the VSee Messenger app. Click on the contacts icon. On the search box, type the name or email address of the contact.

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2. Click on the contacts icon. On the search box, type the name or email address of the contact.

3. Hover your mouse over the contact, choose either the chat or videoicon. Alternatively, you can double-click on the contact's name.

4. Start typing your message to chat or click on the video icon to call.

CALL TESTING SERVICE

A very useful feature to check if your audio and video are working properly is to call VSee's call testing service. You can do this by calling [email protected].

Sometimes, [email protected] may not be available due to server maintenance and/or updates. If it is busy, just keep trying and eventually you should be able to get through. Please contact us at [email protected] if it keeps on ringing busy.

MUTE YOUR MIC AND SPEAKER

You can only mute your own mic and speaker. To do this, simply click on the mic and video icon.

ADJUST A PARTICIPANT’S AUDIO VOLUME

Open the video window of the specific participant. Move his volume slider according to your preference.

GROUP CHATS

1. Click on the message icon then on the compose icon.

2. On the search box, type and click on the name of the contacts you want to chat with.

3. Alternatively, you can right-click on a contact group and select Chat with this Group.

4. To make it a persistent group chat, you must name the group chat.

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5. Add more contacts to the group chat by clicking on the add contact icon. To start a group call, click on the video icon.

6. For more group chat options, click on the 3 horizontal dots.

Hide group info- This will hide the list of participants in a group chat.

Mute notifications- Mute chat notifications of a specific group chat.

Archive - This will remove a group chat from your list of messages.

Leave group - When you leave a group chat, other participants will see a note that you left.

IN CALL CHATS

In Call chats are temporary and disappear moments after a call has ended. It is used to create a quick chat window that all participants in a call can access.

1. While in a call, click Chat. If you are in a 1-1 call, this will just create a normal chat with the participant you are in a call with.

2. Another way is to open the VSee Messenger app, click on the 3 horizontal dots then Call / Meeting > In Call Chat.

ABOUT GROUP CALLS

Vsee Messenger App Store

GROUP CALLS > ADD PARTICIPANT

1. You may add participants in an ongoing 1-1 call, making it a group call. On your video window, click More then Add Participant. In doing so, you also view the meeting link info and phone number (with PIN) assigned for that meeting.

2. Search for your contacts to add to the call. Click Done to start calling them.

If you wish to invite others via a VSee meeting link or via phone, click on copy the meeting instruction and send the details to them. Cares act copay unemployment.

GROUP CALLS > CALL ALL USERS IN A GROUP CHAT

Go to the group chat and click on the video icon.

GROUP CALLS > CALL ALL USERS IN A CONTACT GROUP

Right-click on a contact group and select Call this Group.

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GROUP CALLS > MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

While VSee is technically capable of supporting up to 32 concurrent meeting participants, in reality, this would almost never happen due to network and CPU limitations. Indeed, many users will have quality issues with as few as 6 users in a call, so we typically recommend that you limit your group calls to 3-6 participants.

It's also helpful to know that most ISP's give you lower upload speeds and higher download speeds, so you may think you have plenty of bandwidth, when it's only your download speed that is sufficient.

VSee will automatically scale down A/V quality when it notices that it can not send all its data to all users. This might sometimes appear as a sudden blurriness.Hence, if everyone is on a great network and fast computers, it is completely possible to do larger groups calls. In fact, we regularly have 8-15 callers during our weekly staff meetings.

GROUP CALLS > TIPS AND TRICKS DURING A LARGE GROUP CALL

Have participants with low upload bandwidth mute their video.

Mute your audio while not talking and unmute when you need to talk to.

If you are sharing an application, consider sharing only the relevant areas by making it smaller.

Make sure no other applications (or devices on your network) are using up bandwidth (downloading, streaming media, etc.)

Plug in a network cable instead of Wi-fi.

JOIN A CALL VIA PHONE

If you are experiencing unexpected network or hardware issues, or simply cannot join a video call, do not fret! You have an option to join by phone dial-in.

1. On your video window, click More then Join via Phone.

2. Call the number and enter the PIN provided. Once connected, do not forget to click Disconnect Computer Audio to avoid echo.

VIEW RECENT CALLS

Open the VSee Messenger app. Click on the video icon to view your recent calls. Logging out will delete all your recent call records.

VSee gives you free group video calls, screen sharing, and instant messaging.

byVSee Lab, Inc.

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Description

VSee gives you free 4-way group video calls, screen sharing, and instant messaging, with a clean interface. Use VSee for secure, low-bandwidth calls on 3G, 4G, and WiFi networks. Features: • 4-way* group video chat: see everyone at once • API for integrating with Telehealth and other applications • Instant messaging • No Ads! • Works on 3G, 4G, and WiFi • Desktop app available on Mac and PC (see below for more info) • Low bandwidth: conserves data usage • Calls are encrypted end-to-end for absolutely no eavesdropping • Switch between front and back cameras * With sufficient bandwidth. VSee serves organizations around the world including IBM, Shell, the US Congress and hundreds of small and medium-sized businesses. Built on years of experience, VSee brings people together to work over video. Rely on this simple and secure tool for business and for personal use. We field-tested our Android app, fine-tuning the details for a great mobile video experience. VSee for Desktop: On Mac and PC, VSee offers additional collaboration features like file transfer and screen sharing. Group video calls and instant messaging work between PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, and Android. Learn more at vsee.com Feedback and support: (email protected) Like us at facebook.com/VSee Follow us on Twitter @VSee Recent changes: • Meeting moderator now has the superpower to mute other participants’ microphones. • All participants in a meeting can see when another participant is muted. • VSee now allows you to PIN lock the app if it has been idling for 10 minutes or more. • The local database is now stored in an encrypted format using AES-256 encryption. • Improved login and loading time on Android client. • Fixed crashes on Samsung Android devices caused by processing logging sometimes.

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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Backblaze Pricing B2

Welcome to our Backblaze review where we’ll take an in-depth look at one of the most well-established names in the world of online backup services. The key to Backblaze’s success lies in the incredible simplicity and automation of its backup processes. This, combined with its unlimited storage and competitive pricing, makes for a compelling package. Unfortunately, its licenses apply to one device only, and customizing your backup is more convoluted than it needs to be.

Backblaze also gives customers access to Backblaze B2 Storage, which will make your cloud backup target choices a lot simpler, if limited. If you compare Backblaze pricing to the rest of the.

So, how well does Backblaze stack up against the competition? Let’s find out.

Price per License $60. Total Cost $600. Quote valid until 30 days after quote made. Number of Computers 10. Email Me This Quote. By submitting this form, you are agreeing to be contacted by Backblaze Sales and to receive our Business Newsletter via email. You can unsubscribe from the Newsletter, if desired.

Our Pricing Has Nothing To Hide B2 Cloud Storage is ready-access, S3 compatible cloud storage that is incredibly affordable, cost predictable, and has no hidden fees. Our single tier pricing means you don't trade off storage affordability versus download costs. In addition, Backblaze has one pricing.

Key features:

One device per account

Unlimited storage capacity

15 day free trail

Integration with B2 cloud storage

Excellent file sharing system

Inheriting backup states across devices

Locating your computer remotely

Physical drive backup

Things we liked / disliked:

Easy setup

Almost automatic operation

Unlimited storage capacity

Backblaze only offers one computer per license

No full disk imaging support

Badly implemented private encryption key usage

Pricing

The Backblaze pricing scheme is as simple as it gets – it is one of the major contributors to the popularity of the service. Whether you go for the Personal plan or Backblaze Business, the price scheme remains the same. Backblaze provides backup with an unlimited storage capacity for one device per license across both of the plans. This costs either $6 per month (maximum flexibility but highest cost), $60 per year, or $110 for two years (cheapest option but requires the longest commitment).

If we compare Backblaze vs Carbonite, another similar cloud backup service, it’s clear that the basic offer at Backblaze is flat out better. While Carbonite’s cheapest plan also costs $6 per month, it’s a yearly plan, which has less flexibility than Backblaze’s monthly solution. If we compare it to the equivalent yearly plan at Backblaze, it works out to be more expensive ($72 vs $60).

Unlike iDrive, Backblaze offers no free plan, but its Personal and Business plans come with 15-day trial periods, no strings attached. Comparing Backblaze vs iDrive here, the latter’s 30 day free trial is also better, but 15 days should be more than enough to properly test any online backup service.

User Interface and Installation Process

The installation process for both the desktop and mobile apps is quick and easy, requiring only your email address and password. In terms of user interface, regardless of the device, emphasis is put on simplicity. Therefore, how much you will enjoy Backblaze’s interface depends mostly on how hands-on you like to get with your backups.

Backblaze Calculator

As almost any review of Backblaze will tell you, the software is fantastic for people who want to back up their storage device automatically and be done with it, without thinking too much about what to save and what to toss. The initial backup starts as soon as you install the app, and you can choose to let it run or go into the settings and check what’s being backed up (more info on that later in our review here).

The interface looks very basic and somewhat dated no matter what platform you are using. The white, grey, black, and blue color scheme makes Backblaze backup look like any generic early 2000’s Windows app, but all of the program’s features are clearly laid out.

The web interface allows you to access, share, or restore backed up files as well as check the status of your account and even locate your computer in case of theft.

The desktop app has much more extensive options available from the settings menu. You can check your latest upload speeds, set up threading/throttling limits to speed up uploads, or do a Backblaze storage review through checking which files are scheduled for backup. Adding and replacing folders or file types is done from the Exclusions menu, and there are dedicated sections for Reports and Issues, while you can also add a private encryption key from the Security menu or decide how backups are scheduled in the Schedule tab.

The mobile app is pretty basic. It allows you to view, search for, or download files that have been backed up. As a single license only supports one device, you cannot get anything from your phone backed up automatically. However, the app does support biometric authentication when logging in, for added security.

Features

Backing up and restoring files

Guitar 6 pro. Earlier in our Backblaze review, we mentioned that the company offers unlimited storage for one device per licence only. This license can be transferred to a new device (deleting your old backups in the process) or you can choose to inherit the previous backup state, so that when you change computers, only the new files will get backed up.

The backup procedure is mostly automatic, unless you choose to make manual changes. As soon as you first install the program and enter your Backblaze login, it begins the initial backup of your files. From there, you can pause the backup or go into the settings menu. You can also go into restore options. However, if you want to restore Backblaze’s online backup of your files, you will need to log in to the web interface first.

The automatic backup by default omits system files and anything in directories such as MSOCache, i386, Program Files, Windows, as well as the Recycle Bin. Initially, Backblaze didn’t allow for backup of file extensions such as iso, dmg, sys, msi, hdd, etc. at all, but these days you can choose to re-include any of these extensions into your online backup. You can also set file size limits when performing an online backup, which can range anywhere from 5 MB to unlimited (the default setting).

Our Backblaze backup review would be incomplete without mentioning how to get your files back once you’ve backed them up. Fortunately, it’s a really simple process. Just log in to the Backblaze web interface or mobile app. From there you can browse through your files on an interface or search for them by file name. You can also view hidden files or search for files based on a set timeframe.

Once you’ve picked the files you want, you can choose whether to download them directly (in .zip format), upload them to B2 cloud storage, or have them shipped on a USB flash (up to 256 GB) or a hard drive (up to 8TB). We won’t get into a detailed Backblaze B2 review here, but suffice it to say that Backblaze takes care of the file encryption and online backup portion, while B2 provides cloud storage not affected by your local or online backup storage. Backblaze licenses get you access to 10 GB of storage and 1 GB of downloads per day on B2. If you need more than that, every additional GB of storage will set you back $0.005, while a larger download capacity will cost $0.01 per GB per month.

While Backblaze’s cloud backup through the B2 service is limited, standard online backup provides unlimited storage. This can quickly lead to huge backup sizes, which can take a long time to upload and an even longer time to restore. Unlike iDrive Express, Backblaze doesn’t offer the option of getting an external storage device for initial backup purposes, but in order to quickly restore your backed up files later, you can order a USB flash drive for $99 or an external hard drive for $189.

However, as is common with the best online storage options on the market, returning the USB flash drive or HDD that they send you within 30 days makes you eligible for a full refund. The program is called Restore Return Refund, and it effectively makes the restoration of your files through physical drives free of charge, postal costs notwithstanding (only if you live in the United States).

File versioning

Being an unlimited online storage solution, you’d expect Backblaze to deliver when it comes to older file version retention. Unlike iDrive, for example, the limit here isn’t set by the number of file versions but rather by time. Backblaze reviews your files regularly and deletes 30-day-old copies, providing there are newer versions of the files available. You can pay an additional $2 per month for a one-year retention of any number of old files. You can also add an additional $0.005 per GB per month to keep the storage in their database forever.

Alternatively, if you’re using B2 cloud storage, it automatically creates new versions of uploaded files with timestamps, which can populate your cloud based backup until its capacities have been exhausted. B2 storage also features several advanced settings relating to how the file versions are stored, shown, or deleted for those who want more control over their uploaded files.

File sharing

The best cloud storage solutions allow you to easily share the files you’ve backed up online, and Backblaze is no different. Once you’ve made your backups, you can choose to share them with your friends from the View/Restore menu of the web interface. In order to do so, you have to be signed up to the B2 cloud backup services, though. Cares act copay. After clicking on your desired file and selecting the Share with Link option, the file becomes publicly available through that link.

Unlike the best cloud backup and sync options such as iDrive and Google Drive, there’s little you can do with read/write permissions, in order to restrict access to the file. Instead, people clicking on your link are given full access to an online copy of your chosen file.

Security and performance

So, the backup and restore options are extensive, and the file sharing options could be better. But how secure are your files, and how quick is it to upload and download them? Our Backblaze security review can be summed up in four words: it could be better. While Backblaze does offer a private encryption key, it’s something you have to opt for – it’s not selected by default. Worse, though, is how it is implemented. Because restoring your files is done entirely through the web interface, you effectively have to give the company your encryption key every time you log in to restore your files. Backblaze claims that the encryption key data is purged immediately after logging in, but it’s still a security oversight in our books.

Backblaze B2 Cost Calculator

According to the company, Backblaze encryption uses “2048-bit public/private keys to secure a symmetric AES 128-bit key that changes for every backup “session” on your computer.” In practice, this means that they don’t use full end-to-end encryption, but what’s there should be more than enough to keep any hackers away.

Additionally, we have to praise that all of Backblaze’s apps support two factor authentication, and the mobile app also has a biometric login option, which is a nice touch.

When it comes to speed, Backblaze won’t win any best online backup rewards, we’re afraid. Maybe it’s to do with the fact that in our Backblaze speed test we uploaded the data from a device located in Europe, but either way both our upload and download speeds were worse than iDrive’s. On a 150 Mbps upload connection, we managed around 16 Mbps during upload and 10 Mbps when recovering our files. As with most services of this type, if you have a huge number of files to backup, you need to review if Backblaze can do it in a reasonable timeframe or if using physical drives may be a better bet.

Luckily, the company’s Restore Return Refund program allows you to drastically speed up your restore times, however your initial backups will still take a while, as the service doesn’t send USB or hard drives to perform the backups, only recoveries.

Additional features

We’ve already mentioned the Restore Return Refund program and the handy computer locating service, which lets you attempt and find your lost or stolen device through any tracking IP address or device changes.

Let’s go back to our Backblaze Personal vs Business debate for a moment. Backblaze cloud storage for personal and business accounts are pretty similar in terms of functionality and price per device. However, there are some additional features that Backblaze Business offers its users that the Personal plan doesn’t have.

For example, cloud storage through B2 can help you expedite server backups and NAS data syncing through native integrations with Synology, QNAP, and TrueNAS. You also get access to a Web-based Admin Console for managing all of your business data and accounts.

In addition to providing online data storage, cloud syncing, and these extra services, Backblaze does a hard drive review every quarter as well, with insights about drive longevity and other stats based on the drives in its data center. While not necessarily helpful for your cloud storage needs, it is a nice bonus feature based on real life hdd usage by fellow Backblaze users.

Conclusion

It’s time to wrap up our Backblaze review. Having looked at the features, speed, and security of Backblaze, how does it stack up against the competition? As we hinted at the beginning of this article, Backblaze is best for people who are new to cloud backup and storage or just want an experience that’s mostly hands off. While you can definitely pick and choose what and what not to backup, the idea that you add files/file types and folders to exclude rather than include can be tedious if you just want a quick backup of a couple of folders on your computer.

Our Backblaze cloud storage review mentioned that cloud storage is done through the B2 platform. While handy for individuals (especially for syncing and sharing files), its true potential lies in the numerous excellent integrations with services such as Synology, QNAP, and TrueNAS. Additionally, the option to quickly restore files through a shipped USB or physical drive is an excellent feature for large scale backups. While Backblaze doesn’t have true end-to-end encryption, it’s security features are excellent with biometric and two-factor authentication adding an extra layer of protection for your files.

Things we liked / disliked:

Easy setup

Almost automatic operation

Unlimited storage capacity

Backblaze only offers one computer per license

No full disk imaging support

Badly implemented private encryption key usage

Backblaze B2b Pricing

FAQ

Yes. It’s especially good for beginners, as it does almost everything automatically.

It’s secure but with a caveat regarding the implementation of private encryption keys. Check our Backblaze review for more details, but in short, it uses a mix of RSA and AES encryption and generally does an excellent job of keeping your data safe.

Yes, it’s one of the main selling points of Backblaze. However, optional B2 cloud storage is not unlimited, and new Backblaze accounts get 10 GB of storage space.

Backblaze Pricing B2 Pdf

The standard length for duplicate or locally deleted files is 30 days, but you can extend that to two years or an unlimited amount of time by paying extra.

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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Seaborn Python Cheat Sheet

Seaborn Python Cheat Sheet For Beginners

Python Quick Reference Pdf

Karlijn Willems

You most probably will know by now that data storytelling, accomplished by data visualization, amongst other things, is an essential skill for every data scientist: after you have turned the raw data into understanding, insights and knowledge, you also need to communicate these findings effectively to your audience.

For most beginners, the first Python data visualization library that they use is, naturally, Matplotlib. It is a Python 2D plotting library that enables users to make publication-quality figures. It is quite an extensive library where a cheat sheet will definitely come in handy when you’re learning, but when you manage to use this library effectively, you’ll also be able to get insights and work better with other packages, such as Pandas, that intend to build more plotting integration with Matplotlib as time goes on.

Another package that you’ll be able to tackle is Seaborn, the statistical data visualization library of Python.

Guitar 6 pro. https://agencyfox423.tumblr.com/post/655791848098496512/cares-act-copay. DataCamp has created a Seaborn cheat sheet for those who are ready to get started with this data visualization library with the help of a handy one-page reference.

Seaborn Python Cheat Sheet For Beginners

Python supports a lot of data visualization libraries, the basic one is Matplotlib, here the cheat sheet of matplotlib library. If you need more beautiful or more advanced visualization, you can use 1) Seaborn library (here the cheat sheet of Seaborn library) or 2) Bokeh library (here the cheat sheet of Bokeh library). Python - Seaborn IMGs Cheat Sheet by aggialavura - Cheatography.com Created Date: 5828Z.

You’ll see that this cheat sheet presents you with the five basic steps that you can go through to make beautiful statistical graphs in Python.

Python Quick Reference Pdf

Seaborn Seaborn is a python graphic library built on top of matplotlib. It allows to make your charts prettier with less code. This page provides general seaborn tips. Python is a storehouse of numerous immensely powerful libraries and frameworks. Among them, is Seaborn, which is a dominant data visualization library, granting yet another reason for programmers to complete Python Certification. Seaborn crash course¶ ¶ Seaborn is an amazing data and statistical visualization library that is built using matplotlib. It has good defaults and very easy to use. Load sample dataset; Distribution plots. Plotting dist of 2 variables. Annotating with correlation.

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agencyfox423 · 3 years

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Cares Act Copay

May 28, 2020

What Does Cares Act Cover

Cares Act Covid Testing Copay

Who Pays For Cares Act

Many insurance companies require patients to make a copay when the insurance pays for certain medical bills. Co-pays can be burdensome for patients. But the government views them as an important part of Medicare. As a result, routine copay waiver is illegal and results in criminal and civil penalties. Routine co-payment waiver also violates the False Claims Act, and the government and whistleblowers can recover millions of dollars for this practice.

What Is A Copay?

$0 Primary Care at Spira Care Centers; deductible then coinsurance for in-network outside of Spira Care. $10 Telehealth copay on Blue KC Virtual Care App, or in-network; $0 copay for Virtual Care visit with a Spira Care Center provider. Use the links below to locate in-network doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals. The Affordable Care Act. Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), insurance companies are required to cover all prescription birth control options for women. You can get this prescription birth control without having to pay a copay at the pharmacy–even if you haven't yet reached your deductible. CARES Act Provider Relief Fund: For Patients COVID-19 Vaccine Coverage Regardless of Insurance Status All organizations and providers participating in the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program (which currently includes any provider administering COVID-19 vaccine). Patient Advocate Foundation's Co-Pay Relief program exists to help reduce the financial distress patients, and their families face when paying for treatment. We believe that no patient should go without life changing medications because they cannot afford them. We are here to help.

Copay is short for copayment. It is a portion of a medical bill that the patient is responsible for paying directly to the provider. The amount of a co-pay is set by the insurer. For example, the copay under Medicare Part B, which covers doctor visits and most out of hospital services, is 20% of the total approved charge.

Copays are not charged for all procedures. For example, the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, requires that certain preventative procedures must be covered without any cost sharing.

Copayments, coinsurance and deductibles are collectively referred to as patient cost sharing. The Government views them as an integral part of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. It believes that requiring patients to share some costs makes them better health care consumers. This is a hotly debated issue in health policy. Recent proposals to reform health care, including most Medicare for All proposals, entirely eliminate patient cost sharing.

What Is A Copay Waiver?

Copay waiver occurs whenever a health care provider or supplier is paid by an insurer but chooses not to collect a copay. Co-pay waiver can take several forms. These include:

Billing but not collecting a copayment.

Writing-off copayment amounts.

Discounting products and services and applying the discount only to copayment amounts.

Product and Drug Manufacturers offering copay cards to pay copayments charged by pharmacists and equipment vendors.

Third-party charities paying patients’ copayment amounts.

When Is It Illegal To Waive Copays?

It is important to remember that not all copay waivers are illegal. Only routine co-pay waivers designed to induce additional business that violate the law. For example:

Routine Copay Waiver Violates The Law

It is not illegal to write off a patient’s copay balance if the provider makes a good-faith attempt to collect. However, when a provider has a policy of not attempting to collect copays that becomes illegal. Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, identified several suspect behaviors that indicate illegal routine copay waiver.

Advertisements that state that Medicare will be accepted as payment in full.

Advertisements that promise discounts to Medicare beneficiaries.

Routine use of financial hardship forms without attempt to determine patient’s financial situation.

Collection of copayments only where patient has supplemental insurance that pays for copays.

Charging more to Medicare beneficiaries to offset the waiver of coinsurance.

Sham insurance programs that offer to cover copays but have insignificant premiums.

Sham Patient Assistance Programs Violate The Law

It is entirely appropriate for providers, practitioners or suppliers to forgive the copayment if the patient has a demonstrable financial hardship. Similarly, a legitimate Patient Assistance Program (often referred to as PAP) is entirely legal. However, the provider must make an individualized determination of patient need. When a provider regularly waives copays due to financial hardship without actually evaluating patients’ needs, it violates the law.

The government has recently been cracking down on a sophisticated version of this fraud. Large companies help establish independent Patient Assistance Programs. Those charities, in turn, pay co-payments for customers of the company’s product. The government recognizes this as illegal copay waivers and, along with whistleblowers, has obtained millions of dollars in settlements. These include:

Our case against US WorldMeds LLC was the first successful whistleblower False Claims Act case based on patient assistance fund. In 2019, US WorldMeds, agreed to pay the United States $17.5 million and entered into a five year Corporate Integrity Agreement. The whistleblowers, including our client, received a $3.15 million share.

In 2018, Pfizer agreed to pay $24 million and enter a corporate integrity agreement to resolve claims that it used a foundation as a conduit to pay the copays of Medicare patients taking three Pfizer drugs, in violation of the False Claims Act. Pfizer then made “donations” to the foundation to cover the copays.

In December 2017, United Therapeutics paid $210 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to Medicare patients through a purportedly independent charitable foundation.

Misuse of Copay Coupons Violates The Law

Pharmaceutical manufacturers offer copayment coupons to insured patients to reduce or eliminate patients’ out-of-pocket costs for their branded drugs. Sometimes, manufacturers may contract with coupon vendors to create and administer coupon programs on their behalf. A manufacturer may offer a coupon for a branded drug to reduce the copay below its competitors. Sometimes, the coupon eliminates the copayment altogether.

Copay coupons are legal for patients covered by private insurance, but illegal for Medicare Part D recipients. Nevertheless, in 2014, HHS-OIG found that 6%-7% of Medicare recipients reported using copay coupons. When sponsors of these programs do not take sufficient care to exclude Medicare recipients, they can violate the law.

Why Is Routine Copay Waiver Illegal?

Routine waiver of deductibles and co-pays violates the law for two reasons. First, it violates the Anti-Kickback Statute. Second, it causes Medicare to pay more than it should in violation of the False Claims Act.

Why Does Routine Copay Waiver Violate The Anti-Kickback Statute?

The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits medical providers from offering, soliciting, paying, or receiving anything of value in exchange for referrals of Government Health patients. Discounts are a form of kickback under the Anti-Kickback Statute. Therefore, when a provider regularly waives copays in order to make his services seem cheaper to potential customers, he is offering a thing of value and violates the Anti-Kickback Statute.

Moreover, providers and manufacturers often use copay waivers to induce doctors to prescribe their drugs or products instead of cheaper generic competitors. The Anti-Kickback Statute also prohibits offering discounts to induce prescriptions or referrals of your product.

Why Does Copay Waiver Generate False Claims?

The False Claims Act forbids anyone from submitting a false or fraudulent claim to the government. Routine waiver of copays leads to false claims for two reasons.

First, the Government does not pay for claims induced by illegal kickbacks. Thus, claims induced by violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute are false under the False Claims Act.

Second, a provider that routinely waives copays or deductibles is lying to the government about the cost of the drug. Medicare typically pays 80 percent of the reasonable charge for a good or service. Generally, Medicare will not pay more than the customary charge or the highest prevailing charge.

So, when a provider tells the government that the “actual charge” is $100, Medicare is willing to pay $80. But, when the provider routinely waives the $20 copayment, the actual charge is $80. The provider inflated his actual cost by $20, and if Medicare had known the truth, it would only have paid 80% of that or $64.

What Are Penalties For Routine Copayment Waiver?

Under the False Claims Act, a provider is liable for three times the damages plus False Claims Act penalties. In 2020, False Claims Act penalties range as high as $23,330 per false claim. Under the Anti-Kickback Statute, a provider can be liable for up to 5 years imprisonment and $25,000 per violation. In addition, OIG may also initiate administrative proceedings to exclude a person from Federal health care programs.

Examples Of False Claims Act Cases Involving Copay Waivers

In 2018, Pharmaceutical company Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc agreed to pay $360 million to resolve claims that it illegally used a foundation as a conduit to pay the co-pays of thousands of Medicare patients taking Actelion’s pulmonary arterial hypertension drugs, in violation of the False Claims Act.

A compounding Pharmacy, Pentec Health, agreed in 2019 to pay the United States $17 million to settle allegations that it routinely waived copays.

In 2019, DOJ announced that compounding pharmacy Diabetic Care Rx LLC, or Patient Care America (PCA), and executives agreed to pay over $21 million to settle a False Claims Act suit in part based on copay waivers.

In 2020, DOJ announced a $500,000 settlement against SPR Specialty Pharmacy, Mead Square Pharmacies and their owner in part for waiving required co-payments.

Conclusion

While it seems like waiving copays is good for patients, the Government takes a different view. Routinely waiving copays can violate the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act. These violations can lead to lawsuits worth millions of dollars to the government and whistleblowers. If you are aware of a provider that routinely waives copays, Whistleblower Law Collaborative can help.

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Apr 8, 2020

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The Provider Relief Fund supports American families, workers, and the heroic healthcare providers in the battle against the COVID-19 outbreak. HHS is distributing $178 billion to hospitals and healthcare providers on the front lines of the coronavirus response.

For Providers

Sign an attestation, accept or refuse funds, agree to terms and conditions, submit revenue information, and request reimbursement.

For Patients

Read about billing and cost-sharing information for patients with or without insurance seeking COVID-19 testing and/or treatments.

About the Provider Relief Fund

Learn about how HHS is allocating the funds to reach those on the front lines and protecting patients' access to health care.

Data

Explore the full list of providers who have received funding for the coronavirus (COVID-19) response.

Reporting Requirements and Auditing

Learn about reporting requirements for recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments. Recipients are also subject to auditing.

FAQs

What Does Cares Act Cover

Find answers to questions about the attestation process, eligibility, reporting requirements, and more.

Cares Act Covid Testing Copay

In accordance with the Office of Management and Budget's Memorandum M-20-21, all financial information that agencies are required to report concerning their disposition of CARES Act and other supplemental COVID-19 appropriated funds is publicly available on USAspending.gov. View the COVID-19 Spending profile page.

Who Pays For Cares Act

This content is in the process of Section 508 review. If you need immediate assistance accessing this content, please submit a request to [email protected]. Content will be updated pending the outcome of the Section 508 review.

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