ORLANDO, Fla. — It’s billed as “the can’t-miss health information and technology event of the year,” but the 2020 HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition was just canceled.
The organization blamed the coronavirus.
“We recognize all the hard work that so many have put into preparing for their presentations and panels that accompany every HIMSS conference,” CEO of HIMSS Hal Wolf said in a statement.
“Based on evaluation of evolving circumstances and coordination with an external advisory panel of medical professionals to support evidence-based decision making, it is clear that it would be an unacceptable risk to bring so many thousands of people together in Orlando next week.”
HIMSS said it's concerned not only about hosting such a large gathering but also putting unnecessary strain on health care systems around the world by taking so many medical professionals off the job.
CNBC reports President Trump was scheduled to address the conference about how health technology firms can better work together.
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