Coronavirus Update: You Are Making A Difference

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House Speaker Tina Kotek

Coronavirus Update: You Are Making A Difference

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I hope everyone was able to relax a bit this weekend, even as the realities of living in a pandemic really sink in. Thank you, again, for everything you’re doing to stay home and maintain social distancing practices to stop the spread of coronavirus.

I know this is a difficult time for so many people, particularly if you or a loved one is sick or has lost a job. If you are in this position, please know that you are in my thoughts and I am working hard to push the state to allocate gap funding for Oregonians most in need as we wait for the $2 trillion federal relief package (CARES Act) to make a difference.

If you read or watched the news this weekend, you may have seen some troubling updates from the federal government about how difficult the coming week will be for many Americans. And while so much of what we hear is negative or sad, please know that your efforts to stay home are making a monumental difference. Data continues to show that Oregon is in a better position than other states.

Of course, the positive news we are seeing from modeling can’t predict the future. It assumes we all continue to do our part and stay home as much as possible. So, even if the model projections bring encouraging news, please know that it means we need to continue to stay home and save lives.


Protecting Our Mental Health

With that said, I also understand how isolation from friends and family members can take a toll on our individual and collective mental health. Always remember, you don’t have to go through this alone.

The federal government has a Disaster Distress Helpline that provides 24/7, 365-day-a-year crisis counseling and support to people experiencing emotional distress related to natural or human-caused disasters. Call the Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746 to speak to a trained crisis counselor.

Here are additional resources:

  • Multnomah County Mental Health Call Center: 503-988-4888; toll-free, 1-800-716-9769; Hearing-impaired dial 71
  • Lines for Life crisis line call center: 1-800-273-8255, or Text ’273TALK’ to 839863
  • National Alliance for Mental Illness (Oregon helpline): 1-800-343-6264

This is a particularly difficult time for our students of all ages. Portland Public Schools has put together these resources and recommendations for parents to help their students struggling amid the stress and uncertainty of this global pandemic. And, for older students, check out the #Talk2BeWell podcasts at Work2BeWell.


Keeping Our Distance While Wearing a Mask

Last Friday, I briefly mentioned that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now recommends that people wear cloth or fabric face coverings when they go outside in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus. After reading more about this, it seemed like a good idea to talk about this just a little bit more.

Right now, this is a voluntary recommendation. But, for me, it seems like a natural next step in our Stay Home, Save Lives effort. Through our actions, we can make a difference and help fight this pandemic.

Here’s what we know: People still need to leave their homes, either for essential work, essential shopping, or some fresh air. We are also finding out, with more data, that people who have the virus and don’t have any symptoms are spreading the virus to others.

So, when we go out, we can do more by wearing something over our face. The goal is to reduce the spread to others.

But we have to be careful about touching our faces or fiddling with the mask or face cover when we’re out. For example, touching a door handle at a store and then adjusting your mask could be a problem. So, if you decide to wear a mask, please remember to be careful and not touch it while you’re out (even if it’s uncomfortable).

Also, while masks can be helpful, only medical-grade masks are most effective for preventing the spread of coronavirus and they should be reserved for frontline health care workers. As a reminder, anyone who has access to personal protective equipment (PPE), like medical-grade masks, gowns and gloves, can donate here to help our frontline health care workers.

So, to recap: Wearing a mask can help, but social distancing is still the most essential thing we can do to stop the spread. Staying home as much as possible, regularly washing our hands and keeping at least 6 feet between you and others while you’re out are the essential things we can do to get through this.

The Oregon Health Authority has guidelines on wearing masks in public here.

OHA Mask Guidelines

The Latest News

  • Kudos to Governor Brown for donating 140 ventilators that Oregon received from the federal government to the State of New York over this past weekend. New York has more than 130,000 cases of coronavirus and seen nearly 5,000 deaths. Only three other states have more than 15,000 diagnosed cases (Oregon surpassed 1,000 diagnosed cases over the weekend). While the situation here is still incredibly serious, our state has more than 700 ventilators that are currently not in use. We’re all in this together as Americans, regardless of our state borders, and we’re all doing what we can to stop the spread and save lives for those most in need. New York has pledged to return the favor, if and when we need help.
Cuomo Oregon

  • Over the weekend, Governor Brown prepared to mobilize the Oregon National Guard to help distribute personal protective equipment like N95 masks.
  • The Oregon Health Authority announced 64 more diagnosed cases of coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 1,132. Oregon crossed the threshold of 1,000 diagnosed cases over the weekend. Sadly, 29 individuals have now died in Oregon from coronavirus.
OHA COVID-19 Update 4-6-20

Medicare Coverage

For those who have Medicare coverage, you should know that Medicare covers COVID-19 related needs.

  • Medicare covers lab tests for COVID-19. You pay no out-of-pocket costs.
  • It also covers all medically necessary hospitalizations. This includes if you're diagnosed with COVID-19 and might otherwise have been discharged from the hospital after an inpatient stay, but instead you need to stay in the hospital under quarantine.
  • At this time, there's no vaccine for COVID-19. However, if one becomes available, it will be covered by all Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Part D).

If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan, you have access to these same benefits. Medicare allows these plans to waive cost-sharing for COVID-19 lab tests. Many plans offer additional telehealth benefits. Check with your plan about your coverage and costs.

We also want to remind you that scammers may use the coronavirus pandemic to take advantage of people. As always, guard your Medicare card like a credit card. Check Medicare claims summary forms for errors. And if someone calls asking for your Medicare number, hang up!


For up to date information, please check this link to the Oregon Health Authority where regular updates are posted: https://www.oregon.gov/oha/ERD/Pages/News-Releases.aspx

Please email me at Rep.TinaKotek@oregonlegislature.gov if you have specific concerns that have not been addressed by the OHA. Our office will do all we can to help and protect all Oregonians.

Thank you for reading! We will get through this together.

Best,

Tina

Tina Kotek

State Representative
House District 44
Speaker of the House

email: Rep.TinaKotek@oregonlegislature.gov I phone: 503-986-1200
address: 900 Court St NE, H-269, Salem, OR 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/kotek