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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
I want to start off today by highlighting some important work recently announced by researchers at Oregon Health & Science University, which was the subject of a story in The Oregonian here. The disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Latinx and Black communities is not a new fact, but this new study shows that the unequal spread is about increased exposure to the virus driven by social factors and not preexisting health conditions. The full study can be found here.
Disparate impact of the virus has been a serious issue from early in the pandemic. Last week’s COVID-19 Weekly Report from the Oregon Health Authority noted that individuals identifying as Hispanic account for 13% of Oregon’s population but 40% of the cases.
We know this virus doesn’t discriminate. It’s incredibly contagious and a risk to all of us. However, state and local government must do more to reduce the disparities. By improving workplace protections, strengthening culturally-competent outreach campaigns, and increasing access to testing, we have to step up. We can’t lose sight of the fact that not every Oregonian is being impacted the same by this pandemic.
Yesterday, Oregon hit another unfortunate milestone with a record-high 36 deaths in one day, only four days after Oregon reached 1,000 total deaths late last week. Since my last newsletter, we’ve had three days with at least 30 deaths and recorded 138 deaths in only six days.
- Friday, December 4: 2,176 cases, 30 deaths
- Saturday, December 5: 1,847 cases, 24 deaths
- Sunday, December 6: 1,290 cases, 6 deaths
- Monday, December 7: 1,331 cases, 12 deaths
- Tuesday, December 8: 1,341 cases, 36 deaths
- Wednesday, December 9: 1,243 cases, 30 deaths
One bit of encouraging news is that the first COVID-19 vaccines in the world have started being distributed in the United Kingdom. The first shipment of vaccines from the federal government are due to arrive in Oregon around December 15 and will be distributed according to Oregon’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan. It will be several months before a vaccine is available to the general public.
Until then, it’s important to continue to minimize close contact with others, keep gatherings small, wear a face covering, and wash your hands frequently.
I continue to be frustrated at the pace of negotiations taking place in Congress over another desperately needed federal relief package. Up to 70,000 Oregonians will lose their additional jobless benefits by the end of the year if the federal government doesn’t take action.
Below are some notable updates and timelines from the Oregon Employment Department on existing benefit programs:
Extended Benefits - Extended Benefits (EB) extends regular Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits when a state is at high unemployment. It is not available to people receiving PUA or DUA benefits.
Because of Oregon’s high unemployment rate, we had been paying 20 weeks of High Extended Benefits (HEB). Now that our unemployment rate has decreased, a federal determination was made to reduce the benefit extension to up to 13 weeks of benefits. This reduction in benefits takes effect December 13, 2020. Read more here about EB and what it means for your benefits.
CARES Act Benefits End December 26 - The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Employment Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) federal benefits program are ending soon. The last day to file a claim for PUA and PEUC benefits is the week ending December 26, 2020. Action by Congress and the president is required to provide more funds.
If you qualify for EB, the department will automatically move you to that program for up to 13 additional weeks of benefits. EB is at the same benefit amount as regular UI benefits.
If you don’t qualify for EB or have already used your 13 weeks of benefits, these resources may help:
- If you need help paying for rent, groceries, child care, or other critical resources you may be eligible for benefits. For more information, call 2-1-1 or visit 211info.org.
- You may also qualify for free or low-cost health coverage through the Oregon Health Plan. Visit OregonHealthCare.gov or call 800-699-9075 for more. Even if you’ve been denied before, apply again.
Restarting Your Claim - Governor Brown has restricted activities in many Oregon counties based on the COVID-19 risk level. Due to restrictions in your county, you may have had your employment impacted by COVID-19 once again.
Here are some tools that will help you restart your claim:
- Read the FAQ on how to restart a claim here
- Learn how to restart a claim by watching this video tutorial here
- Review the step-by-step instructions for restarting a claim using the Online Claim System here
Adjudication - If your claim is in adjudication, the department may reach out to you for more information by phone, email, or mailed letter.
You may receive a call from 1-855-914-4676 or a number not identified as the Employment Department. If the adjudicator handling your claim cannot reach you, they will leave a message with their direct phone number so you can return their call.
You will need to call the adjudicator back within 2 business days, so it is important that you turn off call blocking, answer all calls, have your voicemail set up with room for messages, and check your messages often.
Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) - Have you certified for LWA yet? Even if you’ve already received LWA payments, you must self-certify. As long as you received unemployment benefits for a COVID-related reason anytime between July 26 and September 5, 2020, you’re eligible for LWA.
- FEMA requires everyone receiving LWA to certify their eligibility. You only have to certify ONCE, and ONLY if you received regular UI benefits, PEUC, or EB. Here are the instructions for certifying using the Online Claim System.
- If you received LWA funds but don’t certify, you’ll have to pay back those funds to the Oregon Employment Department. (As with all benefit programs, federal law requires the state to recover benefits paid to people who don’t meet legal eligibility requirements.) Here are instructions for paying back LWA.
- If you’ve already certified for LWA, you don’t need to do anything else. The department is working on issuing payments as soon as they can.
This is the time of year to renew your health insurance coverage or sign up for insurance for the first time through the state’s health insurance online marketplace.
OregonHealthCare.gov open enrollment runs from November 1 through December 15. This is the only time of year many people who are uninsured can buy private health insurance. If you have recently lost a job or insurance through your employer, have experienced a change in income, or had other major life changes, you are eligible to sign up for health insurance plans through the marketplace for a 60-day special enrollment period after a qualifying event such as job loss.
You can apply for the Oregon Health Plan at OHP.Oregon.gov at any time. To find out what coverage and savings are available to you, visit OregonHealthCare.gov/WindowShop. You can find the Spanish resources for Get Covered 2021 at: https://www.getcovered2021.org/espanol/
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Oregon Capital Insider has a list of bills here that could be taken up in a potential December special session. I know there are a number of critical year-end deadlines for programs currently helping Oregonians get through this pandemic, and I will keep pushing for action.
- Small business grant funding previously announced by Governor Brown is now available in all 36 Oregon counties. More information on the grants can be found on Business Oregon’s small business navigator here.
- The City of Portland will be offering $500 prepaid VISA debit cards to 4,000 residents, Oregon Public Broadcasting reports here, noting the application period will open tomorrow Thursday, December 10 from 3 to 6 p.m. on the city’s PDX Assist website here.
- The Oregon School Activities Association is delaying the start of practices for most sports due to the pandemic, Oregon Public Broadcasting reports here.
- A federal judge has rejected another motion to block the Oregon Cares Fund for Black Relief and Resiliency, The Oregonian notes here. The Legislative Emergency Board approved this funding in July.
- The Legislature passed a bill last year to allow dentists to administer vaccines. Some are now training to administer the incoming COVID-19 vaccine, as KOIN reports here.
- The Oregon Health Authority reported 1,243 new confirmed cases of coronavirus, bringing the statewide total of new and presumptive cases to 88,287. The OHA also reported 36 more deaths, meaning 1,110 Oregonians have died of the coronavirus. You can click the images below for links to interactive data tables about coronavirus in Oregon.
To read past newsletters, you can go to this link. 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 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
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