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If federal CARES Act dollars are not extended beyond the end of 2020, it could significantly impact the ongoing COVID-19 emergency response efforts locally, county leaders told reporters during a virtual news briefing Tuesday morning.
Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers, Snohomish County Emergency Management Director Jason Biermann, Snohomish County Councilmember and Board of Health Chair Stephanie Wright, and Snohomish Health District Administrative Officer Shawn Frederick provided updates during the briefing.
They described the local work that has been supported by the CARES Act. This includes operations for the isolation and quarantine center, the drive-thru testing site, expanded contact tracing and disease investigation efforts, purchasing personal protective equipment for healthcare workers and first responders, and providing food to vulnerable residents through the Nourishing Neighborhoods program.
“In that body of work, it’s our testing, it’s the contact tracers, the additional case investigators we’ve brought on board, but it’s also those teams that we have working with our employers and schools to quickly handle cases to keep people as operational as possible,” said Frederick, the Health District administrative officer.
Chairperson Wright urged people to contact their U.S. senators and representatives to encourage extending the CARES Act funding.
“Without the capacity to effectively track and investigate cases, to support testing efforts, and to work with partners around the region, our communities, businesses, schools and children will pay the price,” she said.
Executive Somers said the county does not have the financial capacity to continue many of the programs funded by CARES dollars, at least not at the current levels. The money from Congress has been “critical in helping us respond.”
Biermann, the emergency management director, agreed.
“There would be profound impacts to our response kind of across the board with everything we’ve been doing to support the community,” he said.
Watch the full briefing here: https://youtu.be/zysesUhb45U
Or read the transcript: https://www.snohd.org/DocumentCenter/View/5203/october-13-2020-briefing
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Superintendents at school districts in Snohomish County are being urged to pause on any plans to expand in-person learning opportunities. The reason: a new rolling two-week case rate that shows the county at 71.8 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people, which is a sharp increase from previous weeks.
Dr. Chris Spitters, Health Officer at the Snohomish Health District, on Monday emailed guidance to school leaders asking them to not move ahead now on any plans to bring in additional students. He also stressed that, at this time, there is no need to go backward at schools that have started to bring in students in kindergarten to third grade, or those with special needs.
Shawn Frederick, Administrative Officer for the Health District, told a virtual press conference Tuesday that the rising COVID cases appear to be the result of too many people choosing to gather in close settings, particularly without wearing face coverings.
“Our staff are inundated with reports of 50 to 70 new cases each day, and given this new case rate and how close it is to the 75 per 100,000 threshold for high risk in the Department of Health decision tree for schools, Dr. Spitters did have guidance that was shared with the schools yesterday,” he said.
Schools “don’t need to move backwards if they’ve started to bring special needs students and students in grades K-3 back, but they shouldn’t bring any additional students in at this time,” Frederick added. “We’ll monitor daily case counts this week and see what next Monday’s new case rate is and then talk with the schools again during our bi-weekly call next Tuesday on Oct. 20.”
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U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced Friday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture is extending flexibilities to allow free meals to continue to be available to all children throughout the entire 2020-2021 school year. This unprecedented move is part of USDA’s unwavering commitment to ensuring all children across America have access to nutritious food as the nation recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As our nation recovers and reopens, we want to ensure that children continue to receive the nutritious breakfasts and lunches they count on during the school year wherever they are, and however they are learning,” said Secretary Perdue. “We are grateful for the heroic efforts by our school food service professionals who are consistently serving healthy meals to kids during these trying times, and we know they need maximum flexibility right now. I appreciate President Trump for his unwavering commitment to ensuring kids receive the food they need during this pandemic and for supporting USDA in continuing to provide these unprecedented flexibilities.”
For more information, read the full press release.
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The COVID Listen Line is a phone reassurance program in Snohomish County for family caregivers supporting a loved one with dementia. Many are facing increased stress and isolation due to the pandemic. Call to:
- Have a casual and friendly conversation with someone who understands what you’re going through.
- Talk about how things are going for you during the pandemic and connect to resources as needed.
- Discuss coping strategies and ways to focus on your health and mental health during this difficult time.
COVID Listen Line (206) 529-3890
Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
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The Joint Information Center has been working with #MaskUpWa and Restart Us to encourage the creation and sharing of videos explaining why people in Snohomish County are wearing face coverings. The videos are posted on #MaskMonday.
"I wear a mask to keep my family, campus, and community healthy. Plus, it adds to my wardrobe," Everett Community College President Dr. Daria Willis said in the latest installment.
Facebook
Twitter
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The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) wants you to understand your mortgage status if you have not been making payments after being financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For starters, make sure you know whether you are in forbearance status or if your lender/servicer considers you to be in default and intends to begin the foreclosure process when the foreclosure moratorium ends. If you need help understanding the language used in your mortgage documents, the Washington Homeownership Resource Center offers resources to help you do that at http://www.homeownership-wa.org/managing-your-mortgage
If you have a forbearance, it’s going to expire at some point and the missed payments will have to be made up. When it ends depends on a number of factors, including: who owns your loan (the Federal Housing Finance Administration [Fannie, Freddie], HUD, or a private investor), what your current and expected income situation is, and the specific terms of your loan.
There are many homeowners in forbearance and loan servicers for all loan types are working to address inquiries from borrowers. Take some time now to carefully review your mortgage statements and any communications you have received from your servicer. Go to their web page to see if they provide information about repayment options following forbearance.
Talk to a housing counselor by calling the Washington Homeownership Hotline at 1-877-894-HOME (4663) for specific assistance with your mortgage and your circumstances. Talk to DFI’s Mortgage Assistance Team at 1-877-RING-DFI (746-4334) to get assistance with how best to contact your mortgage servicer, and to learn more about your options. See these resources and more on DFI’s web page on COVID-19 Mortgage Assistance for Washington Residents
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Gov. Jay Inslee issued a proclamation establishing safety guidelines for behavioral health facilities.
The proclamation is as follows:
Behavioral Health Association, Children’s Long-Term Inpatient Program and Residential Treatment Facilities – Operations and Visitation (20-74):
This proclamation establishes updated guidelines for the safe operations of behavioral health facilities, including residential treatment facilities, 24/7 facilities, and Children’s Long-Term Inpatient Programs (CLIP). Among other things, these guidelines, similar to the guidelines issued for long-term care facilities, allow for visitation to occur between residents and family members, subject to the use of all appropriate safety and health protocols.
This proclamation is effective until November 9, 2020.
Read the full proclamation here.
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A handful of businesses are facing fines for violations related to lack of mask use by customers and staff. Yet thousands of others that were the subject of complaints are following the governor’s order after numerous contacts and education about requirements from the state Department of Labor and Industries.
Since mid-July, L&I has looked into mask complaints concerning more than 4,200 retailers, restaurants and other businesses in the state. In the vast majority of cases, the businesses that were violating the rules complied after L&I staff explained the requirements, or the initial complaints to the state were not substantiated.
L&I can cite employers who refuse to follow masking and other requirements. The agency has fined eight companies for violating the state public mask mandate and endangering their workers’ health. Three others were cited after public mask complaints led to L&I finding worker mask violations.
For more information, see the full press release.
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The Washington State Department of Health is making steady progress on plans around an expected COVID-19 vaccine. DOH is committed to science and the need to critically evaluate these new vaccines for their safety and efficacy in an unbiased way before their use. The agency says it will be watching the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval process closely to make sure it is thorough and transparent. Read the full news release.
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The Great Washington ShakeOut will still be happening at 10:15 a.m. on Oct. 15, although it’s likely going to look a little different. Due to COVID-19, work environments continue to adapt and change. Some schools and colleges are still operating completely online. It seems like every day, we are confronting new challenges. All while earthquakes are still happening.
One thing's for sure: We all still need to practice drop, cover and hold on because an earthquake can strike without warning.
Gov. Jay Inslee has issued a proclamation, encouraging participation in the drill. Millions of people around the world will be practicing their earthquake protection skills. We encourage you to take your event online and use #ShakeOut on social media to share your experience practicing drop, cover and hold on. Use this infographic and video to explore the different ways and places to practice.
In September, we also launched a new Prepare in a Year guide, which you can use to take one step a month for the next year to get prepared. Did you run out of toilet paper in March? Our guide has tips to help to re-prepare so you make sure you’re two weeks ready for any emergency.
While some ShakeOut drills and other activities may happen as always, there are some new considerations:
- Where will you all be for your drill? Together, or some at work, school or home? Consider video-conferencing!
- How will you incorporate COVID-19 health and safety guidelines into your activity?
- Is it better to have everyone participate all at once, or perhaps in staggered (or even repeated) dates and times?
Registration isn’t required, but helps us keep a count on who is participating. Please register at shakeout.org/washington/
Read the full release.
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The Washington State Department of Commerce: Office of Homeless Youth allocated $1 million in CARES Act funding to the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) to provide stipends to young adults who will age out or have aged out of Extended Foster Care at age 21, between March 1, 2020 and Dec. 31, 2020.
The purpose of the funding is to support housing stability for youth who exited the Extended Foster Care Program at age 21.
Eligible youth will receive $800 per month for each month that they were eligible. Example: youth who turned 21 years old in March 2020 could be eligible for up to $8,000 over the 10-month period. Youth who turned 21 years old in April will have nine months of eligibility and will receive a total of $7,200.
Youth who receive Social Security Income (SSI) will receive $100-$800 per month based on their current benefits. This range allows these youth to receive additional funds without jeopardizing their SSI and putting them over in resources per social security rules. These youth will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
The youth who turned 21 years old between March 2020 and September 2020 will receive one check for every month they have been out of foster care through October. They will then receive one check per month, including the month of December 2020. There is a possibility that all eligible youth will receive an additional check at the end of this period to ensure that all funds have been allocated.
If you currently work or have worked with a young adult that meets these qualifications, please reach out to them directly and assist them in applying.
How to Apply
Send an email to dcyf.adolescentprograms@dcyf.wa.gov with the youth’s name, address and contact information before Nov. 13, 2020. If you do not have access to email, please call Sherrie Flores at 360-489-5280.
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Gov. Inslee held a news conference on Tuesday to announce five more counties are moving to Phase 2 of the Safe Start reopening plan and the establishment of the Washington Recovery Group.
The counties moving to Phase 2 are Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Franklin, and Yakima.
Housed under the Office of Financial Management, the Washington Recovery Group is charged with making sure the state is planning the long term recovery from COVID-19 the right way. The group will focus on coordinating resources, improving efficiency and updating how state agencies can best serve the people of Washington.
Watch the full news conference on TVW.
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Case counts as of October 13, 2020.
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ESSENTIAL LINKS AND PHONE NUMBERS FOR UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION
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