Tuesday, March 31, 2020
Face Masks: China's 'High Risk, High Reward Strategy'
FRANCE 24 English: Eric Olander, Managing Editor of the China Africa Project, discusses the rewards and pitfalls of Beijing revving up exports of face masks.
Governor Cuomo Announces New Hospital Network Central Coordinating Team
Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced a new hospital network Central Coordinating Team that will help facilitate a more coordinated and strategic approach among the state's healthcare system in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.
The coordinating team will help implement the statewide public-private hospital plan, which the Governor announced yesterday, to share information, supplies, staff and patients among hospitals across the State. The team will be responsible for organizing upstate to downstate staffing; assisting Elmhurst Hospital and other stressed hospitals; setting patient thresholds for hospitals; organizing patient transfers to other hospitals and the USNS Comfort; coordinating State-City stockpiles and individual hospital stockpiles; and facilitating staffing recruitment.
The coordinating team will help implement the statewide public-private hospital plan, which the Governor announced yesterday, to share information, supplies, staff and patients among hospitals across the State. The team will be responsible for organizing upstate to downstate staffing; assisting Elmhurst Hospital and other stressed hospitals; setting patient thresholds for hospitals; organizing patient transfers to other hospitals and the USNS Comfort; coordinating State-City stockpiles and individual hospital stockpiles; and facilitating staffing recruitment.
Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
EANY Statement on Trump Dumping Clean Car Standards
Today, President Donald Trump rolled back Obama-era clean car standards, which are regulations that were crafted to reduce pollution from the transportation sector by improving fuel economy standards for cars, SUVs, and small trucks. The move comes as our nation is fighting a global respiratory pandemic.
“While the country is dealing with an unprecedented public health crisis, the Trump administration is continuing to wage war on our lungs," said Peter M. Iwanowicz, executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York. "This rollback is reckless and will jeopardize lives by increasing air pollution while at the same time ensuring higher fuel costs and medical bills for families across New York and the nation. With Trump wedded to the dirty ways of the past, forward thinking states will have to lead the way towards a healthier future.”
Source: Environmental Advocates of New York
“While the country is dealing with an unprecedented public health crisis, the Trump administration is continuing to wage war on our lungs," said Peter M. Iwanowicz, executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York. "This rollback is reckless and will jeopardize lives by increasing air pollution while at the same time ensuring higher fuel costs and medical bills for families across New York and the nation. With Trump wedded to the dirty ways of the past, forward thinking states will have to lead the way towards a healthier future.”
Source: Environmental Advocates of New York
Jennifer Jones Austin and FPWA Encourage New Yorkers to Complete the Census 2020
The Importance of the 2020 Census During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Click here and scroll down for the video.
Source: Rachel Noerdlinger
Monday, March 30, 2020
The Christian Recorder Publishes Special COVID-19 Edition
The following statement was provided by John Thomas III, editor of The Christian Recorder.
This special edition contains editorials and resources that have been sent out in previous separate emails as well as updated information regarding the novel coronavirus COVID-19.
Click here to access the publication.
Women in ICE Detention, Fearing Coronavirus, Make Video to Protest Unsafe Conditions
The Intercept_: Detainees at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center called The
Intercept using a “video visitation” program. They showed posters
explaining their fears of Covid-19 contagion in detention. They were
interrupted when a guard seized their posters.
Click here for the video and report.
Dr. Jon Andrus on U.S. Coronavirus Response
C-SPAN: Dr. Jon Andrus, epidemiologist and immunization specialist at the
George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health,
discusses the latest in the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic.
In Memoriam: Maria Mercader
Coronavirus Claims Veteran CBS News Journalist
CBS This Morning: CBS News is mourning the loss of one of our own to the coronavirus. Maria Mercader, whose career at CBS News spanned more than three decades, was always a guiding spirit and a shining light. She battled health problems for decades, but she used her deep faith and her big smile to life up and inspire others. Anthony Mason remembers her life and career.
Emergency Hospital Going Up in Central Park
Coronavirus Death Toll Continues to Quickly Rise
Click here for the report.
Source: The New York Daily News
Sunday, March 29, 2020
Ventilators Distributed by the Federal Government Missing Essential Parts: Source
By Gary Glennell Toms
On March 29, From The G-Man spoke with a New York hospital administrator who claimed the ventilators being distributed by the federal government are arriving without parts that are essential for them to operate.
In addition to the phone conversation, a text message from another New York hospital representative, who actually received the ventilators, was shared with From The G-Man to corroborate the administrator's claim. The text stated the following:
"The vents that are being distributed come with absolutely nothing but the unit! No venting circuits, which are specialized circuits, no high pressure O2 hoses, ect, which renders them useless!"
"If this is the case with the majority of hospitals that received these ventilators, there's no question that hospitals will be forced to compete for parts, which is only going to make a very bad situation even worse," said the administrator.
Recognizing that time is of the essence for those who are gravely ill and in need of a ventilator, From The G-Man asked the administrator how long would it be before the hospital(s) received the required part(s). "I have no idea," they responded.
This is a developing story, so check this site or other news sites for follow up reports or updates on the situation.
Update - March 31, 2:15 PM (ET)
The Business Insider Confirms
Bombshell Story Broken by From The G-Man
The Business Insider Confirms
Bombshell Story Broken by From The G-Man
Vice President Pence Submits Letter to Hospital Administrators
March 29, 2020
Dear Hospital Administrator:
On behalf of President Trump and the White House Coronavirus Task Force, I want to extend my gratitude for your tireless efforts to provide healthcare to Americans during this unprecedented pandemic. Your hospital is on the frontlines of America’s response, each day providing lifesaving treatment for patients. Your efforts are indispensable, and the Trump Administration values them deeply.
The Coronavirus Task Force continues to take aggressive and proactive steps to address the COVID-19 pandemic as the health and safety of the American people remain a top priority. FEMA is coordinating the full Federal response along with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure State, local, tribal, and territorial governments receive the supplies and support they need, including medical supplies. This is truly a whole-of-government response that is Locally executed, State managed, and Federally supported.
As you know, partnership is essential as we work together to address the COVID-19 pandemic. To that end, we are requesting your assistance with reporting data that is critical for epidemiological surveillance and public health decision making. We understand that you may already be reporting to your State, but the data is needed at the federal level to support FEMA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in their efforts to support states and localities in addressing and responding to the virus.
At the President’s direction, we are requesting that all hospitals report the following information to HHS:
On behalf of President Trump and the White House Coronavirus Task Force, I want to extend my gratitude for your tireless efforts to provide healthcare to Americans during this unprecedented pandemic. Your hospital is on the frontlines of America’s response, each day providing lifesaving treatment for patients. Your efforts are indispensable, and the Trump Administration values them deeply.
The Coronavirus Task Force continues to take aggressive and proactive steps to address the COVID-19 pandemic as the health and safety of the American people remain a top priority. FEMA is coordinating the full Federal response along with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure State, local, tribal, and territorial governments receive the supplies and support they need, including medical supplies. This is truly a whole-of-government response that is Locally executed, State managed, and Federally supported.
As you know, partnership is essential as we work together to address the COVID-19 pandemic. To that end, we are requesting your assistance with reporting data that is critical for epidemiological surveillance and public health decision making. We understand that you may already be reporting to your State, but the data is needed at the federal level to support FEMA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in their efforts to support states and localities in addressing and responding to the virus.
At the President’s direction, we are requesting that all hospitals report the following information to HHS:
- COVID-19 Test Result Reporting
- We are requesting that all hospitals report data on COVID-19
testing performed in your Academic/University/Hospital “in-house”
laboratories. If all of your COVID-19 testing is sent out
to private labs and performed by one of the commercial laboratories on
the list below, you do not need to report using this spreadsheet.
- Commercial laboratories: LabCorp, BioReference Laboratories, Quest Diagnostics, Mayo Clinic Laboratories, and ARUP Laboratories.
- Commercial laboratories: LabCorp, BioReference Laboratories, Quest Diagnostics, Mayo Clinic Laboratories, and ARUP Laboratories.
- We are requesting that all hospitals report data on COVID-19
testing performed in your Academic/University/Hospital “in-house”
laboratories. If all of your COVID-19 testing is sent out
to private labs and performed by one of the commercial laboratories on
the list below, you do not need to report using this spreadsheet.
- Reporting Instructions: We request that all data for COVID-19 testing completed at “in-house” laboratories or a laboratory not listed above be reported using the attached spreadsheet.
- Due date/time: The spreadsheet is due EVERY day at 5 PM ET.
- Data to report: The data elements are outlined in the
attached spreadsheet, but should include all test results that were
completed during the previous day with a midnight cutoff.
- Where to submit: Submit the spreadsheet via email to fema-hhs-covid-diagnostics-tf@
fema.dhs.gov. - Data elements to report: Included in the attached spreadsheet with definitions.
National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) COVID-19 Module
- To monitor the rapid emergence of COVID-19 and the impact on the
healthcare system, all hospitals should report data each day to the
National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) COVID-19 Patient Impact and
Hospital Capacity Module, which has been made available for hospitals to
use beginning March 27, 2020. All hospitals that currently use NHSN
have received an email from the CDC with additional details about how to
report to the new module. Although most hospitals already regularly
submit data to NHSN on healthcare-associated infections for purposes of
CMS reporting, the data we are now asking you to report is necessary in
monitoring the spread of severe COVID-19 illness and death as well as
the impact to hospitals. Additional details can be found in the
attached documents and at the following website: https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/
acute-care-hospital/covid19/ index.html.
- For questions on this module, please contact NHSN@cdc.gov and put “COVID-19 Module” in the subject line.
- To monitor the rapid emergence of COVID-19 and the impact on the
healthcare system, all hospitals should report data each day to the
National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) COVID-19 Patient Impact and
Hospital Capacity Module, which has been made available for hospitals to
use beginning March 27, 2020. All hospitals that currently use NHSN
have received an email from the CDC with additional details about how to
report to the new module. Although most hospitals already regularly
submit data to NHSN on healthcare-associated infections for purposes of
CMS reporting, the data we are now asking you to report is necessary in
monitoring the spread of severe COVID-19 illness and death as well as
the impact to hospitals. Additional details can be found in the
attached documents and at the following website: https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/
We appreciate our strong partnership with you and we are grateful for your cooperation with this request to obtain the data needed to support a robust State and Federal response to COVID-19.
Sincerely,
Michael R. Pence
Vice President of the United States
Source: The Office of the Vice President
New COVID-19 Mobile Testing Site Set Up for the Northeast Bronx
Co-Op City in the Bronx
Governor Andrew Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Senator Jamaal Bailey and Assemblyman Michael Benedetto today announced they have secured a critical new COVID-19 mobile testing site for the Northeast Bronx.
"Our main strategy to slow the spread of this virus has been to increase testing and reduce density in every community across the state," Governor Cuomo said. "The multiple drive-through mobile testing facilities we have created are helping keep people out of hospitals and other healthcare facilities where they could potentially infect other people or get sick themselves, while increasing our testing capacity. Co-Op City in the Bronx is home to a high number of vulnerable New Yorkers, and locating a new drive-through facility in this area will help protect those residents and give them a safer place to test for COVID-19."
"We are facing an unprecedented public health crisis and it is imperative that we do all we can to protect the public," said Speaker Heastie. "This testing site is important for the health and safety of those residing in co-op city as well as residents in neighboring communities and will be a huge benefit to the Bronx. Many seniors reside here and they are among the most vulnerable to this terrible virus. I would like to thank Governor Cuomo for his tireless efforts to help make this testing site a reality as well as my colleagues, Assemblyman Bendetto and Senator Bailey, for their advocacy and hard work to get this resource up and running."
The mobile testing center will be located in the parking lot of the Bay Plaza AMC Theater at 2210 Bartow Ave. The site will prioritize tests for individuals that are among the highest risk population. Residents who would like to be tested must make an appointment by calling 888-364-3065. There will be no walk-ins allowed and all patients must be in a vehicle. The center is slated to be operational on Monday, March 30, 2020 at 10 am. Site hours will be Monday - Sunday, 8am - 6pm.
Senator Bailey said, "I am pleased to inform the community that Co-Op City will be getting a testing site starting Monday. As you all know Co-Op City is a unique community, full of individuals who may be at high risk from symptoms related to COVID-19. Most notably, Co-Op's senior citizen population, as it is the largest Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) in the country and a densely populated area with well over 50,000 residents. The site will be at the Mall At Bay Plaza and will be a drive thru testing center. I'd like to thank Governor Andrew Cuomo, Speaker Carl Heastie, Assemblymember Bendetto and Prestige Properties for permitting the use of their space for such an important public matter."
Assemblymember Benedetto said, "In these difficult times, Governor Cuomo has shown remarkable leadership and today we are seeing more of the same. The residents of the East Bronx needed a testing station and Bay Plaza is an ideal site for it. With 50,000 people living just steps away in Co-Op City (which is the largest public housing complex in the nation), many of which are senior citizens, the placement is genius. Thank you Governor and thank you to Speaker Heastie and Senator Bailey who worked so hard to make this happen."
This site is extremely important because of the unique nature and population density of Co-Op City and the surrounding North East Bronx area.
Co-Op City is the largest cooperative development of its kind in the world and is home to thousands of families which include many seniors as well as a number of immunocompromised individuals. Over the past few weeks these populations have been found to be more susceptible to the COVID-19 virus.
Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
"Our main strategy to slow the spread of this virus has been to increase testing and reduce density in every community across the state," Governor Cuomo said. "The multiple drive-through mobile testing facilities we have created are helping keep people out of hospitals and other healthcare facilities where they could potentially infect other people or get sick themselves, while increasing our testing capacity. Co-Op City in the Bronx is home to a high number of vulnerable New Yorkers, and locating a new drive-through facility in this area will help protect those residents and give them a safer place to test for COVID-19."
"We are facing an unprecedented public health crisis and it is imperative that we do all we can to protect the public," said Speaker Heastie. "This testing site is important for the health and safety of those residing in co-op city as well as residents in neighboring communities and will be a huge benefit to the Bronx. Many seniors reside here and they are among the most vulnerable to this terrible virus. I would like to thank Governor Cuomo for his tireless efforts to help make this testing site a reality as well as my colleagues, Assemblyman Bendetto and Senator Bailey, for their advocacy and hard work to get this resource up and running."
The mobile testing center will be located in the parking lot of the Bay Plaza AMC Theater at 2210 Bartow Ave. The site will prioritize tests for individuals that are among the highest risk population. Residents who would like to be tested must make an appointment by calling 888-364-3065. There will be no walk-ins allowed and all patients must be in a vehicle. The center is slated to be operational on Monday, March 30, 2020 at 10 am. Site hours will be Monday - Sunday, 8am - 6pm.
Senator Bailey said, "I am pleased to inform the community that Co-Op City will be getting a testing site starting Monday. As you all know Co-Op City is a unique community, full of individuals who may be at high risk from symptoms related to COVID-19. Most notably, Co-Op's senior citizen population, as it is the largest Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) in the country and a densely populated area with well over 50,000 residents. The site will be at the Mall At Bay Plaza and will be a drive thru testing center. I'd like to thank Governor Andrew Cuomo, Speaker Carl Heastie, Assemblymember Bendetto and Prestige Properties for permitting the use of their space for such an important public matter."
Assemblymember Benedetto said, "In these difficult times, Governor Cuomo has shown remarkable leadership and today we are seeing more of the same. The residents of the East Bronx needed a testing station and Bay Plaza is an ideal site for it. With 50,000 people living just steps away in Co-Op City (which is the largest public housing complex in the nation), many of which are senior citizens, the placement is genius. Thank you Governor and thank you to Speaker Heastie and Senator Bailey who worked so hard to make this happen."
This site is extremely important because of the unique nature and population density of Co-Op City and the surrounding North East Bronx area.
Co-Op City is the largest cooperative development of its kind in the world and is home to thousands of families which include many seniors as well as a number of immunocompromised individuals. Over the past few weeks these populations have been found to be more susceptible to the COVID-19 virus.
Source: The Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
Environmental Advocates’ Statement on Budget Negotiations
As New York’s budget deadline looms, State Legislators are faced with an unprecedented economic situation, brought on by a momentous health crisis.
The following statement was issued by Peter Iwanowicz, Executive Director of Environmental Advocates of New York:
“As New York is rightly focused on the immediate response to the COVID-19 crisis, it’s critical that this year’s budget continues policies that advance our health and puts New Yorkers to work. A sustained focus on clean water infrastructure, clean energy, and energy efficiency will accomplish these important goals. There is a long line of shovel-ready water infrastructure projects just needing the funding to get started. These projects will create good jobs, while ensuring clean water for handwashing and drinking. Preserving clean energy funds for solar, wind and energy efficiency projects will also create good jobs and help people cut their energy bills. Despite an uncertain economic future, New York must not miss this opportunity to invest in our public health and local economies.”
The following statement was issued by Peter Iwanowicz, Executive Director of Environmental Advocates of New York:
“As New York is rightly focused on the immediate response to the COVID-19 crisis, it’s critical that this year’s budget continues policies that advance our health and puts New Yorkers to work. A sustained focus on clean water infrastructure, clean energy, and energy efficiency will accomplish these important goals. There is a long line of shovel-ready water infrastructure projects just needing the funding to get started. These projects will create good jobs, while ensuring clean water for handwashing and drinking. Preserving clean energy funds for solar, wind and energy efficiency projects will also create good jobs and help people cut their energy bills. Despite an uncertain economic future, New York must not miss this opportunity to invest in our public health and local economies.”
Con Edison: Beware of Anyone Demanding Payments Right Now
Criminals Are Trying to Take Advantage
of the Coronavirus Outbreak
The following announcement was submitted by Con Edison.
5 Things to Know Today and Tomorrow
| 1. | Beware of anyone visiting, emailing, or calling about outstanding bills or disconnecting service. You are not going to lose your power even if you can’t pay your bill now. |
| 2. | If anyone asks you for money for "new meters because of coronavirus," that’s bogus. We don’t charge for meters. And, we’ve put smart meter installation on hold. |
| 3. | If someone comes to your door, verify they are who they say they are. We’ll only enter your home or business for emergencies, safety reasons and upon your request for critical issues, including turning on service. If someone claims to be from Con Edison, call 1‑800‑75‑CONED (1‑800‑752‑6633) and check the employee’s name and ID#. |
| 4. | If you are making a payment, do it safely. We never accept payment by cash apps such as Venmo, or bitcoin. We only accept online payments through conEd.com and conEd.com/GuestPayment. |
| 5. | Suspicious about an email from Con Edison? Don’t click on any links you’re unsure about. |
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