Rep. Greg Walden COVID-19 info update for April 2

WASHINGTON (KTVZ) -- Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., released an update on COVID-19 for Friday April 2.

The latest on the coronavirus:

Sending More PPE:

Vice President Pence announced that the federal government has distributed more than 11.6 million N95 masks, 8,100 ventilators, millions of face shields, surgical masks, and gloves. 

Scroll to the bottom of this update for the current numbers of PPE in Oregon's Stockpile.
 

Checks for Social Security Recipients 

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced that Social Security recipients who do not normally file tax returns will automatically receive their coronavirus relief checks. Additionally, he said they will not have to file tax returns to receive their checks. Read more here.

Good news for COVID-19 testing: 

As of 4/1/20, over 1.2 million COVID-19 tests have been run in America and 14,868  people have been tested in Oregon. Throughout the U.S., we are now testing nearly 100,000 people per day -- and that number continues to rise. When it comes to testing, we’re making significant progress but we have a long way to go.

Oregon Health Authority have tested nearly 15,000 individuals across Oregon. Additionally, they are working to determine what the burn rate is across the state for PPE. The state also released $2 million dollars to hospitals last week, and an additional $100 million dollars to larger health care systems on Monday. 

More than 110 laboratories have notified the FDA that they have validated and begun using their own diagnostic tests. Read more here.

Remote Learning:

Oregon Department of Education has announced they are moving to distance learning. Individual school districts are responsible for drafting their plan and they do not need to receive approval of the plan from the state. The program is meant to be flexible and does not require online learning, schools can also do schooling over the phone with pen and paper. There are twice weekly phone calls occurring with the school superintendents to stay updated on the distance learning implementation.

Small Business Relief: 

Secretary Mnuchin announced that come Friday, businesses will be able to apply through their local lender for the Paycheck Protection loan program, that will provide  businesses with up to eight weeks of funding to keep employees on the payroll. The Treasury Department released useful information for lenders and borrowers, and a copy of the application here.

Helping Hospitals Expand Capacity:

CMS announced that it is issuing numerous temporary regulatory waivers and new rules to allow hospitals and health systems to increase hospital capacity, rapidly expand the healthcare workforce, put patients over paperwork, promote telehealth in Medicare, and more.  Read more here.

Working on Treatments: 
FDA announced the creation of the Coronavirus Treatment Acceleration Program (CTAP) to expedite the development of potentially safe and effective life-saving treatments.  Currently, 10 therapeutic agents are in active trials, and another 15 therapeutic agents are in planning stages. Read more here.

The FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to allow hydroxychloroquine sulfate and chloroquine phosphate products donated to the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to be distributed and used for certain hospitalized patients with COVID-19. These drugs will be distributed from the SNS to states for doctors to prescribe to patients hospitalized with COVID-19 when a clinical trial is not available or feasible. Read more here.

Watch out for COVID-19 Scams:

Both the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission are reporting a spike in coronavirus related scams including home testing kits, fake cures, and other malicious attempts to prey on COVID-19 fears. Read more here.

Resources to Know and Share: Here are some helpful resources and information on COVID-19.

ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

The Paycheck Protection Program prioritizes millions of Americans employed by small businesses by authorizing up to $349 billion toward job retention and certain other expenses.

Small businesses and eligible nonprofit organizations, Veterans organizations, and Tribal businesses described in the Small Business Act, as well as individuals who are self-employed or are independent contractors, are eligible if they also meet program size standards.

For a top-line overview of the program CLICK HERE
If you’re a lender, more information can be found HERE
If you’re a borrower, more information can be found HERE
The application for borrowers can be found HERE

INFORMATION FOR AMERICANS ABROAD:

The State Department has repatriated over 25,000 Americans from 52 countries.

The State Department is making efforts to bring home Americans, including through commercial flights, chartered flights, and military transport.  Any American abroad who needs assistance should contact their local U.S. embassy and register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, available here or by calling 1-888-407-4747.

INFORMATION FOR PHARMACISTS:

Pharmacists who have questions regarding compounding policy and enforcement during the public health emergency should email their questions to compoundingpolicy@fda.hhs.gov.

ASSISTANCE FROM HHS AND FEMA:

HHS and FEMA have fielded many requests to assist or partner with the Federal Government in response to the COVID pandemic.

• Organizations or individuals seeking to contract with the federal government to import or manufacture medical products to aid the U.S. response submit information to FEMA through a Request for Proposal, available here.
• Organizations or individuals that wish to donate medical supplies or equipment can submit that information here.
• Other inquiries from organizations or individuals, including individuals who want to volunteer or organizations that want to produce a product related to the COVID response, among other inquiries, can be referred to https://www.fema.gov/coronavirus/how-to-help. 

How to schedule a blood donation appointment:

• Visit RedCrossBlood.org. Click on “Schedule an Appointment” under the “Donate Blood” tab. From there you can enter your zip code to find a blood drive near you.
• Red Cross Blood Donor App
• Call 1-800-RED-CROSS
• Use Amazon Alexa Blood Scheduling Skill 

Fast Facts: Here are some helpful stats on COVID-19 as of 4/1/20

Cases of COVID-19: (as of 4/1/20)

U.S.  current case count -- There are currently at least 216,515 cases and 5,119 deaths in the United States, as reported by Johns Hopkins and other media sources. 

Oregon current case count: 736

Benton: 13

Clackamas: 56

Clatsop: 3

Columbia: 1

Deschutes: 27

Douglas: 10

Grant: 1

Hood River: 2

Jackson: 22

Josephine: 10

Klamath: 5

Lane: 18

Lincoln: 3

Linn: 37

Marion: 151

Morrow: 1

Multnomah: 134

Polk: 18

Tillamook: 3

Umatilla: 5

Union: 1

Wallowa: 1

Wasco: 7

Washington: 189

Yamhill:17


 
Testing - in Oregon: As of 4/1/20

Positive: 736

Negative: 14,132

Total (since 1/24): 14,868

PPE in Oregon: These number reflect the amount of PPEs supplied from the strategic national stock pile.  We anticipate these numbers to rise as more are distributed. (Below is as of 3/31/20)

N95 Masks: 60,450

Surgical Masks: 143,511

Face Shield: 31,207

Surgical Gowns: 25,688

Coveralls: 1,765

Gloves: 184,258