Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates March 30th

MARCH 30TH RESOURCES AND UPDATES:

 

Yesterday, Governor Cuomo extended the "New York on PAUSE" policy until April 15th. That means non-essential businesses and schools will continue to stay closed. Gatherings of any size for any reason remain canceled and all New Yorkers continue to be directed to practice social distancing — by staying home and keeping six feet of space from others when in public. Stay Informed: Get nightly updates from New York State with the latest news on our response to the pandemic by signing up here.

Updates on Senior Meals: During the last week, for the health and well-being of older adults and senior center staff, DFTA has been phasing out “grab and go” meals and ramping up a centralized program of meals delivered directly to the homes of clients of congregate sites. The direct delivered meal system that began last week as a pilot will expand to serve all clients in all five boroughs starting today, Monday March 30, 2020.

DFTA's congregate meals clients will receive direct delivery, which includes a five-meal package delivered to each older adult every week. DFTA has contracted with several vendors to deliver to these senior center participants directly. Because of this, Grab-and-Go meals will no longer be offered starting tomorrow. 

  • The most direct path to access direct delivery meals is through the senior center. Older adults can do this by connecting with their local senior center. They can also call DFTA's Aging Connect at 212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469) or call 311. 
  • Senior centers that have capacity to deliver existing frozen or shelf-stable food directly to the homes of their members are free to do so. However, senior centers will cease this service upon depletion of current stock and revert completely to the centralized meal delivery service.
  • Homebound older adults already receiving home-delivered meals through DFTA’s case management agencies will continue as usual. Those interested in signing up should call to see if they are eligible for home-delivered services by calling DFTA's Aging Connect at 212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469) or calling 311.
  • InIn addition to helping ensure DFTA clients receive a daily meal, senior center providers are also making thousands of social engagement calls daily to ensure senior center members are not socially isolated during this crisis. Moreover, DFTA’s in-home services (including friendly visiting, case management, geriatric mental health, and others) have transitioned to a telephonic or virtual approach in an effort to combat social isolation.
  • The City continues to work on addressing larger food insecurity through a broader initiative, and we will keep you posted on upcoming efforts. 
  • For information about additional programs and resources, please visit https://www1.nyc.gov/site/em/index.page

Carter Burden Luncheon Club will be offering lunch from 12pm–2pm. If you have any questions, please call the main office at 212-879-7400.

Lenox Hill Neighborhood House has closed but is still delivering meals and helping clients via telephone. Anyone with questions can call them at 212-744-5020.

SEARCH AND CARE would like to assure you that they are fully operational. Their Social Workers and Care Managers are working at full capacity to help our older neighbors during this public health crisis, read more here.

All NYC schoolchildren under 18 are entitled to three meals, served weekdays, from 7:30-1:30 p.m. For sites where the meals may be picked up, click here. 

Free Zoom Video/Tele-Conference for Public Schools. Zoom will remove the 40-minute limit for free basic accounts for schools that request it. For more information, click here.

The New York Times and the Atlantic, along with other publications around the country, are offering their articles relating to COVID-19 free to non-subscribers. 

Pharmacies will now offer free home delivery to New Yorkers.

The Hospital for Special Surgery is suspending non-essential surgeries and procedures to open 200 hospital beds for New York Presbyterian pattens.It will also provide supplies and staff.

Mount Sinai Hospital and the relief organization Samaritan's Purse, with support from the City, will construct a 68-bed field hospital in Central Park’s East Meadow. The site will begin accepting patients on Tuesday, March 31st. This will not be a standalone walk-in facility – Mt. Sinai will manage admissions and transfers.   

NYC Health + Hospitals/ Roosevelt Island Medical Center on NYC Health+ Hospital/Coler Campus began accepting patients last week. The facility can hold a total of 350 non-COVID patients.

The State's Wadsworth Lab has developed a less intrusive COVID-19 test that will begin within a week. The new test is done through a saliva sample and a self-administered short nasal swab in the presence of a healthcare professional. The test will help conserve personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers, reduce potential exposure of the virus and allow the state to continue to test as many individuals as possible.

The Mayor's Office of Contract Services (MOCS) communicated that not-for-profit human services providers and staff will continue to be paid as long as they are working with their contracting agencies on a plan to continue, modify, or suspend services even if they are performing services beyond the scope of the original agreement. Any nonprofit provider needing help with any contract issues may email [email protected] for assistance.

GrowNYC's 50 open-air Greenmarkets are open for business and observing social distancing and other best practices during the outbreak. The Greenmarkets are crucial to the 250 regional farmers and producers who sell through them; 85% of these farms report that they wouldn't be in business if not for the ability to sell directly to New York City shoppers. Visit this link for locations and hours of operation.

Tomorrow, the Hunter College Food Policy Center is conducting a ZOOM panel on Hunger, Food and the Coronavirus in NYC tomorrow morning, Tuesday, March 31, from 9:30 to 10:30 am. Panelists include Joel Berg, CEO, Hunger Free America; Grace Bonilla, Commissioner, Human Resources Administration (tentative); Michael Hurwitz, Director, Greenmarket, GrowNYC; Kate MacKenzie, Director, Mayor's Office of Food Policy (tentative); Bryan Moran, Director, DevOps, City Harvest;  Karen Washington, Owner, Rise and Root Farmer

It will be moderated by Charles Platkin and Alexina Cather. This is a free event but you must register by clicking here.

MORE WAYS YOU CAN HELP

Stanley Isaacs Center is looking for volunteers to help serve residents with Meals on Wheels. Those interested should email [email protected]

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office is looking to buy gear for hospitals and is happy to accept donated equipment. Jonah Bruno, a spokesperson of the state Department of Health, said the state is taking donations of “all sizes” — from corporate sources as well as individuals. Cuomo’s office provided the following contact information to connect donors to those who need equipment: Call 646-522-8477 or email [email protected].

More information for those offering donations is also available through the governor’s COVID-19 donation website.

NYC Health and Hospitals, which oversees all of the city’s public hospitals, is not accepting physical donations of personal protective equipment outside of federal agencies in order to ensure they meet medical grade standards, according to a spokesperson.

The public hospitals system is asking for monetary donations through its Network for Good site to help those fighting COVID-19. Funds will be used to help cover meals, groceries, hotel rooms, laundry service and scrubs for medical staff. To donate, click here.

NewYork-Presbyterian is accepting donations of masks and other personal protective equipment. They should be sent to the attention of David Chong, MD, Milstein Hospital Building, 177 Fort Washington Ave., 6th floor, Center 12, New York, N.Y., 10032. Dr. Chong is the medical director for all Critical Care Services NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center.

To donate to Bellevue Hospital, please send all inquiries about donations to [email protected]. Include a detailed description of donation offers.

The group PPE2NYC, founded and run by medical students in New York, is connecting donors with protective equipment directly to young people working in hospitals. They have six drop-off sites in Manhattan and offer pick-up service. You can set up a donation through the PPE2NYC Instagram page or on their website.

UPDATES FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES

The $2 trillion stimulus bill was signed into law on March 27. For more information, we encourage you to download and carefully review the The Small Business Owner’s Guide to the CARES Act, put together by the U.S. Senate's Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship..

Women Entrepreneurs of NYC (WE-NYC) is holding an online chat about obtaining financial assistance on Thursday, April 2, at 11 am. Experts from the NYC Dept. of Small Business Services and Ramona Cedeno, CEO of FiBrick Financial Services, will share information on emergency financial assistance. To register, click here.

The Small Business Administration has put together information on the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. To read it, click here.

The National Law Review published an article on the Paycheck Protection Program, read it here.

For State Liquor Authority information about the delivery of alcoholic beverages, click here.

The New York Foundation for the Arts has compiled a list of organizations offering emergency grants to artists impacted by COVID-19. To read the list, click here.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) FAQs & Resources

To get regular updates on the latest developments with coronavirus in New York City text COVID to 692-692. You will receive regular SMS texts with the latest news and developments. Please check nyc.gov/health/coronavirus for the latest updates

If you are experiencing stress or feel anxious, contact NYC Well at 888-NYC-WELL (888-692- 9355) or text WELL to 65173. NYC Well is a confidential help line that is staffed 24/7 by trained counselors who can provide brief supportive therapy, crisis counseling, and connections to behavioral health treatment, in more than 200 languages.

Additional resources:

CENSUS 2020

U.S. Census Bureau has made some necessary changes to help keep residents safe while still working to ensure a complete census count. This includes extending the national deadline for the count from July 31 to August 14 and postponing all door-to-door outreach campaigns until May. With the majority of our businesses and libraries closed across the state, this gives local communities more time to adjust their outreach plans and helps prevent our state from being put at an unfair disadvantage.

Fill out your Census at My2020Census.gov OR by phone in these languages: