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· As of 1:00 PM on Thursday, January 21st, there have been 542,799 confirmed COVID-19 cases in New York City, with 155,424 confirmed cases in Brooklyn. There have been 17,872, confirmed deaths citywide, including 5,146 confirmed deaths in Brooklyn.
VACCINATION INFORMATION
· Mayor de Blasio launched the NYC Vaccine for All campaign. For more information, click here.
· NYC has canceled 23,000 first-dose COVID-19 vaccine appointments this week due to a dwindling supply of shots
· To determine if you are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine check here. Eligible categories include:
· All outpatient and ambulatory frontline, high-risk health care providers who provide in-person patient care or other staff in a position where they have direct contact with patients of any age. This includes hospital and community-based ambulatory care, primary care, and outpatient behavioral health service providers; phlebotomists; physical and occupational therapists; and specialty clinics, including dialysis centers.
· All frontline, high-risk public health workers who have direct contact with patients
· Health care workers at COVID-19 testing sites
· High-risk hospital and Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) staff
· Dentists
· Emergency medical service (EMS) personnel
· Medical examiners and coroners
· Funeral workers who have direct contact with infectious material and bodily fluids
· Staff and residents in congregate living facilities run by the NYS Offices for People With Developmental Disabilities, Mental Health, and Addiction Services and Supports
· Urgent care providers
· Staff administering the COVID-19 vaccine
· Staff at dental practices of all types
· Those 65 years of age and older
· Other non-health care essential workers like teachers
· Governor Cuomo announced state-run vaccination sites are now open for eligible New Yorkers. Vaccinations are by appointment only. To determine eligibility and schedule an appointment to receive their first dose, New Yorkers can utilize the state’s ‘Am I Eligible‘ app or call the New York State Vaccination Hotline at 1-833-NYS-4VAX (1-833-697-4829). Appointments to receive the second dose at these sites are scheduled in-person after receiving the first dose. New Yorkers should not attempt to book their second appointment online.
EDUCATION
· Learning Bridges offers no-cost preschool and school age childcare options for children from 3-K through eighth grade on days when they are scheduled for remote learning. Click here to learn more.
· “Let’s Learn NYC!,” an educational public television program produced by the WNET Group in partnership with the New York City Department of Education (DOE), features lessons for children in 3K through second grade that will supplement remote learning. More information can be found here.
· Women.NYC, which is powered by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC), released a downloadable guide for free and low-cost tech courses in New York City.
HEALTH
· Mayor de Blasio announced Citi Field in Queens will become a 24/7 mega vaccination site, operated by the NYC Health + Hospitals Test & Trace Corps. The site is currently slated to launch the week of January 25th.
· Mayor de Blasio announced the City will open vaccination clinics in NYCHA developments, providing on-site vaccinations for residents 65 or older. Clinics will open at the Van Dyke I & II Houses in Brooklyn, Cassidy Lafayette Houses in Staten Island, and Polo Grounds Towers in Manhattan this coming weekend, with plans to move to different sites across the city in the coming weeks.
· Governor Cuomo released details on the metrics regarding COVID-19 micro-clusters.
· Red Zone — Micro-Cluster: A “Red Zone” focus area is put in place to contain spread from a specific, defined geographic area.
· Orange Zone — Warning/Buffer: An Orange Zone area either is put in place primarily in densely populated urban areas as a tight buffer zone around a Red Zone micro-cluster (“Orange Buffer Zone”) area OR is implemented independently as a focus area based on the below metrics (“Orange Warning Zone”). The purpose of an Orange Buffer Zone is to 1) restrict activity to prevent further spread from Red Zone area; 2) provide a defined geographic area where metrics can be monitored daily to ensure COVID is not spreading beyond the Red Zone.
· Yellow Zone — Precautionary/Buffer: A “Yellow Zone” area either is put in place as a broader buffer area to ensure COVID outbreak is not spreading into the broader community (“Yellow Buffer Zone”) OR is implemented independently based on the below metrics (“Yellow Precautionary Zone”). The purpose of a Yellow Buffer Zone is to 1) restrict some activity to help prevent further spread from Red and/or Orange Warning Zone area; 2) provide a larger defined geographic area where metrics can be monitored daily to ensure COVID is not spreading beyond the Red Zone or Orange Warning Zone.
· For more details click here.
· The Mayor’s Office released an interactive map of closure zones in parts of Brooklyn and Queens due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. The map allows businesses and residents to look up what zone they’re in and what closures impact them. To view the map, click here.
· Free tele-support group services are available with Lighthouse Guild Family Service Network. For young adults with vision loss, click here. For adults with vision loss, click here. For all questions, call (212) 769-7833.
· COVID-19 testing has been made available to all New Yorkers. COVID-19 testing sites are available in your area with new ones being added on an ongoing basis. To find the one nearest you, visit the state website [New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) website], the City’s website [New York City’s COVID-19 Information Portal], or type “COVID testing near me” in Google Maps.
· Crisis Text Line has support resources and counselors available for free 24/7 for frontline and essential workers. Text NYFRONTLINE to 741-741 to be connected, or visit www.crisistextline.org.
· An emergency financial relief program is available for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence to provide funding for immediate safety, economic, and housing needs currently exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Helpful resources that are currently available include the agency website, the “NYC HOPE” resource directory, and the Resources for Survivors During COVID-19 page.
· Worried about having to self-isolate in a dangerous home situation? Co-quarantined with an abuser? Please reach out and contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Call 1 (800) 799-7233, TTY 1 (800) 787-3224, or chat online at thehotline.org.
· If you need mental health support, the New York Emotional Support Hotline is (844) 863-9314.
· The New York Peace Institute has online resources to mitigate stress with tools such as meditation.
· Use telemedicine services BEFORE going to the doctor’s office, urgent care, or the ER. Call (800) 633-4227 or your doctor for more information if you are on Medicaid. Whether you utilize Medicaid, private insurance, or are a self-payer, options are offered across many specialty areas. Urgent care telemedicine is available with New York-Presbyterian, Mount Sinai, or NYU Langone. Mental health telemedicine is available with Columbia Doctors. Diabetes telemedicine help is available with NYC Health + Hospitals. If you know other services, email askeric@brooklynbp.nyc.gov.
FINANCIAL SUPPORT
· Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS) launched “Fair Share NYC”, a campaign offering free resources to help small business owners apply for federal relief funds including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL).
· Governor Cuomo announced that New Yorkers will begin receiving extended Federal unemployment benefits. For more information, click here.
· With the free “MEND NYC” program to provide mediation to New Yorkers and hospitality businesses across the city who are in disputes over quality-of-life issues. Mayor de Blasio recently expanded eligibility to neighbor disputes and landlord/commercial tenant disputes.
· New York State is offering an additional 20 weeks of unemployment benefits. Visit dol.ny.gov to see if you qualify.
· The New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS) has published plain language industry guides as a tool for small businesses to adhere to the latest mandatory guidance and to share best practices. Visit nyc.gov/business for more information on the guides.
· Unemployed New Yorkers can access support at the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA)’s new website, NYSBA.org/legalhelp, which was set up to provide resources for filing an unemployment claim. If needed, NYSBA will match people with a pro bono attorney.
· The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce has launched the Bring Back Brooklyn Fund to support small businesses that have been shut out of other COVID-19-related loan programs, with 65 percent earmarked for minority and/or women-owned business enterprises (MWBE). The Bring Back Brooklyn Fund will offer no-interest recovery loans between $500 and $30,000. You can contribute to the effort here.
· The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) launched the NY COVID-19 Legal Resource Hotline to help New York City residents impacted by COVID-19 get answers to their legal questions on issues including unemployment benefits, employee rights, housing, public benefits, consumer debt, advance planning, stimulus payments, and special education issues. Call (929) 356-9582 Monday-Friday 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM to leave a message with your name and contact information or visit nylag.org/hotline for more information.
· DCWP’s Office of Financial Empowerment has transitioned all financial counseling and coaching programs to offer services remotely. Book an appointment here.
FOOD PANTRY/FOOD ASSISTANCE
· All students who would have received a free or reduced-price meal at school are now eligible for additional food assistance through Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT). This includes undocumented students, students whose private schools participate in the National School Lunch Program, and students in districts that implement the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). New York City families will receive an additional $5.70 for every day school has been closed to purchase foods available through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
· School sites are open for grab-and-go meals from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, outside of main entrances of every school building. The program is now open to anyone who wants food, no questions asked. Go to schools.nyc.gov, or text “FOOD” or “COMIDA” to 877-877 for lists of where meals are being served. Members of the community can pick up meals from 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM, Monday to Friday at select schools at over 200 locations as the program moves toward an after-school schedule.
· New Yorkers can use their SNAP benefits to order online.
· The City has streamlined the home delivery of meals to seniors and is working to support our food pantries, which are critical partners in these efforts. In the interim, you can find a list of key resources at nyc.gov/GetFood or by calling 311 and saying “Get Food.”
· Hunter College New York City Food Policy Center has partnered with Share Meals, Hunger Free America, BetaNYC, and Plentiful to compile a listing and guide on food resources available to New Yorkers.
GENERAL
· The New York City Department of Sanitation, in partnership with ERI, is offering special collections to help residents looking to dispose of their electronics. For more information, click here.
· Governor Cuomo announced updated COVID-19 quarantine periods in New York. Guidelines can be found here.
· Prison visits are currently suspended.
· Indoor dining remains suspended until further notice at this time.
· With the snow season upon us, the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) has information on how restaurants can create a plan. For more information, click here. Sign up for snow alerts and updates via nyc.gov/Notify or @NotifyNYC on twitter.
· COVID-19 restrictions on bars, restaurants, gyms and residential gatherings in New York State remain in effect. More information on the guidelines can be found here.
· The Mayor’s Office released guidance to heat outdoor dining spaces for restaurants participating in the Open Restaurants program.
· Electric radiant heaters will be allowed for sidewalk and roadway seating setups. For full guidance from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), click here.
· Natural gas radiant heaters will be allowed on the sidewalk only. For full guidance from DOB, click here. Natural gas radiant heaters must also comply with the Fire Code.
· Portable heaters fueled by propane will also only be allowed on the sidewalk. Propane heating will be regulated by the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), with requirements for safe handling, use and storage. For full guidance from the FDNY, click here.
· Travelers from the United Kingdom visiting New York City are now be under a mandatory quarantine order. City sheriff’s deputies will be sent to the hotel rooms or homes of all people arriving from the UK to ensure they abide by New York’s two-week coronavirus quarantine mandate.
· The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will only offer services in person by reservation for limited transactions that cannot be done online or by mail or drop box. You can make reservations at dmv.ny.gov/reservation.
· The DMV has also announced that expiration dates for New York State drivers licenses expired since March have been extended until Friday, January 29, 2021.
· Visit MutualAid.NYC for information on groups and individuals working on mutual aid in their communities, as well as if you need help or can help.
· Free and low-cost childcare options during the COVID-19 crisis are available through Workers Need Childcare, for parents and caregivers in New York City’s essential workforce.
· For veterans and their families, the NYC Veterans Alliance has a list of resources on their website.
HOUSING
· New York State Homes and Community Renewal announced the expansion of the COVID-19 rent relief program through Monday, February 1st.
· Governor Cuomo extended New York’s commercial eviction moratorium until Sunday, January 31st.
· New York State has extended the ban on most COVID-19 related evictions until May.
· For New Yorkers requiring quarantine or isolation, NYC Health + Hospitals is offering free hotel rooms for up to 14 days if there is a need for a place to isolate. Call (844) NYC-4NYC (844-692-4692) and press “0”.
· National Grid customers should be aware of a phone scam demanding immediate bill payment and threatening service disconnection. Learn ways to protect yourself and your family here.
TRANSPORTATION
· The MTA launched a new interactive beta digital map to allow riders to plan their trips and see real time alerts. To view the map click here.
· There is currently no subway service from 1:00 AM to 5:00 AM to allow for cleaning and disinfecting of trains and stations. The “MTA Overnight” page provides details on the service changes.
For City alerts in English, text COVID to 692-692.
For City alerts in Spanish, text COVIDESP to 692-692. |
