The infection has barely begun to work its way through the United States and so there is not very much information on discharge outcomes.
Yesterday we wrote that the President had decided to declare a national emergency and that it was pending legal review.
Today, just after 3:00PM in Washington D.C., The President Declared a National Emergency. He called it “two very big words.”.
This was achieved by the invocation of the Stafford Act:
The Stafford Act is a 1988 amended version of the Disaster Relief Act of 1974. It created the system in place today by which a presidential disaster declaration or an emergency declaration triggers financial and physical assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Act gives FEMA the responsibility for coordinating government-wide relief efforts. The Federal Response Plan includes contributions from 28 federal agencies and non-governmental organizations, such as the American Red Cross.
The President appeared with the CEOs of both Target and Walmart along with the CEOs of other major American companies (Walgreens, CVS)
Alphabet CEO, Sundar Pichai, emailed staff yesterday informing them that Google would be working with another Alphabet company Verily (previously Google Health). The site will help Americans find their local testing site. The site will also have an educational component.
Despite that, it’s unclear if a new site is being built. The CEO’s email said the project will work with officials to direct patients to their existing “Project Baseline” site.
An emergency Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declaration was issued that permits the use of automated testing machines to detect the presence of COVID-19. These machines are manufactured by a Swiss medical company named Roche. There are over a hundred of these machines present in the United States.
These machines can test thousands of samples per day, mostly due to the mechanical automation of the testing process.
Take a peek at what some of these plans entail:
An emergency operations plan (EOP) is a document which outlines how a facility will respond to an emergency. The EOP sets guidelines to manage a disaster in an effective, efficient, and timely manner. The EOP typically calls for the establishment of the Incident Command System (ICS) and the development and activation of the Incident Action Plan (IAP). An emergency operations plan is activated on an as-needed basis and is designed to be used for all types of emergencies.
President Trump had spent “about two hours” eating dinner with President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonar, who has since tested negative for COVID-19.
A member of the Brazilian delegation has tested positive for the virus and the President did stand next to the individual while posing for a photograph.
Up until and even within this this press conference the President seemed stridently against himself being tested. Upon pointed questioning from several reporters, he abruptly changed his position:
“I think I will do it anyway. Fairly soon,”
Another day has passed and still nothing has been able to even make it out of the house. Pelosi will attempt to call the Republican’s bluff:
In a rare formal statement delivered from the Speaker’s balcony on Capitol Hill, Ms. Pelosi called the bill “a well-funded, evidence-based investment in public health” and said that the House would go forward later in the day with its scheduled vote, effectively daring Republicans to vote against the package.
Why wouldn’t they vote on these bills?
The measure includes a new paid sick leave provision that Republicans oppose, enhanced unemployment benefits, free virus testing and additional funds for food assistance.
And that’s not even the primary issue. The main roadblock to getting this bill passed is the President. He is demanding a huge payroll tax cut, which literally no one else wants.
The House bill omits Mr. Trump’s highest priority for an economic response to the rapidly spreading pandemic: a huge payroll tax cut opposed by members of both political parties. After the president’s remarks, a senior administration official said the absence of the tax cut from the plan was what prompted the president to call it insufficient.
Experts are finally weighing in! Wondering what life inside a coronavirus lockdown means for your dating life? Exercising? What about grocery shopping?
What should your apartment building be doing to help prevent Coronavirus?
Post educational signs up everywhere for sure. But if it’s possible, regularly clean and disinfect door knobs, elevators, hand rails, and other high touch surfaces in common areas.
Should I keep going to the Gym?
Maybe? My Gym in Manhattan is taking their already insane cleaning regiment and turning it up another notch. Regardless, disinfect everything with wipes before and after you use it. That goes quadruple for stuff that gets a lot of hand-contact like barbells, dumbbells, and weight machines. Disinfect all of that stuff before and after you use them.
The pandemic has caused many of the largest companies in America to suggest that their workers stop coming into offices and instead work from home. What was once a pretty uncommon practice relegated to tech companies and freelancers has been thrust upon people who’ve never experienced it. How is it going to change the American workplace?