Important Information on Covid-19

Keep yourselves updated on information provided by WHO and San Diego County:

Corona Virus Pandemic Live Update in the US

You can select state, city or type in your address or zip code to find out how many people are infected in the area: https://www.coronainusa.com/

Daily Updates from San Diego County Health & Human Service Website

Short URL: https://bit.ly/sdcountyacma

Get daily updates on COVID-19 via Text: Text COSD COVID19 to 468-311.

Short URL: https://bit.ly/covidtextacma

Loans available for small businesses

The SBA provides low-interest disaster loans to help businesses and homeowners recover from declared disasters. Visit: https://www.sba.gov/page/disaster-loan-applications

PPP and EIDL Loans

As of mid-April 2020, 1,661,367 forgivable paycheck protection program (PPP) loans and 755,476 forgivable economic injury disaster loan (EIDL) advances had been approved by the Small Business Administration (SBA). If your small business is among those fortunate enough to receive a loan or loan advance before the June 30, 2020, deadline for PPP loans (December 16, 2020 for EIDL), your next major hurdle will be to ensure the amount you receive is actually forgivenHow to get your Covid-19 loan forgiven, CLICK HERE

Check on the status of your Economic Impact Payment

The deadlines to FILE and PAY federal income taxes are extended to July 15, 2020.

This application will let you:

• Get your payment status
• See your payment type
• Provide your bank account information (in certain cases)

IRS started distributing economic impact payments in April. Most people will get their payments automatically and will not need to take any action. Social Security beneficiaries who are not typically required to file tax returns will not need to file to receive a payment. Instead, payments will be automatically deposited into their bank accounts.

To check your payment status, visit: https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment 

Stay home except for essential needs

San Diego County public health officials have issued orders to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus disease, or COVID-19.  A statewide order issued March 19 expands on parts of the local order. On March 28, the County extended its order so that it remains in effect until further notice. 

What the orders mean

• Everyone needs to stay home except to take care of essential needs or go to an essential job. 
• Practice social distancing. Keep at least six feet away from other people unless they’re family. Avoid gatherings of any size.

What businesses are open?

You need to follow social distancing when you visit these essential services, including:

• Grocery stores, farmers markets, food banks, convenience stores
• Restaurants for take-out, delivery or drive-through
• Pharmacies
• Banks
• Laundromats/laundry
• Hardware/home improvement stores

Essential government services are still available. Many government agencies have closed public offices but are offering services online, over the phone or other ways. 

What’s been closed?

• Dine-in restaurants
• Bars and nightclubs.
• Gyms and fitness centers
• Hair and nail salons
• Entertainment venues
• Churches
• Public events and gatherings

Businesses
Businesses and organizations that provide critical infrastructure are exempted, including health care and public health, public safety, food and agriculture and media. See the full list of exempt sectors (PDF).

Businesses allowed to stay open must also practice social distancing and encourage employees to work from home if possible. They must also suspend requiring employees to provide doctors’ permission to stay home.

Schools and childcare

• All public and private schools, colleges and universities are closed. Parents of minor children must take steps to keep them at home.

Day cares are still open, but only for children of parents working in essential sectors. Daycare centers that remain open should employ heightened cleaning and distancing requirements. Babysitters may also come to the house to care for minors of parents working in essential sectors.

Child care facilities need to operate in the following way:

• Groups of children are limited to 10, and they have to be the same children each day.
• If there is more than one group at a facility, they need to be in separate rooms.
• Children cannot move from group to group.
• The groups cannot mix. The providers must stay with one group.

California governor Gavin Newsom issued a statewide moratorium on evictions that will last through May 31.

Renters relief program

The moratorium makes it illegal for landlords to evict residential tenants who are unable to pay rent because of loss of income from work, childcare costs related to school closures, healthcare costs, or “reasonable expenditures” related to COVID-19.

The moratorium was strengthened Monday to also ban landlords from issuing “no-fault” evictions to tenants who are sick, in isolation, or quarantined. No-fault evictions include instances where a landlord might want to tear down the building or take the unit for a family member.

It also protects tenants against any evictions under the California Ellis Act. The moratorium also buys you some time to make up and pay back any missed rent payments, because you have six months in which to repay your landlord.

Answer: Gov. Newsom issued a separate executive order on Wednesday announcing there is a 90-day waiver for home owners who have been impacted and effected by COVID-19. CLICK HERE to access more information on this program for California.

How to apply for Unemployment Insurance Benefits:

1) If you have worked for an employer but no longer employed:

Employment Development Department (EDD) website:

https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019.htm

• It will take 3-4 weeks upon approval for eligible workers who are applying for the first time.
• Due to large increase from Covid-19, online registration is encouraged at https://www.edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/UI_Online_Registration.htm
• 7 minute step by step guide video: https://youtu.be/-00AJjsrLjw
• For technical assistance on registering online, call EDD at 1-800-300-5616 from 8 a.m. to 12 noon (Pacific time), Monday through Friday
• The EDD Customer Account Number is automatically mailed to all new customers within 10 days of filing a claim.

2) If you are self-employed, small business owner or independent contractor without employees and have been affected by the pandemic, you can now apply for Unemployment Insurance Benefits using this link: https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Registration

Boost your immune system to fight off illness and infection during the coronavirus outbreak

• Malnutrition can impair your ability to fight off illness and infection, so eat a well-balanced diet
• Choices of foods: Eat a variety of fresh fruits, veggies (dark, leafy), and lean sources of protein: Examples of lean protein oats, lentils, canned tuna, chicken breast, nuts)
• Reduce foods that contain sugar, processed foods and alcohol as they tend to be inflammatory foods that can decrease your immune system
• Liver detoxification: Drink plenty of water as it is essential to reduce toxins burden on our body
• Get enough sleep: It is recommended that we get at least 8-9 hours of sleep. While you’re asleep, your body uses that time to do critical recovery and repair of essential functions, including your immune system.
• Avoid Stress: When we’re stressed out our body produces stress hormones which affects our immune system. Try listening to relaxing music and meditate

How long Covid-19 Virus survive on surfaces

Studies show that the virus could survive in droplets for up to three hours after being coughed out into the air. Fine droplets between 1-5 micrometres in size – about 30 times small than the width of a human hair – can remain airborne for several hours in still air.

It means that the virus circulating in unfiltered air conditioning systems will only persist for a couple of hours at the most, especially as aerosol droplets tend to settle on surfaces faster in disturbed air.

On clothing and other surfaces harder to disinfect, it is not yet clear how long the virus can survive. The absorbent natural fibres in cardboard, however, may cause the virus to dry up more quickly than on plastic and metal,

NIH study found that the SARS-CoV-2 virus survives for longer on cardboard – up to 24 hours – and up to 2-3 days on plastic and stainless-steel surfaces.

The findings suggest the virus might last this long on door handles, plastic-coated or laminated worktops and other hard surfaces. The researchers did find, however, that copper surfaces tended to kill the virus in about four hours.

Source: https://bit.ly/covid19onsurface