Deutsch Working on Obtaining Death Certificate Process
City Councilmember Chaim Deutsch (D-Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach, Midwood) updated the public on coronavirus yesterday and wants everyone to know that he’s working with funeral home directors and the Department of Health to ensure that the process for obtaining death certificates and burial approval is rapid and streamlined.
Other COVID-19 updates:
Hospitalizations are Down
-
Governor Cuomo announced yesterday that hospitalization rates are slowing down, although statewide deaths are up today, after two days of holding steady.
-
Mayor de Blasio announced this morning that the number of patients requiring urgent medical care has slowed down, which reflects the data shift that the Governor is seeing statewide.
Unemployment
-
The Department of Labor has increased its servers 1150% to sustain additional web traffic and has expanded phone hours to seven days a week.
-
In the last week, the Department of Labor has hired 1,000 new employees to answer phone calls.
-
An announcement is coming within the next few days about a new online system to file for unemployment. This is expected to offer massive relief to those who are filing for unemployment.
-
When filing online, you will not be required to have a phone verification if all the data is entered properly. It is important to be prepared with any data that might be needed, so you can quickly and accurately fill out the requested information.
Adams Offers Health Tips
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams released a public service announcement (PSA) yesterday in partnership with Mitchell Katz, MD of New York City Health and Hospitals (NYC H+H) and 51 other doctors from a variety of backgrounds, to offer basic tips on how everyday New Yorkers can help reduce their risk of contracting and spreading coronavirus amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The three tips are quit smoking, take your medication as prescribed by a doctor, adopt a plant-based diet.
“Every life we lose to COVID-19 in our city and throughout the world is a profound tragedy. While we work to strengthen our health care system to end this pandemic, which has created so much suffering throughout the five boroughs, we also want to let New Yorkers know about some basic tips they can use to safeguard their own health and the health of those around them. We want to thank all the doctors and public health professionals joining us in this call, and we extend our deep gratitude for all they do to protect us,” said Adams.
Myrie Demands Data on COVID-19 Racial Disparities
State Senators Zellnor Myrie (D-Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Gowanus, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, South Slope, Sunset Park) and Jamaal Bailey (D-Bronx) yesterday called on the city and state’s top health officials to share data detailing the racial disparities of the COVID-19 crisis.
“Neither the NYC DOHMH nor the State’s Department of Health are breaking down data concerning tests, confirmed cases, hospitalizations, or deaths by any demographics other than age range and sex,” the Senators wrote. “This is disconcerting. We need COVID-19 data broken down by race/ethnicity and we need it urgently.”
“The novel coronavirus has been called a ‘great equalizer,’” the Senators continue. “While it is true that anyone can contract the virus and this crisis reaches all of us in some way, it is absolutely not true that the harm it causes is distributed equally. On the contrary, it is clear that COVID-19 is hurting most the ones with the least.”
Persaud’s Statement Enacted Fiscal Year Budget
Senator Roxanne Persaud (D-Canarsie, East New York, Brownsville, Mill Basin, Sheepshead Bay, Bergen Beach, Marine Park, Flatlands, Mill Island, Georgetown, Ocean Hill, Starrett City) released the following statement on the enacted fiscal year 2020-2021 state budget.
“The Senate, Assembly and the Governor recently agreed upon a $177 billion budget for fiscal year 2020-2021, which began on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. When the Legislature reconvened in early January, we were faced with a number of difficult proposals to address what was at least a $4 billion deficit.
“There was little (if any) indication that within a matter of weeks, tens of thousands of New Yorkers would become ill with COVID-19, school-aged young people would be isolating at home and hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers would not be working, either due to having to care for their loved ones or being laid off from their job. These are very uncertain times and New Yorkers are struggling.
“The final budget language reflects numerous tremendously difficult decisions in light of New York State’s growing budget deficit and the rapidly growing challenges of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. While I am not pleased with a number of final agreements contained in the thousands of pages of legislation, I am confident that my colleagues and I fought our hardest to deliver a balanced budget that mitigates some of the toughest possible outcomes,” she wrote.
Cymbrowitz Urges Money for NYCHA in Next Fed Stimulus Bill
Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz (D-Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach), chair of the Housing Committee, and 25 Assembly colleagues are urging the city’s Congressional delegation to include the New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) total estimated $32 billion capital need in the next federal stimulus package.
NYCHA failed to receive any capital funding in the recently enacted state budget despite the Assembly Majority fighting for hundreds of millions of dollars for NYCHA, said Cymbrowitz.
“Investments in this critical infrastructure have both immediate and long-lasting effects, improving quality of life for residents and while also providing more opportunities for residents to work where they live when Section 3 provisions are in place,” the lawmakers wrote to the Congressional delegation.
“That’s why every dollar the federal government can set aside for NYCHA isn’t just an investment in ‘buildings’ – it’s an investment in the futures of the authority’s residents and of our City,” the letter goes on to say.
Among the Brooklyn Assemblymembers who also signed onto the letter include Charles Barron, William Colton, Mathylde Frontus, Joseph R. Lentol, Walter T. Mosley, Félix W. Ortiz, Diana C. Richardson, Latrice Walker, Helene E. Weinstein, Jaime R. Williams and Tremaine Wright.
