COVID-19 Update: Federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program Launching Monday, May 11, Disproportionate Impact of COVID on Latinos
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Today Governor Pritzker focused his briefing on the launch of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program (PUA) taking place Monday, May 11. The Department has reiterated the importance of newly eligible individuals such as 1099, sole proprietors and gig economy workers applying for regular state unemployment benefits now to get them in the system for the PUA program. The announcement encouraging individuals to start this process can be
found here
.
You can read the full announcement
here.
Individuals are encouraged to upload their previously filed tax returns in order to maximize their benefit amounts. These newly eligible individuals will begin receiving emails from the Department of Employment Security and most correspondence will be electronic. We will be providing more details as they become available. The new PUA system is said to be able to process up to 140,000 claims per hour.
The first 4 months of 2020 have resulted in more than $2 billion in claims being paid out.
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The Hispanic community is being disproportionately impacted by the spread of COVID. We know that this community is continuing to be undercounted and undertested. Illinois Department of Public Health has broken down test results by demographic and that information can be
found here
. A lot of the Hispanic community works in areas of the economy that are essential, in manufacturing and public services lines of work. It is important that individuals know that citizenship is not a factor to get tested and healthcare will not be denied if they are unable to afford the test.
Federally Qualified Health Centers
are performing these tests throughout the city.
The City of Chicago has
launched a task force
to address the racial inequities being exacerbated by COVID and is working with the Illinois Department of Public Health to address these inequities.
La comunidad Latina está sufriendo desproporcionadamente por la causa de coronavirus. Los Latinos representan más del 40% de los casos nuevos en el estado de Illinois. Muchos de nosotros no podemos dejar de trabajar porque trabajamos en áreas esenciales de la economía como el servicio y seguridad pública, fábricas y servicios médicos y tenemos un mayor resigo de estar expuestos al virus. Deberíamos estar siguiendo las reglas de social distanciamiento de seis pies, lavarnos las manos frecuentemente y utilizar una máscara mientras trabaja y sale a lugares públicas. Reconocemos que faltar un día del trabajo puede resultar en repercusiones financieras difíciles pero hay mayores riesgos a su salud, la salud de su familiar y la salud al publico si sigue trabajando mientras estar enfermo. Es importante que si tiene algún síntoma del coronavirus debe buscar atención médico. También debe tener en mente que no hay preguntas de ciudadanía cuando buscan atención médico.
Si gustaría recibir mensajes en español con consejos de prevención del departamento de salud pública, envíe el texto COVID ESP al 312-500-3836. Si necesita soporte emocional y quiere hablar con un profesional de salud mental envíe un texto “HABLAR” al 552020 y un profesional te dará una llamada en menos de 24 horas.
También pude visitar la pagina
Illinois Unidos
para mas información. Si tiene preguntas también puede llamar nuestra oficina y dejar un mensaje de vos en español explicando que quiere una llamada en regreso con alguien que habla español.
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COVID-19 Count as of today:
2,641 new COVID cases, 139 deaths
17,783 tests run in the last 24 hours
4,862 hospitalizations related to COVID-19 of those,
1,253 in ICU and 3,681 beds
766 individuals on ventilators
If you have questions related to COVID-19 you can contact the
Illinois Department of Public Health
:
Hotline
: 800-889-3931
Email
: dph.sick@illinois.gov
City of Chicago's Department of Public Health
:
Hotline
: 312-746-4835
Email
: coronavirus@chicago.gov
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Chicago Updates:
Nursing Home Staff and Housing
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Today Mayor Lightfoot announced a partnership with Hotel Julian, The Godfrey Hotel and London House for nursing home staff who are in need of housing assistance in order to isolate due to COVID. You can read the full release
here
.
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Chicago Public School:
Updates and Resources
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Chicago Public School Parents and guardians encouraged to sign up to participate in
weekly programming
and recordings of past workshops. There you will find an array of resources in English and Spanish, including tutorials on how to log onto a ZOOM or Google meeting.
Who may I contact with questions? | ¿Con quien me puedo comunicar si tengo preguntas?
CPS Remote Learning Guide for Parents | Guide de aprendizaje remoto para padres
CPS Grab & Go Meals | Lugares de comida de CPS
Stay informed | Manténgase Informado
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Housing Resources:
DHS Emergency Lodging, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless
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On May 11, the
Chicago Coalition for the Homeless
will launch a mutual aid fund with the goal of providing one-time emergency grants of up to $500 to individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Individuals interested in applying can apply online or over the phone beginning Monday, May 11 at 9 a.m. through Friday, May 15 at 5 p.m. To apply over the phone, individuals can call (312) 641-4148 between 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
The online application is available in Spanish and Spanish-speaking phone operators can be reached at the above number. If applicants call outside that timeframe or are unable to reach an operator, they can leave a voicemail with contact information to receive a callback. Details can be found
here in english
or
here in spanish
.
Contributions to maintain the important work Chicago Coalition for the Homeless does can be made
here
.
In March Illinois Department of Human Services announced that it would make $6M available throughout the state for emergency lodging for people experiencing homelessness. These emergency funds were made available through local Continuums of Care (CoCs) - local or regional planning bodies recognized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that coordinate housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals. The CoCs will, in turn, work with local service providers to fund solutions tailored to the unique needs of their communities. Options may include hotels, motels, and other safe and appropriate accommodations.
To find resources in our area visit this site
here
.
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Arts for Illinois Relief Fund:
Second Round of Applications Open
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The Arts Grant Council was announced last month and launched to support artists, artisans and cultural organizations impacted by COVID-19. The second phase of applications for both individual artists and arts and culture organizations is will be closing May 11 interested individuals and organizations can ap
ply
here
.
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Blood Drive:
Sunday, May 24
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On Sunday, May 24 The American Red Cross will be hosting a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 1500 W. Elmdale. The official flyer can be
found here
. For those that cannot donate on Sunday, May 24 you can find a list of locations by visiting
this site
.
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Sincerely,
Kelly Cassidy
State Representative, 14th District
Office of State Representative Kelly Cassidy
5533 N Broadway
Chicago IL 60640
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773-784-2002(phone)
773-784-2060(fax)
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