October 21st — Weekly COVID-19 Update

“It is hard to beat a person that never gives up.” — Babe Ruth

This week, Governor Northam took several new steps to provide relief to Virginia communities, and I wanted to make sure you had the latest updates:

Last week, Governor Northam announced that he was cleared by health officials to leave isolation and return to work. He thanked Virginians for their prayers and well-wishes as he and the First Lady recovered from COVID-19.

Today, the Governor announced that he has signed 16 new laws and proposed changes to five bills that will support the Commonwealth’s ongoing COVID-19 response and advance criminal justice reform.

Health

• Currently, 168,772 cases have been reported in Virginia.
• COVIDWISE is an exposure notification app that will alert users if they have been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19.
• The Virginia Department of Health reminds us to enjoy Halloween safely. You can protect yourself and family from COVID-19 by avoiding people who live outside of your household, wearing a cloth face covering in public settings, practicing frequent hand washing, and staying six feet apart from one another.

Housing Security

• Virginia’s Rent and Mortgage Relief Program (RMRP) provides short-term financial assistance on behalf of households in the form of rent and mortgage payments. To conduct a self-assessment for eligibility, please visit dhcd.virginia.gov/eligibility or call 211 VIRGINIA by dialing 2–1–1 from your phone.
• http://StayHomeVirginia.com contains tools, information, and resources for renters, homeowners, landlords, and people experiencing homelessness.

Employment & the Economy

• Governor Ralph Northam announced $73 million in (CARES) Act funding to provide hazard pay to home health personal care attendants who served high-risk populations during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. A one-time, pre-tax payment of $1,500 will be available to an estimated 43,500 home health care workers who provide personal care and who served Medicaid members between March 12 and June 30, 2020.
• FINIMPACT: https://www.finimpact.com/covid-19-coronavirus-smbs/.
• Annuity.org: https://www.annuity.org/financial-literacy/covid-19-financial-guide/

Our Environment

• Governor Northam announced the formation of Virginia’s first offshore and onshore wind workforce training collaborative, the Mid-Atlantic Wind Training Alliance. The program will offer industry required certifications that are critical to the operations and long-term maintenance of wind projects.
• The Governor announced that the Department of the Treasury’s Unclaimed Property Program returned more than $67.8 million in unclaimed property to Virginians in fiscal year 2020, representing over 111,000 asset accounts. New virtual outreach has been implemented this year to assist individuals with filing their claims amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Public Assistance Programs

• Today, Governor Ralph Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam today announced $65.8 million in new funding to increase access to child care and support child care providers amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This funding will continue the incentive grant program for child care providers announced in April through the end of 2020.
• The Governor released the inaugural Virginia Roadmap to End Hunger, which establishes a unified set of goals and strategies to prioritize food security during the current public health emergency and beyond.

Prince William County — General Updates

• The Office of Housing & Community Development has implemented the Emergency Housing Assistance Program (EHAP) to provide emergency housing assistance payments for eligible households who have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19. To qualify, applicants must be able to support documentable income reduction, through reduced hours, job loss, sickness or being the sole provider for another household member, which was directly related to “loss of income” for the household due to COVID-19, on or after March 1, 2020.

Prince William County — Health

• Currently, 13,735 cases have been reported in Prince William County.
• The Legal Services of Northern Virginia received a grant through the Potomac Health Foundation to help individuals in Prince William County (PWC) with issues surrounding Medicaid and the Marketplace, including help with application assistance, analyzing eligibility, or representing individuals in Medicaid appeals. Please contact Susan Nolan at 703–647–4748 or susan@enroll-virginia.com.

Prince William County — Education

• Pre-K through third-grade students who indicated an in-person preference (or did not select a preference) will be phased in under the 50/50 model as follows.
• Pre-K and kindergarten students return beginning November 10
• First-grade students return beginning December 1
• Second- and third-grade students return beginning January 12
• Students will attend two alternating days per week based on their assigned house (T/Th or W/F). Mondays will remain virtual days for all students. Students who are attending in-person four days a week in the first quarter will continue to do so in the second quarter.
• Families are invited to the upcoming virtual Specialty Program Information Nights to investigate the variety of programs available to middle and high school students. The Specialty Program Information Nights inform students and families about Advanced Academic and Specialty Programs (AASP), as well as Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs available in PWCS.
• Prince William County Public Schools is interested in gathering feedback from parents and community members about options for the 2021–22 school calendar.
• Prince William County will continue to provide to-go meals throughout the first quarter at 56 feeding sites. These meals are free to all children 18 years old and under. Meals may be picked up by walking up to the sites, or by driving up, which is preferred. You can check for service sites here.

Prince William County — Employment

• To help those who have lost their jobs in the pandemic, Prince William County has partnered with Virginia Career Works to launch ELEVATE. This program provides no-cost employment assistance to members of the community, including training programs, job placement services, and more.

Prince William County — Elections & the Census

• From now until October 31st, Prince William County residents, who are registered to vote, may cast their ballot early in-person at eight locations. As a reminder, anyone registered to vote may do so early in-person and must provide identification. Please click here for locations, times, and directions for early voting.
• PWC has four sample ballots, and the one you will be given depends on where you reside. Three are based on your Congressional District for the House of Representatives. The fourth is specific to the Town of Dumfries.
• If you have not completed the 2020 census, you have until October 31 to do so — either online at my2020census.gov or by phone at (844) 330–2020.

Prince William County — COVID-19 Testing

• Free COVID-19 Testing available for residents who live and work in Prince William County, the City of Manassas, and the City of Manassas Park. Participants must provide their full name, telephone number, and a home or work address in Prince William County, the City of Manassas, and the City of Manassas Park to obtain COVID testing and receive the results. To ensure you receive a test please arrive at the site as close as possible to the start time and ensure you are in line by the time posted below.
• Wednesday, October 21, 2020 | Start Time 5:30 PM — Metz Middle School, 9950 Wellington Rd., Manassas, VA 20110
• [Please be in line by 6:45 pm]
• Thursday, October 22, 2020 | Start Time 8:30 AM — Cloverdale Park, 15150 Cloverdale Rd. Dale City, VA 22193
• [Please be in line by 10:30 am]
• Thursday, October 22, 2020 | Start Time 1:30 PM — Woodbridge Senior Center, 13850 Church Hill Dr., Woodbridge, VA 22191
• [Please be in line by 3:30 pm]
• Friday, October 23, 2020 | Start Time 1:30 PM — Splashdown Water Park, 7500 Ben Lomond Park Rd., Manassas, VA 20109
• [Please be in line by 3:30 pm]
• Friday, October 23, 2020 | Start Time 5:30 PM — Woodbridge Senior Center, 13850 Church Hill Dr., Woodbridge, VA 22191
• [Please be in line by 6:45 pm]
• Saturday, October 24, 2020 | Start Time 8:30 AM — Metz Middle School, 9950 Wellington Rd., Manassas, VA 20110
• [Please be in line by 11:30 am]

COVID-19 Resources:

• Virginia Department of Health website
• Virginia Department of Social Services website
• “Forward Virginia” Guidelines page
• Prince William County COVID-19 page
• Stafford County COVID-19 page

If you need constituent services, please contact our office at DelJCarrollFoy@house.virginia.gov.

Please stay safe and healthy.

Thank you,

Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy