The latest news stories and stories of interest in the Willamette Valley and around the state of Oregon from the online digital home of the valley, WillametteValleyMagazine.com
Monday, April 13, 2020
Willamette Valley Weather
Today
Sunny, with a high near 68. Calm wind becoming northwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Overnight, cloudy with a low around 45.
Today’s Headlines
COVID-19 has claimed one more life in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 53. The Oregon Health Authority also reported 57 new cases of COVID-19 as of 8 a.m. today bringing the state total to 1,584.
The new COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Clackamas (7), Columbia (2), Douglas (2), Jackson (1), Josephine (1), Lane (4), Marion (4), Multnomah (24), and Washington (12).
Here in the Willamette Valley, there are two new coronavirus cases being reported by Lane County Public Health, for a total of 38 cases in the county.
One new case is of a person who had access to the Good Samaritan Society Eugene Village facility. No other information has been released about this individual.
This is just the second case involving a long-term care facility in Eugene. On Saturday, officials reported that an employee at River Grove Memory Care tested positive for the virus.
Oregon’s 53rd COVID-19 death is a 66-year-old Washington County resident, who tested positive on March 30 and died on April 12 at Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center. She had underlying medical conditions.
Oregon businesses that missed the opportunity to apply for the coronavirus worker safety fund will have a second chance today, after the fund reopened with an additional $15 million.
The fund, established by SAIF, was closed five business days after its launch on March 31 after more than 1,300 businesses applied and used the initial $10 million available.
The applications represented small and large businesses from a wide range of industries across the state. The fund is designed to support employee safety, reduce injuries, and decrease exposures by helping businesses impacted by the coronavirus. More than 53,000 SAIF policyholders across the state are eligible for funds. Some of the most common requests that SAIF is supporting include personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning supplies.
In addition, resources to redesign or modify workspaces to encourage social distancing; mental health and wellness initiatives; and coronavirus and job reassignment safety training are eligible. Ineligible expenses include telecommuting and regular staffing expenses, including labor costs for employees reassigned to new positions. SAIF recommends policyholders submit applications as soon as possible, given how quickly the initial funding was exhausted. We don’t anticipate additional funding.
Policyholders who previously applied do not need to apply again; applications are still being processed from the first round of funding.
Oregon will put $8 million toward the Oregon Food Bank in an effort to address rapidly rising food insecurity. The state will be pay out weekly toward the Oregon Food Bank as needed over the next eight weeks, according to the Governor Brown’s office.
Oregon expects to receive a 75 percent reimbursement from FEMA due to the federal emergency declaration. The Oregon Food Bank includes a network of 21 regional food banks and more than 1,400 food assistance sites around the state. Since March, the system has seen a “dramatic increase” in demand, Brown’s office said.
Meanwhile, the usual donations from food producers and grocers have fallen due to the increased strain on supply chains. Those donations generally account for the majority of Oregon Food Bank’s in-kind intake.
Governor Brown’s office said that the SNAP program is still the state’s “first line of defense” against hunger, touting recent efforts to expand SNAP eligibility and benefits.
Self-service at gas stations in Oregon has been extended through April 25.
Self-service if a voluntary option at the pump. The fire marshal stated it allows customers to avoid face-to-face and hand-to-hand contact while applying physical distancing measures. It also allows gas stations to continue operating with less staff.
Attendants continue to sanitize equipment and fuel nozzles, while helping customers with their refueling as needed. Unattended self-service is permitted when a gas station owner exhausts all staffing options. Stations that do not have an attendant on duty are required to post safety signs for physical distancing and instructions showing customers how to operate a fuel pump correctly.
This extension of the self-service rules change does not affect areas of the state that are already authorized for self-service refueling under Oregon law.
The Oregon Department of Human Services announced that the Oregon Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will provide an additional $30 million each for the months of April and May 2020 to eligible SNAP households.
SNAP households will automatically receive the additional allotment in the same way they receive their current benefits. For most customers this is an EBT card. No additional action is needed from Oregonians already enrolled in SNAP. Households that already receive the maximum benefit will not receive any additional benefits.
This allotment will not permanently change a household’s monthly benefit amount. It is a temporary supplement to help during the current health crisis. DHS will not be sending individual notices to households about the emergency allotments.
OREGONIANS START RECEIVING $600 PANDEMIC UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION PAYMENTS THIS WEEK
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020 was signed into law on March 27 and those checks should start hitting bank accounts this week.
Oregonians who are already eligible for regular Unemployment Insurance benefits and eligible for FPUC will receive two weekly payments; one for regular UI benefits, and an additional $600 payment.
Individuals will be receiving FPUC benefits using the same payment method as their regular UI benefits for the week. FPUC payments will be paid for each week someone is eligible from March 29, 2020 through the week ending July 25, 2020.
The $600 payments will be retroactive for those eligible for payments.
No additional action is needed to apply for or receive FPUC benefits. In order to receive the $600 benefit, an individual must have an existing Unemployment Insurance claim, continue claiming weekly benefits, and be eligible to receive benefits.
Individuals may receive FPUC if they are receiving unemployment benefits under one of the following programs:
- Regular Unemployment Insurance;
- Unemployment Insurance for Civilian Federal Employees (UCFE);
- Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service Members (UCX);
- Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC);
- Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA);
- Extended Benefits (EB);
- Work Share Benefits, or Oregon’s Short-Time Compensation (STC) Program;
- Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA); or the
- Self-Employment Assistance (SEA) program.
The Employment Department continues receiving guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor to implement the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program into its systems.
The PUA benefits allow the self-employed, contract workers, and gig workers not already eligible to receive unemployment benefits for the first time. More information about the upcoming PUA program and all benefits associated with the CARES Act can be found on the Employment Department’s COVID-19 page.
To file an online claim for unemployment benefits, go to Oregon.gov/employ or call 1-877-FILE-4-UI.
For help finding jobs and training resources, contact your local WorkSource Oregon center or go to WorkSourceOregon.org.
Equal Opportunity program — auxiliary aids and services available upon request to individuals with disabilities.
Contact: (503) 947-1794. For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, call 711 Telecommunications Relay Services.
SALEM, OR—The State of Oregon received a shipment of personal protective equipment (PPE) from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today, replenishing the state’s stockpiles of critically needed N95 masks and other PPE.
Masks, face shields, gloves and other PPE are vital tools in the state’s ability to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and help ensure frontline health care workers have the equipment they need to stay safe.
The shipment of 78 pallets includes N95 masks, scrubs, coveralls, and face shields.
The materials will need to go through the inventory process before the state can report exact totals, but the state expects approximately 150,000 N95 masks, 2,500 scrubs pants, 2,000 scrubs tops, 250 coveralls, and nearly 67,000 face shields. The PPE distribution center in Wilsonville will ship the equipment to Oregon counties in need.
The PPE was procured from USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance warehouse based in Dubai. The U.S. has not utilized materials from this stockpile for a domestic emergency since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Today is a good day to reach out. It’s natural to struggle during this time of increased isolation, and we want to encourage you to reach out today.
Whether that’s reaching out to check on someone by sending a text message, making a phone call, or writing a letter, we can all help make someone’s day better. You can also reach out to your favorite non-profit organization to see what kind of financial or volunteer support they need at this time.
Reaching out can also mean reaching out for help. are many resources that are available to help support you during this crisis.
While we know physical distancing is an important strategy to slow the spread of COVID-19, we all need connection. Let’s support each other.
The Oregon Department of Human Services and Oregon Health Authority have launched a multi-agency support team to assess the needs of long-term care facilities experiencing increased COVID-19 cases and help them access resources to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 to residents and staff.
The new team is built on DHS and OHA’s ongoing efforts and provides for stronger coordination in providing both intervention and support. As part of this work, the state is beginning to contract with facilities to develop additional capacity to safely treat COVID-19 patients.
“COVID-19 already has had a significant impact on Oregonians in long-term care facilities,” said Fariborz Pakseresht, director of DHS. “We are saddened by the tragedies that have occurred, and our thoughts are with all the residents, staff and families who have been affected.” DHS and OHA entered a new data sharing arrangement that will allow them to better monitor incidences of the virus at long-term care facilities statewide and share status updates with the public. An initial report from this data shows nine long-term care facilities have five confirmed cases or more.