Headline News
COVID-19 News Updates for August 25, 2020
White House Updates
· President Donald J. Trump Is Taking Strong Action to Further Protect Nursing Homes from the Coronavirus (HERE)
· President Donald J. Trump Is Lifting Up and Driving New Prosperity in Previously Forgotten American Communities (FACT SHEET)
· Proclamation on Women’s Equality Day, 2020 (HERE)
· Second Lady Karen Pence Recognizes the Mental Health Benefits of our Nation’s Parks on the National Park Service’s Birthday (HERE)
· 1600 Daily: Highlights from President Trump’s visit to North Carolina (HERE)
HHS Awards $117 Million to Support Health Center Quality Improvement (HERE)
· Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), announced over $117 million in quality improvement awards to 1,318 health centers across all U.S. states, territories and the District of Columbia. HRSA-funded health centers will use these funds to further strengthen quality improvement activities and expand quality primary health care service delivery.
Stay Safe At Summer Camp (HERE)
· Campers, get ready to stop COVID-19 in its tracks! Here are some tips on how to stay safe at summer camp.
Trump Administration Launches National Training Program to Strengthen Nursing Home Infection Control Practices (HERE)
· Today, under the leadership of President Trump, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is implementing an unprecedented national nursing home training program for frontline nursing home staff and nursing home management. The training is designed to equip both frontline caregivers and their management with the knowledge they need to stop the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in their nursing homes.
Trump Administration Strengthens COVID-19 Surveillance with New Reporting and Testing Requirements for Nursing Homes, Other Providers (HERE)
· Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced sweeping regulatory changes that require nursing homes to test staff and offer testing to residents for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Laboratories and nursing homes using point-of-care testing devices will be required to report diagnostic test results as required by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).
FDA Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update Daily Roundup – August 25, 2020 (HERE)
· The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to announce actions taken in its ongoing response effort to the COVID-19 pandemic.
FEMA Prepares for Hurricane Laura, California Wildfires (HERE)
· As Hurricane Laura approaches and wildfires continue to burn in the west, it is more important than ever to be prepared. As you make necessary preparations for your family and your home, FEMA is preparing too. The agency is working with federal, state, local, tribal and territorial partners to make sure the nation is ready for these tropical systems and wildfires.
IRS: 50,000 spouses to get catch-up Economic Impact Payments (HERE)
· Internal Revenue Service will soon send catch-up Economic Impact Payment checks to about 50,000 individuals whose portion of the EIP was diverted to pay their spouse’s past-due child support. These catch-up payments are due to be issued in early-to-mid-September. They will be mailed as checks to any eligible spouse who submitted Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation, along with their 2019 federal income tax return, or in some cases, their 2018 return.
USDA Announces First-Ever Recipients of Urban Agriculture Grants and Cooperative Agreements (HERE)
· Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the selection of recipients for about $4.1 million in grants and cooperative agreements through its new Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production. These are the first-ever recipients of these grants and cooperative agreements.
Trump Administration Announces Additional $1 billion for the Farmers to Families Food Box Program (HERE)
· Yesterday, President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced up to an additional $1 billion for the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. The additional funding allows the program to continue critical support to farmers, distributors, and American families in need. The Farmers to Families Food Box program has provided over 70 million boxes to hungry Americans across the country.
New Report Shows Opportunity Zones on Track to Lift One Million Americans Out of Poverty (HERE)
· The White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) yesterday delivered a Progress Report on President Trump’s Opportunity Zones initiative to White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council Chairman Ben Carson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The CEA estimates that Opportunity Zones have already generated approximately half a million jobs, attracted $75 billion in capital investments, and are on track to reduce the poverty rate in Opportunity Zones by 11 percent-lifting 1,000,000 people out of poverty
U.S. Department of Transportation Announces September 24 Meeting of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (HERE)
· The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced that its Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC) will hold its next meeting virtually on September 24, 2020. Notice of the meeting will appear in the Federal Register.
U.S. Department of Commerce Continues to Invest Cares Act Funding to Boost Economic Development Programs Critical to Helping Communities Respond to Coronavirus (HERE)
· EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance, which is being administered under the authority of the bureau’s flexible Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) program, provides a wide-range of financial assistance to eligible communities and regions as they respond to and recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. For complete information, please visit EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance page.
For the most up-to-date information, please see the CDC’s website: www.coronavirus.gov.