Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Message from our Santa Clara District Education Office

Dear Elected and Public Officials,

We write to provide our latest update related to the County’s COVID-19 response efforts. As news is developing rapidly, we are working to provide you more frequent updates going forward. Our goal in these emails provide up-to-date, transparent information and provide resources that you can readily share with your constituents.  Please let us what other types of information and resources would be helpful to you in public role. We are working to schedule two conference calls this week (on Wednesday and Friday) and will work to confirm times for those hopefully tomorrow. 


COVID-19 Cases in Santa Clara County

The County of Santa Clara Public Health Department announced three new deaths from COVID-19 today, bringing the total number of deaths to 13 in Santa Clara County. The County is also reporting 19 new cases today, bringing our total number of confirmed cases to 321. Because of limited testing capacity, the number of confirmed cases almost certainly represents a small fraction of the total number of persons with COVID-19 in the county.

Financial Assistance for Low-Income Residents

Destination: Home has raised more than $11 million from private and public sources, including a proposed $2 million contribution from the County, to provide direct financial assistance to those who are facing a documented loss of income because of COVID-19.

Eligible residents must meet these three criteria to qualify for assistance:

1. Resident of Santa Clara County
2. Household gross income less than 80% of the average median income
     (e.g. $103,900 for a family of four)
3. Documented loss of income related to COVID-19 impacts due to health,
     employment, or school/child care closures

Eligible households will receive up to a maximum of $4,000 of lost income per month. Assistance may be requested once per month for the duration of the public health emergency, as long as the household continues to experience an economic impact and funds are available.

Residents can get more information or apply online at https://sacredheartcs.org/covid19/. They can also call (408) 780-9134.

Federal Medical Station Coming Soon

On Saturday, March 21, the County of Santa Clara announced a partnership with federal, state, and local partners to open a temporary Federal Medical Station (FMS) inside the City of Santa Clara Convention Center. The FMS will have up to 250 beds to care for lower acuity, non-infectious patients. The United States Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response will supply staffing and supplies, freeing up beds and resources at local hospitals to treat more complex cases and patients dealing with serious infections such as COVID-19. Planning for the FMS is underway, and it is expected to open in the next week or two. Download a PDF FMS fact sheet here.

Countywide Bed Count

There are approximately 2,500 hospital beds countywide. About 350 of those are critical care beds. Hospitals are working on plans to increase capacity by converting another 300 plus beds to critical care. Even more capacity is possible if necessary equipment such as ventilators can be secured. However, even with added capacity, our hospitals can be quickly overwhelmed if they experience large surges in patients. That is why it is so important for us to keep up our social distancing efforts.

You can watch a conversation between Board of Supervisors President Cindy Chavez and Santa Clara Valley Medical Center CEO Paul Lorenz about this topic here.

Public Health Order Enforcement

Last week, a centralized repository for complaints about clear violations of the public health order requiring sheltering in place and the closure of nonessential business was created. For complaints in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese, please email the District Attorney’s Office at PubHealthReferral@dao.sccgov.org or leave a voicemail at (408) 792-2300. 

A list of what constitutes an essential business can be found in the COVID-19 FAQs at www.sccphd.org/cv19. The County has also created infographic Facebook posts about what business are open and closed during the public health order. You can share them in the following languages: EnglishTagalogVietnameseSpanish, and Chinese

There is also a Facebook post  and Twitter post providing guidance for keeping businesses and employees safe.  #shelterinplace #santaclaracounty #covid19 #businesses 

Governor Newsom Requests Presidential Major Disaster Declaration

On Sunday, March 22, Governor Gavin Newsom sent a letter to President Donald Trump officially requesting a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration to assist in California’s COVID-19 preparedness and emergency response efforts. The Major Disaster Declaration would include any and all individual assistance programs to assist those affected by the outbreak and lessen the economic impacts of the crisis. The request would provide additional assistance, including but not limited to, mass care and emergency assistance, crisis counseling, disaster case management, disaster unemployment assistance, disaster legal services and Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance. You can download a PDF of the letter here.

FAQs about the Local Health Order

We make regular updates to the FAQ documents for our local public health order as new information becomes available. Your constituents can access them in the following languages:


Closing Thoughts

Please remember that scientific evidence shows us that social distancing is still one of the most effective tools we have to slow the transmission of COVID-19. Please continue to share this message with your constituents, and please continue to let us know how we can help you feel better informed.

Please continue to monitor this situation closely.  More information and regular updates can be found on the County Public Health website and the CDC website.

If you as elected and public officials have questions or requests for information, please send them to liaisonOfficer@eoc.sccgov.org.

Any business, faith, nonprofit, or community leader with questions should contact: cboliaison@EOC.SCCGOV.ORG.

Any school-related questions should be sent to schools@eoc.sccgov.org

Thank you for your essential leadership during this challenging time for our community,

Liaison Officer
County of Santa Clara Emergency Operations Center
Instagram: @scc_publichealth
Twitter: @HealthySCC

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