While my focus remains on the public heath concerns at hand, we will continue to work on the many issues facing our community. I've moved our Education Town Hall scheduled for later this month to a Facebook live stream.
Education Live Stream Town Hall
You're invited to our nineteenth town hall! This will be a virtual town hall. I will be discussing the important topic of education and then take questions.
Date: Friday, March 27
Time: 5:30PM - 6:30PM
To Participate: Please join us via our Facebook live stream at www.facebook.com/RepChrissyHoulahan/ |
Coronavirus Resources
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers the coronavirus to be a serious public health threat. It is important that you are aware of the disease and the efforts necessary to prevent its spread. Download a CDC fact sheet on coronavirus
here.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. Symptoms can include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. If you have visited China within the past two weeks and start to feel ill, call your doctor.
Prevention
The best way to prevent infection is to avoid being exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19. There are simple everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, including:
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
- Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available
If you are sick, to keep from spreading respiratory illness to others, you should:
- Stay home except to get medical care
- Call ahead before visiting your doctor
- Wear a facemask
- Cover your coughs and sneezes
- Avoid sharing personal household items
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
- Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available
Travel Warnings
CDC recommends that travelers avoid all nonessential travel to China and South Korea. CDC also advises that older adults and those with chronic medical conditions consider postponing nonessential travel to Iran, Italy, and Japan. Travelers should practice usual precautions when traveling to Hong Kong. If you plan to travel internationally, I encourage you to visit the State Department's dedicated COVID-19 website where you can find country-specific information.
Further Information
Experts have been working hard to understand this new strain of coronavirus. Because new information is coming out every day, please visit the sites below to stay up to date.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services shared this FAQs document on essential health benefit coverage.
The Centers for Disease Control provides updates on the virus and safety information for the public and healthcare professionals.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health provides updates on the disease's spread within the state, as well as frequently asked questions available here.
The State Department provides a list of travel advisories for those who are planning to fly outside of the United States.
The American Health Care Association keeps their website updated with the latest information about COVID-19.
Our Office's Response
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At a February Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, I spoke with Dr. Redfield, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I asked him about what we in Pennsylvania and across the country need to know about the coronavirus and what we can do to stay safe and healthy. Watch below to see his recommendations.
- Signed a letter alongside 60 of my colleagues demanding an improved coronavirus response from the Trump Administration. You can find the full text of the letter here.
- Voted to invest $8.3 billion in emergency funding to help our country respond to coronavirus.
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Held a telephone town hall on March 10th with an infectious disease specialist and local health experts from Chester and Berks counties to discuss how our community is preparing. We invite you to read the article written about the telephone town hall here.
- Sent a bipartisan letter to the Small Business Administration urging clarity on the process for our small businesses to access much-needed economic disaster assistance funds.
- Sent a letter to Health and Human Services urging clear and effective guidance for new, simple tests that can be performed in the medical setting. We need to expedite the testing process to flatten the curve and mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.
- Cosponsored the SBA Business Stabilization Direct Loan Program Act of 2020, which established a loan program at the Small Business Administration to assist small businesses that have been hurt by the coronavirus outbreak.
The safety of you and your loved ones is of the utmost importance. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call our West Chester office at (610) 883-5050, or our Reading office at (610) 295-0815.
En Español
Para recursos en español, hagan clic
aquí. Como recordatorio, tenemos hispanohablantes en cada oficina, asi que no duden en llamarnos en Reading a (610) 295-0815 o West Chester a (610) 883-5050.
Respectfully,
