From The Daily Yonder:

The pandemic caused the Census Bureau to cancel its plans to hand-deliver announcements to households that are hard to reach by U.S. mail. That probably explains some of rural America’s low response rates to the Census so far. Read more here.

From The Daily Yonder:

The rural infection rate is about a fifth of that of major metropolitan areas. But cases are climbing at a slightly higher rate in rural counties. Read more here.

Kaiser Health News (KHN) Midwest correspondent Lauren Weber joined WAMU’s “1A” show with guest host Sasha-Ann Simons to talk about the unique challenges rural health care providers face amid the coronavirus pandemic — even before their communities get overrun with a surge of COVID-19 cases.

Weber has reported on how the suspension of elective surgery and other procedures amid the pandemic has threatened the financial survival of the country’s rural hospitals — and how hospital executives don’t feel the first round of federal bailout relief money was enough. She also has written about the front-line fight at a rural Louisiana hospital that forecasts what the pandemic will look like when it hits the rest of rural America.

Listen to the story here.

From the Pennsylvania Association of Community Health Centers (PACHC)

Income and Eligibility for Health Insurance

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) signed into law on March 27 provided for payments of up to $1200 for every adult and $500 per dependent child. This Stimulus payment does not count as income for Medicaid/CHIP or APTC determinations. It should also not be reported on any application for assistance.

Regular Unemployment is always counted as income. The extension of unemployment of up to 39 weeks and the expansion unemployment to new populations is counted as income. The additional $600/week supplemental unemployment benefit ends July 31, 2020. This benefit does not count toward Medicaid/CHIP but DOES COUNT toward income for Marketplace Coverage and APTC eligibility.

While the Federal government has not issued a special enrollment period or opened the marketplace due to the Pandemic, consumers who have lost coverage may qualify for a special enrollment period. Special Enrollment Period Reference Guide

For more information, visits PACHC’s COVID-19 page.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced that the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) will begin an emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit issuance today in line with the federal government’s interpretation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Payments include a supplemental increase for both March and April and will continue to be issued for current SNAP households through April 29. DHS is also advising Pennsylvanians in need of food assistance of local supports that can help meet essential needs during the public health crisis

DHS received approval from the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to issue emergency payments that will allow DHS to increase a household’s currently monthly payment up to the maximum benefit amount for each household size. DHS had requested authorization to issue an additional benefit equal to a household’s monthly payment to all SNAP households and was denied.

Individuals and families in need of assistance should contact their local food bank through Feeding PA or Hunger-Free PA to find a food pantry or other distribution site in their community. The United Way of Pennsylvania and the 211 program can also connect people and families to local resources that can help during the public health crisis.

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) today began accepting orders by phone for curbside pickup at 176 locations. Phone orders can be placed between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., or until reaching a store’s maximum order capacity each day. Curbside pickups will be scheduled from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. within a few days of order placement. Callers will be guided through each store’s unique inventory. There is a limit of six bottles per order, and credit cards are the only accepted form of payment. At pickup, customers will be required to present identification before the order is delivered.

The PLCB website lists the stores offering curbside pickup. PLCB anticipates expanding the service at more locations in the future. The PLCB website, FineWineAndGoodSpirits.com, is also increasing order capacity.

USDA is launching a new “Buy Fresh” program to purchase $100 million per month in fresh produce from regional and local distributors whose workforce has been significantly impacted by the closure of restaurants, hotels, and other food service entities. USDA also will buy similar quantities of dairy products and meat. The program is expected to continue for six months.

An informational webinar for interested participants will be held at 2 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 21, 2020, to provide an overview of the program and instructions for submitting offers. Register in advance for this webinar here. If you are unable to participate in the webinar, a recording will be available.

You can email questions to USDAFoodBoxDistributionProgram@usda.gov.

With many industries in the U.S. ground to a halt because of the coronavirus social distancing restrictions, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on the States Slowing Down the Most During the COVID-19 Pandemic, as well as accompanying videos.

In order to find out which states are slowing down most during the COVID-19 pandemic, WalletHub used Google data to compare the 50 states across six key metrics. Each metric measures the percentage point increase or decrease in visits to various types of places due to coronavirus. Below, you can see highlights from the report, along with a WalletHub Q&A.

To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/states-slowing-down-the-most-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/73432/