March 25, 2020

PPE SHORTAGES: FEDERAL GOVERNMENT STILL STALLING

• The federal government still refuses to take the lead on securing the PPE we need — so we’re working tirelessly to secure N95 masks from suppliers across the country and get them to our hospitals. We’ll have a fuller update on these efforts tomorrow. 
• Take action right now to force the federal government to stop stalling and start driving a coordinated national response on our PPE needs. 
• Join our COVID-19 Facebook Live session tonight, Wed., March 25, at 7 p.m. We’ll address the critical PPE shortages and what it will take for us to get the equipment and supplies we need to keep us, our patients, and our families safe.
• Click here for the latest COVID-19 Response Checklist to make sure your facility is following the proper protocols, including for PPE. 

HEALTHCARE WORKERS NEEDED FOR THE SURGE

We’re working with the California Dept. of Health and Human Services to reopen shuttered hospitals across the state to meet the impending COVID-19 surge —  including St. Vincent Medical Center in L.A. Do you know other healthcare workers who are ready to step up at St. Vincent or other hospitals that are reopening to help lead us through this epidemic? Click here to learn more. 

TO DELIVER PATIENT CARE WE NEED CHILDCARE & ELDERCARE

Healthcare workers won’t be able to heal our patients if our loved ones aren’t secure. We’re calling on the state to offer child and senior care resources during this epidemic — including the right to transfer the paid family leave we have under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to someone else who can care for our children and an emergency fund to help us subsidize care for our loved ones. Check out this article about our recommendations.

Shelter-in-Place Timetable

The president’s push to end shelter-in-place orders by Easter would put healthcare workers and our entire country at severe risk. Gov. Newsom made clear in his March 24 press conference that early April is not a realistic timeline for California to ease our shelter-in-place orders — and he is the one with the authority to make that decision.