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COVID-19 Digest: June 30

COVID-19 Digest: June 30

June 30, 2020 • Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

COVID-19 Digest

Tuesday, June 30, 2020As NYC begins reopening, the digest will focus on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.

Below and in our resource guide, you’ll find the latest information on government resources for businesses, city and state reopening measures, and return-to-office preparedness plans. If this can be useful to your colleagues and network, encourage them to sign up here.

The Latest in New York

The latest: Eight more states added to NY’s travel advisory; PPP program ends today despite leftover money; there’s no plan yet for schools this fall, we break down some possibilities; beaches and BBQs come back for July 4th.Confirmed Cases:

New York State: 393,454 (+524)
New York City: 215,179 (+240)
Statewide Fatalities: 24,855 (+13)
Daily NYC Infection Rate: 1.0 percent (no change)

General Updates:

In Senate committee testimony today, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that the spikes in the South and West could put the entire country at risk, pushing the US to 100,000 new cases a day. (New York Times) The CDC sounded a similar alarm, saying it is “wishful thinking” that the pandemic would be over by the end of summer. (Axios)
That second surge is complicating many states’ plans for reopening schools in the fall, and guidance is sparse. (CNN) More on that below.
Eight additional states now meet the metrics to be subject to New York’s travel advisory, including California, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, and Tennessee. (CBS New York) Travelers to New York from these states and eight others previously announced must self-quarantine for 14 days. See the full list of states here.
An $88.1 billion NYC budget has been agreed to between the Mayor and the City Council. The Council will vote virtually to approve the budget this evening despite an attempt by Public Advocate Jumaane Williams to prevent the vote unless it includes more significant police reforms. (New York Post)
Today is the last day to apply for a loan under the Paycheck Protection Program. The PPP wraps up after granting $520 billion in business loans, but $130 billion still remains in unclaimed relief funds. (Wall Street Journal)

One opportunity: As businesses prepare to reopen and bring employees back, NYCEDC is looking for a partner to create a digital marketplace that will facilitate sales between NYC-based PPE suppliers and NYC-based businesses providing PPE to their employees. Proposals are due July 2. Learn more here.One fun thing: NYC is honoring 2020 graduates with a citywide virtual graduation ceremony tonight with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Pitbull, and more. Tune in at 7pm.

Survey

The latest results: How has your cash use changed during the pandemic?

25.7%: I use the same amount of cash as before.
49.7%: I use less cash than before.
0.5%: I use more cash than before.
24.0%: I never used cash and don’t plan to start.

Today’s poll: With eight weeks before schools would normally return, parents have little information as to what the school year will look like. Parents and teachers alike are calling on city and state officials for guidance on how to safely reopen New York’s schools for the fall semester. How will it impact your daily life if schools have not resumed full-time in-person learning this fall?

*|SURVEY: No impact|*
*|SURVEY: Minor impact|*
*|SURVEY: Significant impact|*
*|SURVEY: Potentially catastrophic impact|*

Reminder: If you haven’t already, please help us get to know you better by completing our quick audience survey here. Find the poll results from all previous editions of this newsletter here.

What You Need to Know

Reopening Schools:

In NYC, the first day of the fall semester is in eight weeks. Parents and teachers alike are — understandably — antsy for guidance on how schools will reopen for the next academic year, but no official guidelines have been released. (CNN)
Especially as cases spike elsewhere across the country and NYC is considering slowing its reopening, multiple scenarios for schools are on the table:
- Many schools are likely to stagger student schedules and offer a hybrid of in-person and remote instruction to limit class sizes and comply with social distancing measures. (The Cut)
- Pediatricians, meanwhile, are calling for a return to in-person instruction, noting the importance of schools to a child’s well-being and citing research that transmission among young children is uncommon. (NPR)
- Testing will be a key component of any reopening strategy: Dr. Fauci suggested today that “pool testing,” which utilizes one test to ascertain infection in a particular cohort, could be a useful screening strategy for students and teachers who share classroom space. (CNN)
- Mayor de Blasio has already announced it is unlikely the city’s 1.1 million students will return full-time, speculating that a full return may only come when there’s a vaccine. (New York Times)
Across the Hudson, New Jersey has shared preliminary guidance, calling for a hybrid approach of in-person and remote learning, along with regular COVID screenings. (NBC New York) Connecticut, however, has released guidance requiring its school districts to plan to bring students back in the fall for all-day learning. (NBC New York) Both states are simultaneously calling on schools to also have backup plans ready should a new COVID-19 cluster require them to return to fully remote at any moment.
Gensler, the world’s largest architectural firm, has also released resources for school reopenings, particularly on how physical space can be transformed. (Gensler)
But keeping schools in limbo also puts child care in limbo. (Axios) Inconsistent, staggered schedules that bring students back to the classroom for just part of the week presents a difficult challenge for working parents. (New York Times)
Because let’s be honest, remote school is hardly a joyride. (New York Times)

What to Know: Reopening:

NYC’s federal beaches will reopen for swimming beginning tomorrow. That includes both city-run beaches and those run by the National Parks Service. Lifeguards will be on duty. (New York Daily News) And if the virus wasn’t enough to worry about, an injured shark washed up on Rockaway Beach yesterday. (New York Post)
Mayor de Blasio announced that barbecuing will be allowed in parks in time for the July 4th holiday. (New York Daily News) Parking at federal parks is still reduced to 50 percent capacity.