On January 28, Mayor Muriel Bowser released a situational update regarding the state of the COVID-19 pandemic in Washington, D.C. The presentation of the situational update can be found here.
Included in the presentation are updated statistics, details regarding vaccine distribution, and other citywide initiatives related to fighting the pandemic and supporting the economy.
Key updated statistics include the level of community spread, health system capacity, and community engagement. Vaccine distribution is being prioritized for health care professionals, emergency workers such as fire fighters, residents of group homes, residents of the city aged 65 and older, the homeless, members of the police, teachers and staff at public and public charter schools, department of corrections employees, and Continuity Government Operations personnel. Those that fall under any of these categories are provided with resources to schedule their vaccination appointments.
The presentation includes the announcement of a pop-up testing site near Black Lives Matter Plaza specifically for essential workers. The notice includes hours of operation and notes that there are additional free public testing sites throughout the District.
The presentation also announces Phase 2 of the DC CARES program, which has been allocated more than $8 million dollars to aid excluded workers in the city who are eligible. Those eligible are D.C. residents who “…have been omitted from federal stimulus efforts and are experiencing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The situational update details the efforts the D.C. government has been making to provide the city’s residents with resources to stay healthy and meet their financial needs. We highly encourage all of you to take the time to understand all the initiatives outlined in the mayor’s presentation and take advantage of whatever resources for which you are eligible. As always, thank you for your attention.