April 11, 2020

To the Good People of New York’s 9th Congressional District,

In times of uncertainty, I know one thing is for sure- I am so proud to represent my community in Congress. Thank you for all the sacrifices you all have made to keep central and south Brooklyn safe, healthy and protected in the face of the coronavirus outbreak.

As spring approaches and stir-craziness builds, please, remember the importance of staying away from others, known as social distancing. This is crucial to stop the spread of this devastating virus. Please note that outdoor exercise and walks are allowed, so long as you keep a true six feet distance from others.

With the brave frontline workers, like healthcare professionals, first responders and city workers making sacrifices for us each day, it’s only fair that we do our part to protect the community we love and share. There’s no way to get through this without the support and efforts of all Brooklynites.

My offices in both Brooklyn and Washington D.C. are still temporarily closed, but we are teleworking tirelessly. Please contact my team with constituent concerns at (718) 287-1142 during business hours.

Happy Easter, Chag Sameach and Ramadan Muburak to those celebrating Easter, Passover and Ramadan. Many blessings to you and your families.

In good health,

Yvette D. Clarke

Member of Congress

NYC & NYS Updates:

NYC’s Department for the Aging (DFTA)'s congregate meals clients will receive direct delivery, which includes a five-meal package delivered to each older adult every week. DFTA has contracted with several vendors to deliver to these senior center participants directly.

The most direct path to access direct delivery meals is through the senior center. Older adults can do this by connecting with their local senior center. They can also call DFTA's Aging Connect at 212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469) or call 311.

Free grab-and-go meals are now available to anyone in need at over 400 locations around the city. Meals are available Mon-Fri, 7:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Click this link to find a pick-up location near you: https://www.opt-osfns.org/schoolfoodny/meals/default.aspx.
New York seeks private sector partners to bring rapid COVID-19 testing to scale and accelerate testing capacity. Businesses interested in working with the state to manufacture these rapid tests on a large scale should contact Empire State Development at 212-803-3100 or [email protected].
Student loan borrowers experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19 can obtain relief for loans not covered by the CARES Act. Available relief includes 90 days of deferred monthly payments, waived late fees, no negative reporting to credit agencies and enrolling eligible borrowers in available long-term assistance programs. New York student loan borrowers should visit the Department of Financial Services' website for more information about available student loan relief.
The State Department of Health has developed a test to detect antibodies to the COVID-19 infection in an individual's blood. This test is an important step towards determining whether New Yorkers are developing immunity and when they could potentially return to work or school.
"Go Paper" campaign to raise awareness about Coronavirus protocols in your community.

Starting this week, the online grocer FreshDirect will include a paper flyer with their deliveries that reminds New Yorkers to stay home. Any delivery service (or individual) can print the flyer and include in deliveries to spread this crucial message. To print out and distribute the flyer in your community, visit: https://www.ny.gov/coronavirus-community-handout

The public library in Levittown, New York, is using their 3D printers to make face shields and PPE for Nassau University Medical Center.
The NYC COVID-19 Engagement Portal allows New Yorkers to self-report whether they’re experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, or have been otherwise affected by the virus. It is available in 11 languages. The information gathered from New Yorkers will help the City both better communicate with affected people and identify areas that may need enhanced response. Inputs are confidential.
Check out the NYC Help Now Portal for folks to either volunteer goods and services, or seek help for services related to COVID-19

USPS Updates:

The Postal Service will temporarily suspend international mail acceptance for certain destinations due to service impacts related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Effective April 7, 2020, the Postal Service will temporarily suspend international mail acceptance to destinations where air and sea transportation is unavailable due to widespread cancellations and restrictions into the area. Customers are asked to refrain from mailing items addressed to any of the following countries, until further notice:

Angola
Benin
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Cameroon
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Gambia
Guatemala
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Lebanon
Malawi
Moldova
Mozambique
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Republic of the Congo
Senegal
Seychelles
Solomon Islands
Sudan
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Timor-Leste
Tonga
Uganda
Uruguay
Vanuatu
Venezuela

State Department Updates:

The State Department is advising Americans to avoid all international travel at this time. For more information on the State Department’s worldwide “Level 4” travel advisory, please see here.
A number of countries have suspended all international air travel, and more may follow suit.
Travelers are strongly encouraged to enroll in the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive alerts and make it easier to locate them in an emergency.
In response to significant worldwide challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of State is temporarily suspending routine visa services at all U.S. Embassies and Consulates.
Embassies and consulates will cancel all routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments as of March 20, 2020. As resources allow, embassies and consulates will continue to provide emergency and mission critical visa services. Our overseas missions will resume routine visa services as soon as possible but are unable to provide a specific date at this time.

Passport Updates:

Due to public health measures to limit the spread of COVID-19, Passport Agencies are only able to offer service for customers with a qualified life-or-death emergency and who need a passport for immediate international travel within 72 hours.
Life-or-death emergencies are serious illnesses, injuries, or deaths in the immediate family that require travel outside the United States within 72 hours (3 days). Applicants will be required to contact the National Passport Information Center (NPIC) and provide:
A passport application with supporting documents;
Proof of the life-or-death emergency such as a death certificate, a statement from a mortuary, or a signed letter from a hospital or medical professional. Documents should be translated or in English; and
Proof of international travel (e.g. reservation, ticket, itinerary)
The public phone number for NPIC is 1-877-487-2778.

FDA Updates:

Businesses: If a constituent company would like to produce, sell, or donate medical products to help with the COVID-19 response, they should consult https://www.fema.gov/coronavirus/how-to-help.
Importation: Constituents who have a shipment of COVID-19 supplies held up at a port of entry should visit https://www.fda.gov/industry/import-program-food-and-drug-administration-fda/importing-covid-19-supplies for contact information and instructions. It includes an interactive map that importers can use to find the right office for their shipment, based on where the product is entering the United States. To speed assistance, they should provide the customs entry number (the 11-digit number they can get from their filer), the port of entry, and other shipment details. (Constituents who need assistance with import procedures regarding personal protective equipment or test kits should email [email protected].)
Vaccines and Other Biological Product Candidates: Biological product sponsors, including vaccine developers, wishing to develop vaccines can email [email protected] or call 1-800-835-4709 for further information.
Therapeutic Candidates: Developers who believe their investigational product may have activity against the COVID-19 virus and have relevant cell culture and/or animal model data may submit a Pre-IND (PIND) application to the Agency as a “general correspondence” via the Pre-IND Consultation program. See https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-issues/covid-19-therapeutics-general-information-interested-stakeholders or call 301-796-1500 for additional information on this program.
Drug Product Candidates: Inquiries regarding product development for proposed COVID-19 uses should be sent to [email protected]. Product sponsors can read more about the Coronavirus Treatment Acceleration Program at https://www.fda.gov/drugs/coronavirus-covid-19-drugs/coronavirus-treatment-acceleration-program-ctap. We also recommend they review COVID-19 Therapeutics: General Information for Interested Stakeholders for additional information.
Chloroquine/Hydroxychloroquine: There has been significant public interest in the drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine. FDA has published an FAQ on the subject that may be of interest to constituents at https://www.fda.gov/media/136784/download.
Personal Protective Equipment: If constituents or health care providers have questions or is experiencing spot shortages of personal protective equipment or other supplies, they should the toll-free line at 1-888-463-6332 (1-888-INFO-FDA), then choose option (*). The line is available 24 hours a day to help address difficulties obtaining supplies. Please note, however, that FDA does not control the production volume or distribution of medical devices.
Hand Sanitizer: If a constituent would like to manufacture or donate hand sanitizer, they should consult https://www.fda.gov/drugs/coronavirus-covid-19-drugs/hand-sanitizers-covid-19 and, if they have questions, contact [email protected].
Companies interested in producing hand sanitizer to FDA’s latest guidance documents can find more information at the links below.

Drug Shortages: FDA continues to take steps to monitor the supply chain. The Drug Shortage Staff within the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) has asked manufacturers to evaluate their entire supply chain, including active pharmaceutical ingredients, finished dose forms, and any components that may be impacted in any area of the supply chain due to the COVID-19 outbreak. If a constituent health care provider has questions or concerns about a drug shortage, related or unrelated to COVID-19, contact CDER’s Division of Drug Information (DDI) at 855-543-3784, 301-796-3400, or [email protected]. Also,
Food: If a constituent in the food industry has a question for FDA, they may find information on common questions about food safety and COVID-19 at https://www.fda.gov/food/food-safety-during-emergencies/food-safety-and-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19. If they need to contact FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition about a COVID-19 related question, they may do so by submitting a question here.
COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests: For questions about development of COVID-19 diagnostic tests, there are several important resources your constituents may wish to use:
24/7 Hotline for Diagnostics: If a constituent developer, lab, manufacturer or health care provider has questions about testing or is experiencing spot shortages of testing, personal protective equipment, or other supplies, they should call our toll-free line at 1-888-463-6332 (1-888-INFO-FDA), then choose option (*). The line is available 24 hours a day to help address difficulties obtaining supplies for collecting patient samples for COVID-19 testing, including swabs, media needed for transport, and conservation of the samples – among other things. Please note, however, that FDA does not control the production volume or distribution of medical devices.
Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests: In response to questions from labs, manufacturers, health care providers, and others, FDA has generated FAQs and posted them on our website for all who are involved in test development for COVID-19s. FDA updates these FAQs on a rolling basis, often daily as issues arise. Your constituents can access these FAQs at: https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/emergency-situations-medical-devices/faqs-diagnostic-testing-sars-cov-2.
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests: If a constituent needs additional information for completing the EUA template, would like to know how to submit Pre-EUA/EUA submissions to FDA, or wish to consider an alternative specimen type, they may contact the Division of Microbiology Devices at (301) 348-1778 or email [email protected]. As noted above, FDA must prioritize and is unable to provide information on the status of any individual submissions (this is generally confidential commercial information) and FDA would encourage congressional offices to reach out to specific developers for the status of any pending product submissions.

The EUAs that have been issued for diagnostic tests, PPE, and ventilators are listed at https://www.fda.gov/media/136702/download.

Clinical Trials: Sponsors who have questions regarding the conduct of clinical trials impacted by COVID-19 should contact [email protected].
Animal Drugs and Animal Food: If a constituent has questions or concerns related to COVID-19 and its impact on products regulated by FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, they may contact [email protected], and their inquiry will be routed to the appropriate subject matter expert for response. A list of known animal drug shortages is kept by FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine.
Inspections: If you have questions regarding the postponement of inspections under an agreement or contract with the FDA, contact [email protected] or reach out to their specific project manager. In the meantime, we encourage those currently under contract to please submit their invoices to ensure payment for work completed.
Constituents may find FDA’s COVID-19 FAQ useful in addressing questions related to vaccines, biologics, human tissue products, drugs, medical devices and tests, and food products. We also have specific COVID-19 FAQs for Emergency Use Authorizations, Diagnostic Testing, Food Safety for Industry, Healthcare Professionals, and other specific audiences. These are updated as information becomes available.

IRS Updates:

See the below links for resources from the IRS and the House Ways and Means Committee in both English and Spanish:

IRS non-filers can enter payment info for their stimulus checks here: https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here

IRS Economic Impact Payment

English: https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payment-information-center

Spanish: https://www.irs.gov/es/coronavirus/economic-impact-payment-information-center

Rebate FAQs (Ways and Means)

English: https://waysandmeans.house.gov/sites/democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/files/documents/CARES%20Act%20Rebates%20FAQ%20(002).pdf

Spanish: https://waysandmeans.house.gov/sites/democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/files/documents/CARES%20Act%20Rebates%20FAQ_Spanish.pdf

Small Business Administration Updates:

SBA Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

Provides loans of up to $10M available to eligible small businesses and nonprofits. Loans are forgivable to the extent that proceeds are used within 8 weeks for payroll, healthcare expenses, mortgage interest and rent.

SBA COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program

Provides small businesses and nonprofits with loans up to $2 million to help overcome temporary loss of revenue. Long term repayment options, with interest rates not to exceed 3.75%.

SBA Emergency Grants (Loan Advance)

Grants of up to $10,000 are available to small businesses to cover immediate operating costs. Eligibility is the same as that of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program.

SBA Express Bridge Loans (EBL) Pilot Program

Through participating SBA Express Lenders, small businesses can access expedited SBA-guaranteed bridge loan or term loan financing up to $25,000.

Federal Payroll Tax Credits

Through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, eligible employers can take advantage of refundable tax credits to offset the costs of newly authorized paid sick leave and childcare leave benefits.

New York Small Business Continuity Loan Fund

This NYC program is available to New York City businesses with fewer than 100 employees that can demonstrate at least a 25% decrease in revenue as a result of COVID-19. Eligible businesses can apply for an interest-free loan up to $75,000.

NYC Employee Retention Grant Program

Program offers small businesses with fewer than 5 employees a grant to cover 40% of payroll costs for two months to help retain employees.

Emergency Small Business Relief Loan Fund

Provides loans to small businesses with 50 employees or fewer and can demonstrate at least a 25% decrease in sales due to COVID-19. Eligible companies must be based in specific neighborhoods of Manhattan, Queens, or Brooklyn.

Facebook Small Business Grants

Program offers $100M in cash grants and credits for Facebook advertisements for up to 30,000 eligible small businesses worldwide.

Food and Beverage Industry Relief Fund

Provides emergency funding to restaurant/bar owners and their employees.

NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund

$75M loan fund for making loans to NYC nonprofit organizations working in the human services. Focus on assisting organizations working in essential healthcare, food delivery, homeless services, workforce development, education, and arts/culture.

Verizon-LISC Small Business Recovery Fund

LISC will provide grants of up to $10,000 to businesses facing immediate financial pressure because of COVID-19—especially entrepreneurs of color, women-owned businesses and other enterprises in historically underserved communities.

Congresswoman Clarke’s Legislative Updates:

The New York City Congressional Delegation and I wrote Donald Trump asking him to expand the Defense Production Act to protect our brave frontline workers.
Congressman Cedric Richmond, our CBC colleagues and I wrote Speaker Pelosi to urge her to create a Select Committee to investigate the disproportionate percentage of minority mortality from COVID-19.
I’m a co-lead on Congresswoman Frederica Wilson’s letter to the Department of Homeland Security’s Acting Secretary Chad Wolf to request that he immediately halts the scheduled deportation of Haitian immigrants in the midst of this pandemic.
I joined Senator Ron Wyden in writing to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to request that they publicly report all available information about who is able to access COVID-19 tests, which continue to be scarce.

We requested the CDC publicly report demographic information collected on the Human Infection with 2019 Novel Coronavirus Person Under Investigation (PUI) and Case Report Form - sex, race, ethnicity, whether a patient is a health care provider and any other available demographics - as a function of:

a) access to testing;
b) positive test results;
c) hospitalizations;
d) intensive care unit admissions; and
e) fatalities.

I joined Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and our NYC Congressional Delegation colleagues in writing a letter to NYCHA to ensure they are improving building sanitation to protect our most vulnerable constituents. NYCHA must take drastic measures to prevent coronavirus from spreading in our city’s public housing.
I joined Congressman Collin Peterson on a letter to urge the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to move quickly to approve an emergency ventilator alternative design to help American patients and health care professionals nationwide respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
I am a proud co-signer of Congressman Jim McGovern’s letter to House and Senate leadership requesting that SNAP benefits are included in any upcoming coronavirus relief packages.
I joined Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici in calling for House leadership to provide at least $15.1 billion for our workforce system in the next coronavirus recovery package.
Congressman Mark Pocan, our colleagues and wrote Administrator Seema Verma of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services at the HHS Department urging her to provide workers at healthcare call centers with full paid sick leave and eligibility to telework.

Upcoming Virtual Events:

Monday, April 13; 12p.m.-1p.m.-- Join Congresswoman Clarke for Clergy Conversations Telephone Town Hall to discuss the state of the community and the congregation during the COVID-19 outbreak (moderated by Assemblywoman Latrice Walker)

Dial-In #: (202) 599-1616; Code: 646889507#

Tuesday, April 14; 6p.m.-7.pm-- Congresswoman Clarke will be hosting a telephone town hall on the Role of Technology in the Face of Coronavirus with FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks and local experts

Dial-In #: (866) 757-0651

Thursday, April 16; 5:15p.m.-6:15p.m.-- Join Congresswoman Clarke and local experts for a Mental Health Telephone Town Hall on the community mental health resources available for those in need during the coronavirus outbreak.

Dial-In #: (866) 757-0651

General Tips:

Coronavirus/COVID-19 symptoms can appear up to two weeks after exposure and can include fever, cough and shortness of breath.
The best way to stop the spread of Coronavirus is to stop the spread of germs. Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds or use a hand sanitizer (containing at least 60% alcohol); don't shake hands when greeting others; avoid touching your face; disinfect surfaces, like countertops, sinks, dressers and desks.
If you become sick, stay home to prevent the spread of germs to others, especially high-risk folks like seniors and those with chronic illnesses.
For the latest information on COVID-19, check out the Centers for Disease Control's resources by visiting cdc.gov. You can also subscribe to NYC's Coronavirus text updates by texting "COVID" to 692-692 (NYC-NYC).
In our continuing effort to keep the public informed, please subscribe to New York State’s listserv for the most up to date facts on COVID-19: link: https://now.ny.gov/page/s/coronavirus-updates
Now is an opportune time while you’re staying home to fill out the 2020 Census--and it only takes a few minutes. By having an accurate and complete count in Brooklyn, this will best shape the funding and resources our community relies on for important services like health care and hospitals. Fill it out the Census at www.my2020census.gov and feel free to contact my office at (718) 287-1142 for assistance.