AARP

FACT FROM FICTION: At the start of the pandemic, scammers hawked fake cures, treatments and vaccines. Now that vaccines are available, scammers are making bogus offers to move you to the front of the line for getting your vaccine – for a fee. Some are even setting up fake vaccine distribution sites. Unfortunately, this means that consumers looking for a vaccine appointment have to sort through fake and legitimate information in search of a shot – a process that can be confusing and dangerous.

With thousands of localities taking their own approach to vaccine distribution, it’s important to follow guidance provided by local public health officials and trusted health care providers. When signing up for your vaccine, find out how you will be contacted for any follow-up information or guidance.

Be a fraud fighter! If you can spot a scam, you can stop a scam.

Report scams to local law enforcement. For help from AARP, call 1-877-908-3360 or visit the AARP Fraud Watch Network at www.aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.

NORTHAMPTON COUNTY

COUNTY PRISON: The Director of Corrections reports that currently there are no cases of COVID-19 among residents at Northampton County Prison (NCP). Since the beginning of the pandemic, 176 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19. All have finished their quarantine periods or are no longer at NCP. Since March 2020, NCP has conducted 2,630 tests for COVID-19 on inmates. All new inmates coming into the facility receive a test before they are transferred to General Population; residents are tested on a random basis.

Fifty-six NCP corrections officers have tested positive for the virus since the start of the pandemic. Fifty-two have finished their quarantine periods and returned to work; four are out on quarantine.

There are currently 542 inmates in residence at NCP. Twenty-nine non-violent offenders have been granted extended furloughs.

COVID TESTING: Lehigh Valley Hospital-Coordinated Health Allentown Hospital (LVH-CHA) announce that, beginning April 5, any Northampton County resident or individual employed by a Northampton County business will no longer have to report CDC-recognized symptoms before receiving a COVID-19 test at the drive-through site in Bethlehem Township.

The drive-through testing site is located at Coordinated Health, 3100 Emrick Boulevard, Bethlehem. Hours of operation are: Monday/Wednesday/Friday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Tuesday/Thursday from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. – noon.

The site is open to everyone, but only residents of Northampton County will have the cost of testing covered by the county if they do not have health coverage. All testing will be through HNL Lab Medicine unless insurance requires an alternate laboratory. Participants should bring a photo ID and their insurance card, if they have one, with them.

PENNSYLVANIA

VACCINATION eligibility: All adults in Pennsylvania will become eligible for a COVID-19 vaccination by April 19, the Department of Health said last week.

The news comes nearly four months after the state rolled out its immunization effort for 4 million residents under Phase 1A. Despite early rounds of criticism over the pace and logistics of the state’s plan, vaccine providers now administer up to 83,000 shots per day, acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said.

An additional 250,000 firefighters, police officers, grocery store employees and food and agriculture workers became eligible last week to schedule their first shot. Beam said the remaining 1 million residents left in Phase 1B, which covers a range of essential worker categories, could sign up starting April 5. Another 1.7 million residents in Phase 1C will see eligibility beginning April 12, and adults will become eligible the following week, April 19.

NATIONAL

NURSING HOMES: The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), representing more than 14,000 nursing homes and long term care facilities across the country that provide care to approximately five million people each year, released a report recently showing nursing homes in the U.S. continue to see a rapid decline in new COVID-19 cases, thanks to initial vaccine allocations prioritized for nursing homes, and called on Congress to consider the industry’s Care For Our Seniors Act to address systemic issues facing the nursing home sector and prevent another COVID-type crisis.

EVICTIONS: On March 29 the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended the eviction moratorium to affected multifamily housing residents through June 30. This halt in residential evictions allows the U.S. Department of Agriculture to extend relief to the hundreds of thousands of Americans who rely on USDA-supported multifamily housing communities.

In a recent Census Bureau survey, nine million renters (or an estimated 15 percent of all renters) reported being behind on rent. The same survey showed that about 29 percent of Black families and 17 percent of Hispanic renters were behind on rent.

For more information about the protections provided under this moratorium extension, visit www.usda.gov.