Please call your MoCs (members of Congress) and ask them to support House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s demands for funding a federal response to the Covid-19 (novel coronovirus) outbreak.

 

So. Trump is flipping his shit because Covid-19, aka the novel coronovirus, has become a pandemic (which means it’s spread across the world; “pandemic” is not a comment on its virulence, just its reach).

 

Fears of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have freaked the stock market right the fuck out, which is making Trump freak out even more. Dude is a mess and his cabinet is following his lead, behaving in stone cold ridiculous ways, such as claiming Covid-19 is a hoax and fake news and similar nonsense.

 

Anyway. We need to mount a federal response to Covid-19, and that means allocating money.

 

Trump and the GOP evidently wanted to fund the Covid-19 response by yanking $37 million from a seasonal program that helps the poor pay to heat their homes. Because of course they did.

 

Pelosi and Schumer pushed back by demanding the following, per a February 27 tweet from Bloomberg Congressional reporter Jack Fitzpatrick:

 

A clean, free-standing funding bill (no stealing the money from the budgets of other programs)

The Covid-19 federal funds must be non-transferable (they can’t be raided in turn to fund other stuff)

Any Covid-19 vaccine, if and when it arrives, should be affordable to all

Reimbursement for state and local governments’ efforts to prepare for and fight Covid-19

Provisions for interest-free loans for small businesses (presumably to help those that would be hard-hit by Covid-19 quarantine requirements, should they be needed)

 

So, please call your two Senators and your House rep and ask for these very things from a Covid-19 response bill.

 

As an aside–This has been gone-over in many places, but we feel like we should briefly discuss personal preparations for Covid-19.

 

Washing your hands frequently and well is the best defense against catching Covid-19.

Washing your hands “well” means using soap and scrubbing for at least 20 seconds, getting the backs of your hands, your fingernails, and your wrists along with everything else. (Singing the Alphabet song at a normal pace, or Happy Birthday twice at a normal pace, pretty much adds up to 20 seconds.)

The water doesn’t need to be boiling hot. The soap does not need to be anti-microbial, but you do need some sort of soap. Soap and attention to detail is key here.

Dry your hands thoroughly. Make sure there are no wet areas.

Try teaching yourself not to touch your face. (Difficult, we know, but it helps cut down the chance of transmission.)

Substitute elbow bumps or waving for shaking hands.

Only use hand sanitizer if soap and water is not available.

Anti-bacterials won’t work against Covid-19 because it’s a virus. No need to buy that stuff.

If you haven’t yet gotten a flu shot, take care of that. You Do Not Need to have Covid-19 and flu at the same time (and yes, that can happen).

It’s not a bad idea to stock up in case you need to quarantine. Plan on storing two weeks’ worth of food (including pet food), bottled water, over-the-counter medications and prescription medications, if possible (also prescription medication for pets, if needed). If you use an ear thermometer, make sure you have more than enough plastic covers (the first symptom of Covid-19 is a fever).

If you rely on durable medical equipment that assists with breathing, such as a C-Pap device, make sure you have enough replacement gear and enough distilled water to keep the built-in humidifier topped up.

Don’t freak out. Plan, and act, using the suggestions above.

 

And this probably won’t surprise you at all, but Celeste Pewter (@Celeste_Pewter) is all over the Covid-19 situation on Twitter. Please follow her and check her feed for the latest on Covid-19 and also what to ask of your government representatives.

 

As always, please show your appreciation for Celeste Pewter in some fashion.

 

You can follow her on Twitter: @Celeste_Pewter

 

You can tweet about calling your MoCs, using the #ICalledMyReps hashtag.

 

You can follow @ICalledMyReps on Twitter.

 

And you can subscribe to her peerless newsletter, It’s Time to Fight:

http://itstimetofight.weebly.com

 

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