August 13, 2020
Six months into this pandemic, testing remains a mess.
The federal government is still failing in its obligation to organize the production of key testing components like reagents, with ongoing shortages nationally.
The major for-profit testing labs have failed to ramp up capacity enough to meet demand, while keeping many test providers in NYC locked in restrictive contracts with many local providers.
The result: you may wait as long as 14 days to get Covid test results, rendering them useless in most cases.
What should you do in the meantime? Go to one of the lesser-used testing sites where delays are much shorter. For example:
- NYC’s 11 public hospitals (e.g. Harlem Hospital, Metropolitan, Bellevue)
- Walk-in sites run by NY state (see here for list)
- Sites run by Advantage Care (see here for list)
- Sites run by One Medical (more info here)
You shouldn’t have to hunt for a testing site with a reasonable turn-around time. Our city shouldn’t have to struggle for testing capacity. Our schools–if they are to reopen safely–need the testing problems fixed.
I will keep fighting to make that happen.
Stay safe,
Mark
We Need a Rightful Memorial for the Victims of COVID-19 on Hart Island
Over the past several months, we have lost tens of thousands of our family members, our friends, and our neighbors in New York City to COVID-19.
Many of those that we have lost lived on the margins of our society. They were people who were homeless, or without family, or simply didn’t have the resources to pay for a funeral. And many of those New Yorkers are buried in our city’s public cemetery on Hart Island.
Last week, I introduced legislation to create a task force to begin planning a memorial to the victims of COVID-19 on Hart Island. This is an important first step in making sure that New Yorkers who were lost to this terrible pandemic will never be forgotten.
You can read the story on my legislation here.
Sign-up for this weekend’s Clean Up Your Block
We had another fantastic group of volunteers last weekend join Congress Member Espaillat, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Assembly Member De La Rosa, and me for a community clean up effort.
Clean Up Your Block is a series of weekly cleanup events every Saturday in August targeting neighborhoods in Inwood, Washington Heights, Hamilton Heights, East Harlem, Central Harlem, and the Northwest Bronx.
Last weekend we were able to pick up hundreds of pounds of trash from green spaces around Broadway near 157th Street. This weekend we will be focusing on areas in Washington Heights, Inwood, and Harlem.
If you would like to volunteer for Project Clean Up Your Block and find meet-up locations, register online HERE, by email at RSVP.Espaillat@mail.house.gov or by calling 212-497-5959.
Thanks to everyone who came out!
ICYMI- Watch Last Week’s The New New York on the Future of Housing in NYC with Legal Experts From NMIC
I was joined last week by housing experts from NMIC for a discussion on the protections currently available to tenants, how to navigate the housing court system, and the future of housing in the midst of COVID-19.
Our discussion covered many important housing resources and advice on issues residents are facing during the pandemic. If you missed the conversation and would like to watch it, please follow this link.
Need Help with Your Unemployment Benefits? Having a Housing Issue? Digital District 7 Office and Constituent Services are Here to Help!
My staff and I continue to work hard to provide constituent services in District 7 during this challenging period. We are available by phone or online to assist with any issues you are experiencing or if you need any information on how to stay safe during the COVID-19 outbreak.
You can reach us during normal business hours at (212) 928-6814 or anytime at district7@council.gov.