Happy Thanksgiving!

From all of us at the Health & Welfare Council of Long Island, we would like to wish you a very happy and safe Thanksgiving! We truly could not be more thankful for all you, our partners, who are working hard every day ensure our region has a bright future ahead.

Support Healthy School Meals for all NY Kids! Sign on by December 1st!

Please join our partners at Hunger Solutions NY (HSNY) in advocating for revolutionary changes to state policy that would permanently enable all New York schools to serve free meals to all of their students.

Together, we are asking Governor Hochul to take action to include provisions for universal free meals in the FY 2023 Budget. These changes would make a huge difference for Long Island districts, many of whom were never able to offer universal free meals until the COVID waiver.

Sign on now on behalf of your organization and please share with your networks:

Click here to read Hunger Solutions’ Action Alert.

Health Equity Alliance of Long Island

HWCLI convenes a Health Equity Alliance of Long Island (HEALI) meeting, which strives to address the integration of health and human services for better health outcomes across Long Island. The mission of HEALI is to engage health and human services, community members and other stakeholders to ensure equitable health and life outcomes for all Long Islanders through cross-sector partnerships, innovative funding strategies, and improvements in the health & human service delivery system by:

• Developing an IT infrastructure that allows for multi-directional data sharing among agencies while respecting clients’ rights and protecting their privacy.
• Improve connectivity between agencies as they screen clients and track referrals within the sector.
• Engage community members, being inclusive and using a culturally and linguistically competent lens.
• Use our collective power and unified voice to advocate for services and investments needed for Long Island’s diverse communities.
• Develop strategies that simultaneously prepare CBOs for change, convey value, and highlight our leadership and expertise to collectively impact a transforming healthcare system.

At our previous meeting, we were delighted to be joined by Naheed Khan, Director of the Community Health Worker program at Nassau Community College, for a conversation on a Community Health Worker can provide health and social service support to individuals in the community and also build community capacity by increasing health knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities such as community education, counseling, and advocacy If you may be interested in becoming a Community Health Worker, please click here.

The next HEALI remote meeting is December 15th at 10:00am. If you would like the link to the meeting, to participate in the coalition or have any questions, please email Jake Ryan at jryan@hwcli.com or fill out this form.

COVID-19 Vaccine Update

Booster Shots

The COVID-19 vaccines continue to be remarkably effective in reducing risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death, including against the delta variant. The FDA had amended the emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines to allow for the use of a single booster dose as follows:

The use of a single booster dose of the Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine that may be administered at least 6 months after completion of the primary series to individuals 18 years of age or older.
The use of a single booster dose of the Janssen (Johnson and Johnson) COVID-19 Vaccine may be administered at least 2 months after completion of the single-dose primary regimen to individuals 18 years of age and older.
The use of each of the available COVID-19 vaccines as a heterologous (or “mix and match”) booster dose in eligible individuals following completion of primary vaccination with a different available COVID-19 vaccine.

The Department of Health has compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions regarding the COVID-19 vaccine, which can be found here.

Vaccines for Children

The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for children and adolescents age 5 and up! COVID-19 has become one of the top 10 causes of pediatric death, and tens of thousands of children and teens have been hospitalized with COVID-19. While children and adolescents are at lower risk than adults of becoming severely ill or hospitalized from COVID-19, it is still possible.

The vaccine is safe and effective. The vaccine was rigorously tested and reviewed, and more than 11 million adolescents ages 12-17 have already safely received the COVID-19 vaccine.

To learn more, click here.

Ten State Mass Vaccination Sites Now Open to Five to Eleven Year Old’s

The state recently announced that ten (10) of its mass vaccination sites will now offer COVID-19 vaccines for children five (5) to eleven (11) years old. Since the CDC recommended the vaccine for this age group earlier this month, more than 50,000 of New York’s younger residents have received their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. The following locations currently administer the vaccine to 5-11 year old’s:

• SUNY Old Westbury – Clark Athletic Center 99 Cedar Swamp Road Glen Head NY 11545
• SUNY Stony Brook – 1500 Development Drive Stony Brook NY 11794

Parents and guardians can make appointments at state mass vaccination sites here. Additionally, parents and guardians are encouraged to contact their child’s pediatrician, family physician, health centers, pharmacies or other providers for vaccination information and to schedule appointments.

Office of Mental Health COVID-19 Impact Survey

The Office of Mental Health (OMH) is conducting a survey to better understand the impact and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic in communities statewide. The survey focuses specifically on the pandemic’s effects on individuals who receive public mental health services.

The OMH is looking for responses from individuals who receive services from any OMH licensed, funded, or designated program. For a comprehensive list of OMH programs, please click here. This survey is anonymous.

To complete the survey, please click here or scan the QR code below.

NYS launches new COVID-19 data website

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the launch of a new centralized website for New York State COVID-19 data. The one-stop website features data on testing, cases, and variants, hospitalizations and fatalities, vaccines, long-term care facilities, and schools. Users can sort New York State Department of Health data by age, gender, race/ethnicity, facility, and county.

Vaccinations at Your Workplace!

Businesses, non-profit organizations and municipalities can request for the Nassau County Department of Health to come to your place of work to provide vaccines for you and your co-workers. To request a vaccination event at your workplace, call (516) 227-9570.

Small Business Administration Assistance is Still Available!

If you have yet to register with FEMA or the Small Business Administration (SBA), you have until December 6th, 2021 to apply. Below are the types of disaster loans available to you.

• Business Physical Disaster Loans – Loans to businesses to repair or replace disaster-damaged property owned by the business, including real estate, inventories, supplies, machinery and equipment. Businesses of any size are eligible. Private, non-profit organizations such as charities, churches, private universities, etc., are also eligible. The law limits business loans to $2,000,000.
• Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) – Working capital loans to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and most private, non-profit organizations of all sizes meet their ordinary and necessary financial obligations that cannot be met as a direct result of the disaster. These loans are intended to assist through the disaster recovery period.
• Home Disaster Loans – Loans to homeowners or renters to repair or replace disaster-damaged real estate and personal property, including automobiles.

For more information and to apply for loans, click here.

New Program Launch at HWCLI

Community Response Collaborative: Connecting People to Resources & Referrals

As COVID-19 surged throughout the region over the last year and half, the impact of this pandemic has taken a tremendous toll on Long Island families, businesses, and individuals living in under-served and under-resourced communities. As a result of these hardships, people are in desperate need of assistance.

At HWCLI, we are excited to announce we will be part of the solution by working with other community-based organizations to build a coordinated network of resources & referrals to address a multitude of health, economic, and social care needs for our Long Island populations.

Click here for the Community Response Collaborative Flyer in English.

Click here for the Community Response Collaborative Flyer in Spanish.

To learn more about this essential new program, please click here.

HWCLI’s Client Services

Healthcare

The HWCLI Healthcare Access Team helps our clients find health insurance plans that best fits their medical and financial needs. We have an outstanding health care team of certified navigators who help individuals and families enroll in free or low-cost health insurance plans through the New York State Health Marketplace. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the open enrollment period has been extended to December 31, 2021. Enroll with one of our navigators today!

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

HWCLI connects Long Islanders with SNAP benefits by assisting with applications and enrollment and providing necessary education and outreach through community events at the grassroots level. SNAP provides nutrition assistance to eligible individuals and families. In response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) was passed. This federal act allows the issuance of emergency allotment supplemental benefits to households who receive SNAP benefits.

For additional information about the services offered by HWCLI, click here.