The New Year is a time for resolutions and new beginnings.
In ordinary years, we would reminisce about what transpired in the year just ended, while contemplating our hopes and dreams for the New Year.
However, 2020 has not been an ordinary year.
It was January 21, 2020 when the Center for Disease and Control confirmed the first U.S. coronavirus case in a resident of Washington State who had recently returned from Wuhan, China.
From there, the virus moved rapidly with the World Health Organization declaring a global health emergency by the end of January. By mid-March, a pandemic was declared due to its worldwide spread.
Due in large part to the need to self-isolate and suspend routine activities to help “flatten the curve” of infections, schools and businesses were shuttered, recreational activities ceased, and everyone was asked to stay home, unless you were an essential worker.
The impact of hitting the pause button on our lives continues to reverberate throughout our community, as jobs were lost.
The challenge of putting food on the table, paying rent or making mortgage payments has become overwhelming for many who were self-sufficient, resulting in despair and depression for many.
We can take pride in the mobilization of so many to make the pain bearable for the most vulnerable among us. Almost immediately, community volunteers stepped up! Food drives and feeding sites opened, social media campaigns for assistance were plentiful, and many other initiatives were established to help those in need.
In late March, the federal government approved the Coronavirus Act Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Over $2 trillion was earmarked to address the economic and social impacts of the pandemic and steps to mitigate the spread.
The CARES Act provided an infusion of funding into the unemployment system (itself outmatched by the sheer volume of claims), forgivable loans to businesses predicated on their retention of their employees, and individual stimulus checks.
Palm Beach County received over $260 million in CARES Act funds to be used for pandemic-related expenses. Allocations included testing sites, food supplies, small businesses, broadband infrastructure, and personal protective equipment (PPE). Additionally, funds were provided to the health department, school system, municipalities, cultural and nonprofit organizations.
Probably the most important news of 2020 is the COVID-19 vaccine. There is finally hope on the horizon with the Pfizer vaccination (and soon one produced by Moderna) deployed and others expected shortly. The process of eradicating the virus and ending the pandemic has begun.
Through all of this, it’s important to acknowledge the true heroes of 2020 – our frontline workers and first responders. Thank you to all of them for risking their lives in order to provide essential services to our community.
I would also like to extend our gratitude to the county’s emergency managers and staff for their dedication and commitment. They have worked tirelessly during the past year in mitigating the virus while keeping our local economy working and providing resources to those in need.
Post-pandemic, we will be a stronger community for having weathered this storm, together!
COVID-19 Vaccine
All vaccines will be given free of charge.
- The initial prioritization for the vaccination will include hospital healthcare workers, elderly residents and staff in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
- Walgreens and CVS will be playing a central role in the early phase of the rollout. Initially, they will focusing on residents and staff at nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
- The state’s incident management teams have been dispatched to assist Walgreens and CVS in administering the vaccine.
- Vaccine recipients will receive a card with date of their first shot and an appointment for the booster.
- The Palm Beach County Health Dept. are expecting delivery of 20,000 doses of vaccines for distribution. Their initial rollout will focus on high-risk, high contact frontline health care workers and long-term care residents followed by first responders.
The county is planning an aggressive public information campaign to keep residents advised as information becomes available.
We ask everyone to remain patient and as updates are received, we will keep everyone advised.