UPDATE: 7 Of The 20 People Who Died At Home In Dutchess County Since March 12, 2020 Tested Positive For COVID-19 After Death

In a followup to yesterday’s article on home deaths being tracked in Dutchess County’s Tracker, A Little Beacon Blog has acquired some data on people in Dutchess County who have died at home, and were tested for COVID-19 by the medical examiner’s office after they passed away.

According to Dutchess County, since the week of March 12, 2020, approximately 20 people have died at home, and were subsequently tested for COVID-19 by the Dutchess County medical examiner’s office. Of the 20 people who died at their homes since March 12, 2020, seven of them tested positive for COVID-19, said Colleen Pillus, Communications Director for Dutchess County, who received the number from the medical examiner’s office.

This week on April 27, 2020, the Washington Post reported on a Yale analysis done for that publication that there was a spike in non-COVID-19 tested deaths at home for the period of March 2020 as compared to 2019. The article and analysis do not provide conclusions as to why this spike in deaths has occurred, but does provide insight into different states, including New York, New Jersey and Michigan.

When asked by A Little Beacon Blog if this trend was reflected in Dutchess County, the county’s Communications Director responded that she does not at this time have the comparative data on those who died at home during the same period the previous year. “That would take some significant time to pull, and I am not sure when someone at the ME’s (medical examiner’s) office will have the opportunity to do so,” Colleen said.

It should be noted that Dutchess County has been pulling a significant amount of data during this short period of time, and is making what they can available to the public. They have been responsive to our questions, which has been helpful for reporting.

FINANCE: Debt Collection Removed From "Essential Business" List - Now Non-Essential

The New York State “essentials” vs “non-essentials” list is updated on an ongoing basis. As of yesterday (April 8, 2020), an edit was made to the Financial Services section of the Essential Businesses list. Debt Collection is no longer considered an essential business.

Assemblyperson Jonathan Jacobson’s office today reached out to A Little Beacon Blog about this update, stating: “New York State has issued an updated list of what is and what isn’t considered essential services and explicitly bans debt collection.” Assemblyperson Jacobson’s office gets daily updates from Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office, with an overview of changes.

Here is the change to the Essential Businesses section:

7. Financial Institutions including

banks or lending institution
insurance
payroll
accounting
services related to financial markets, except debt collection

As of April 9, 2020, this definition is included as guidance for essential vs non-essential businesses on the New York State Coronavirus website: “With respect to business or entities that operate or provide both essential and non-essential services, supplies or support, only those lines and/or business operations that are necessary to support the essential services, supplies, or support are exempt from the workforce reduction restrictions.”

New York Launches First Responders Fund; Blackstone Makes $10M Donation, and $5M Donation To Food Security

During Monday’s daily COVID-19 briefing, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a new fund, the First Responders Fund, to assist COVID-19 health care workers and first responders with expenses and costs, including child care. The fund is open to all to contribute to, and is accepting donations.

The first donation announced was a $10 million contribution from Blackstone, one of the world’s leading investment firms who seeks to create positive economic impact and long-term value for their investors, the companies in which they invest, and the communities in which they live and work, according to their website. They serve institutional investors around the world, including retirement systems that represent tens of millions of teachers, firefighters and other pensioners.

A second donation has been made to help with food security. According to Blackstone’s news release: “Additionally, the firm is donating $5 million to organizations providing food security and resources for New Yorkers in need. City Harvest, World Central Kitchen, Great Performances and Slice Out Hunger are all working to provide meals for healthcare workers, first responders and other vulnerable populations. Contributions to our nonprofit partners such as Coalition for the Homeless, Union Settlement and Covenant House New York, among others, have helped provide critical support to at-risk communities affected by COVID-19. You can read the full announcement here.”

To donate, Gov. Cuomo directs you to donate directly through Health Research Incorporated, which you can access here, or by check mailed to "Health Research, Inc., 150 Broadway, Suite 560, Menands, NY 12204." Donors should specify the donation is for "COVID-19 NYS Emergency Response."

According to its website: “Health Research, Inc. (HRI) contributes to the health and well-being of the people of New York State by complementing and enabling the strategic goals of the New York State Department of Health and its partners. Donations to Health Research, Inc. are put to immediate use to further public health and research programs.”