COVID-19 Weekly Update

With many states starting to open, please continue social distancing and shelter in place for their health and the safety of others. Wear masks or face coverings when in public and wash your hands frequently to continue to flatten the curve in your community. Please continue to visit CDC.gov for current information and strategies for mitigating the virus at home, in the workplace, and while out in the community.

Symptoms of the Coronavirus

Older adults and people who have severe underlying medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19.

Watch for Symptoms

People infected with COVID-19 have presented with a wide array of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe illness that often appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. Symptoms include:

• Fever
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Chills
• Repeated shaking with chills
• Muscle pain
• Headache
• Sore throat
• New loss of taste or smell

COVID-19 in Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups

The effects of COVID-19 on the health of racial and ethnic minority groups are still emerging; however, current data suggest a disproportionate burden of illness and death among racial and ethnic minority groups.

A recent CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) included race and ethnicity data from 580 patients hospitalized with lab-confirmed COVID-19 found that 45% of individuals for whom race or ethnicity data was available were white, compared to 55% of individuals in the surrounding community. However, 33% of hospitalized patients were black compared to 18% in the community, and 8% were Hispanic compared to 14% in the community. These data suggest an overrepresentation of blacks among hospitalized patients.

Among COVID-19 deaths for which race and ethnicity data were available, New York City identified death rates among black/African American people (92.3 deaths per 100,000 population) and Hispanic/Latino people (74.3) that were substantially higher than that of white (45.2) or Asian (34.5) people. Studies are underway to confirm these data and understand and potentially reduce the impact of COVID-19 on the health of racial and ethnic minorities.

American Heart Association and the Coronavirus Disease

There is a risk for those with heart disease and high blood pressure in correlation to the coronavirus disease. The American Heart Association provides a variety of guidance related to heart health and gives valuable tips on maintaining your immune system, healthy eating habits, exercise, and counseling. The following link supplies details and facts to help you navigate heart health during these unprecedented times: heart.org/en/news/coronavirus-news.

CVS – COVID-19 Testing

CVS Health has expanded access to rapid COVID-19 testing in partnership with the following state governments: Georgia, Michigan, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Additional sites are coming, for more information visit: cvshealth.com/covid-19/testing-information-locations.

Let Us Know How You Are Doing

We have heard from several of you that you are serving as essential workers. Your courage is admirable. We know there are many more of you on the front lines in several different capacities that continue to work. Please let us know how you are doing.