Maricopa County’s COVID Response

As we enter July, and into the sixth month of the agencies and partners to supply cloth masks to low income COVID-19 pandemic, based on Maricopa County’s areas to ensure that no one is without a mask due to Emergency Declaration on March 18th, the one thing financial hardship. that has remained consistent To combat COVID-19, is that the situation is ever Maricopa County received $399 changing. Maricopa County Maricopa County provided PPE, million in federal Coronavirus is the fourth the country. largest county in As the repretesting, and support in long term Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding sentative on the Maricopa County Board of Health for care facilities, assisted living from the federal government. This funding must be spent by the Board of Supervisors facilities, jails, homeless shelters December 31, 2020 on COVID-19 (Board), I have the honor response activities not already to work closely with Marcy and other congregate settings included in the budget. I am Flanagan, executive director of the Maricopa County needing testing and infection grateful that we do not have to make government bigger to Department of Public Health. control training. make a difference. Instead, Marcy and her team have we can use federal dollars to been working tirelessly on improve existing county services. the county’s response to Under the plan approved by COVID-19 since late January when Maricopa County had its the Board, CARES Act funds will be distributed as follows: first positive case. · Health emergency response: $83.5 million

Our COVID-19 positive numbers have been some of the · Homeless response and prevention: $40 million highest in the nation this summer. On June 19th, the Board · Small business and nonprofit assistance: $23 million of Supervisors adopted a county wide mask regulation to · County services: $77.5 million slow the spread. We know that it takes time to see the The Board reserved $175 million to address upcoming results of this regulation. We are working with community costs such as the anticipated second wave of COVID-19. The

$83.5 million set aside for public health will be utilized as follows: $25 million for testing services; $15 million for enhanced contact tracing and disease investigation; $10 million for personal protective equipment for health care workers; $5 million to support long-term care facilities; and $1 million for surge capacity at the Office of the Medical Examiner.

To support our families and individuals, $27 million of the $40 million is set aside for eviction program voucher payments to assist in the prevention of homelessness. Additionally, we activated an empty Maricopa County building downtown to provide nighttime heat relief for our homeless population through the end of September.

We provided PPE, testing, and support in long term care facilities, assisted living facilities, jails, homeless shelters and other congregate settings needing testing and infection control training. The Board also approved $23 million for the Small Business and Nonprofit Relief Grant Program. This program was designed to provide up to $10,000 in grants to reimburse businesses and nonprofits that can demonstrate financial hardship and lost revenues during March and April due to COVID-19. Applications were accepted July 9 – 31, and the program is being administered by the Arizona Community Foundation. Phoenix and Mesa also received

significant CARES Act funding; therefore, this grant program is available to businesses and non-profits in Maricopa County that are outside of Mesa and Phoenix.

As a board, we have invested in digital technology to provide better customer service to our residents and meet them where they are. As such, when COVID-19 hit, we were able to operate via virtual counters, online permitting submission, and online payments. We also now understand that many of our employees can work remotely and still provide excellent service. This can be the beginning of rethinking our employment model and creating a more flexible work environment, promoting retention, and an improved work life balance.

I am grateful to the physicians, first responders, front line employees, support staff, and public health professionals across Maricopa County who are working tirelessly throughout this pandemic. You are being asked to stretch yourself professionally, personally, and emotionally. Thank you.

By Bill Gates, JD, District 3 Board Supervisor at Maricopa County, district3@maricopa.gov