Page 9 - Work Force June 2020

Easing workers’ minds: Unit provides mobile COVID-19 testing site for members
LONG BEACH — To help ensure union members remain safe, CSEA City of Long Beach Unit officers recently brought in their own mobile COVID-19 testing site exclusively for CSEA members and their families.
With New York state having the highest amount of COVID-19 cases in the country, testing for the virus has become an important initiative to reducing both exposure and the number of new cases.
The idea for the testing spot came from CSEA City of Long Beach Unit Treasurer Sean O’Neill. After doing much research
on the logistics of
establishing a site,
O’Neill found a
testing vendor that
not only tests for
the virus, but for antibodies. It took five weeks to pick a vendor and make arrangements with the city to choose a site for the testing.
O’Neill said he felt that making testing arrangements was the least the unit could do for its members.
“We’re doing whatever we can to ease [workers’] minds,” said O’Neill. “Offering them testing so they know
their status is part of that.”
A simple process
On average, 50 members get tested per day. Appointments for testing are made via a web link that is sent to members by the COVID-19 testing facility.
The process is simple: Members pull up in their vehicle, fill out a questionnaire and have a blood sample taken. Within 15 minutes, they have their results.
“The testing is paid for through members’ insurance,” said O’Neill. “No one has to make a co-payment.”
Members who test positive
for COVID-19 are notified by a telemedicine doctor provided by the testing facility. In addition to the results, the doctor tells them how to proceed with treating their condition. A couple of City of Long Beach Unit members have tested positive for COVID-19 through this site.
Although the city offers its own testing facilities, people often have to wait in long lines, which is why members are incredibly appreciative for the convenience of a union- provided COVID-19 testing site.
The initial rollout for the COVID-19 testing facility was only
City of Long Beach Unit members have access to COVID-19 testing through this mobile site, provided by Baseline Health. (Photo provided by Sean O’Neill.)
supposed to be for two weeks. Seeing the success of his idea, O’Neill is working on making testing available to members every two
to three weeks until the pandemic subsides.
“The last thing we want is for there to be widespread COVID cases amongst our members that cause this city to shut down,” said O’Neill. “We can’t have that.”
O’Neill said that CSEA City of Long Beach Unit members give him
O’Neill
the motivation to keep going. “This unit is amazing,” said
O’Neill. “Every time we go through something catastrophic like Superstorm Sandy or this pandemic, no one ever cowers or withers.
This unit never takes a step back; we always take two steps forward. No one has taken off during this pandemic; we are here because we know the city needs us.”
— Wendi Bowie
Amid pandemic, accurate census count more important than ever
If you haven’t yet completed the 2020 U.S. Census, you still have time to do so. July 31 is the deadline for filling out your census form online or by phone.
The census not only determines our congressional representation, but the level of federal funding that will go to essential public services over the next 10 years.
The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of federal funding to CSEA members. The services we provide are largely funded by federal dollars passed
down to our state and local governments, and that funding is directly
tied to the census.
In the last
census, it was estimated that
31 percent of our population failed
to respond to
the census. That
cost New York $120 billion in federal funding, an incredible amount that could have
United States Census
helped support our jobs and the services we
provide.
This time, we
must ensure that New York gets its
fair share. As this
edition was going to press,
New York was lagging behind the
national average in its response
rate, most recently
ranking 38th among state response percentages. The state self-response rate was 55.1 percent.
Even within the state, the response rate varied greatly,
with Nassau County ranking 66.3 percent, closely followed by Niagara County at 66.1 percent. The lowest rate of response in New York was
in Hamilton County, ranking 6.9 percent.
To follow a link to complete the census online and enter our census iPad contest (more on Page 20), visit https://cseany.org/census.
2020
June 2020
The Work Force 9
BeCounted!