Outdoor Dining, Other Activities to Resume; School Food Program Update

Gov. Larry Hogan announced that beginning at 5 pm today, Friday, May 29, 2020, Maryland will safely move forward with the completion of Stage One of the Maryland Strong: Roadmap to Recovery, which includes the resumption of outdoor dining and additional activities reopening including youth sports, day camps, and outdoor pools under strict protocols and public health guidance.

In response, St. Mary’s County government is adopting similar measures with the updated St. Mary’s County COVID-19 Pandemic Roadmap to Recovery. Please note that St. Mary’s County is permitted to be more restrictive than the state of Maryland, but not less restrictive.

As recovery continues, remember to maintain physical distancing, keep gatherings to 10 or less, wear face coverings, and follow all safe health precautions.

Residents may access the  St. Mary’s County COVID19 Pandemic Roadmap to Recovery, the Maryland Strong Back to Business Pledge, and the guidelines here.

 

June 3 Update on School Food Program

St. Mary’s County Public Schools has engaged the assistance of local food service facilities to ensure continued safe food distribution to families with children. Food will be prepared and packaged in off-site food service facilities licensed and inspected by the St. Mary’s County Health Department and brought to the schools for distribution.

No-contact, drive-up meal service scheduled for this week: Monday through Wednesday June 1 through June 3 at the locations listed below from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm daily.

On June 3, St. Mary’s County Public Schools announced meal preparation and distribution sites have been approved to reopen for full-service food preparation and distribution. The school system will resume no-contact, drive-up lunch service Thursday, June 4, 2020, and continue service through June 18 from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm daily.

• Leonardtown Elementary School, 22885 Duke St., Leonardtown
• Greenview Knolls Elementary School, 45711 Military Lane, Great Mills
• Margaret Brent Middle School, 29675 Point Lookout Road, Mechanicsville
• Lexington Park Elementary School, 46763 Shangri-La Drive, Lexington Park

Meals will be offered to all children 18 and younger free of charge. Parents and children can drive up to these locations and receive meals that they can take home during current school closures. For questions regarding the lunch service program, email [email protected].

For local COVID-19 data, updates and information, visit www.smchd.org/coronavirus or call the COVID-19 Community Hotline at 301-475-4911 Monday through Friday from 8 am-5 pm.

 

County Has Relief Fund for Small Businesses, Nonprofits

The St. Mary’s County commissioners have approved a COVID-19 small business and nonprofit relief fund.

St. Mary’s County recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused economic hardship for many small businesses and nonprofit agencies.

The new grant program will have a maximum budget of $2 million. The goal is to provide grants to support certain small businesses and nonprofit agencies, based in St. Mary’s County that have realized significant financial hardship as a result of the virus outbreak. Therefore, the relief program targets businesses and nonprofits with 30 or less FTE employees that have experienced a drop-in revenue of at least 50%.

Grants may be used for working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses, or other similar expenses that occur in the ordinary course of business.

Small businesses and nonprofits will have access to grant funding up to $7,500. Entities with 15 or less employees are eligible for grants of $5,000 and entities with 16 to 30 employees are eligible for grants of $7,500 (grant amount not to exceed yearly average of two months revenue).

Eligible businesses and nonprofits can submit an online application starting at 11 am Tuesday, June 2, 2020, here.

Applicants are encouraged to visit the grant portal at any time before June 2 for more information on required documents, applicant eligibility, a sample application, and to create a user account before submission of the application.

The application portal will be open until 325 qualified applications have been received.

Contact Kellie Hinkle, deputy director of the St. Mary’s County Department of Economic Development, at [email protected] or 240-925-7178.

 

Local COVID-19 Testing Expanded

In order to expand COVID-19 testing access for St. Mary’s County residents, the St. Mary’s County Health Department will begin operating drive-thru testing sites in various locations throughout the community. Testing has been scheduled for the following date, time, and location – additional sites will be announced on later dates.

June 3, 2020, from 9 am-3 pm (while supplies last)

Mechanicsville Volunteer Fire Department Station 22

29848 Therese Circle, Mechanicsville, MD

Pre-registration for this testing event is available by calling the COVID-19 Community Hotline at 301-475-4911 by 5 pm June 2 (open Monday-Friday between 8 am-5 pm). Pre-registration is not required, however, those who pre-register may have reduced wait times, depending on volume.

• In order to be tested at these sites, individuals must:
• Be a St. Mary’s County resident
• Present a photo ID

Remain in their vehicle with the windows rolled up until it is time to receive their test – A clinician will come out to your vehicle

If you have insurance coverage, please bring your insurance card with you to the testing site. Insurance coverage is not required and testing is provided free of charge (no out-of-pocket cost, co-payment, co-insurance, etc.) to all residents.

Additionally, appointment-free drive-thru testing continues to be available Monday through Friday from noon-4 pm outside of the Outpatient Pavilion at MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital. An order for testing from a doctor, pharmacist or the COVID-19 Community Hotline is required for testing through the MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital drive-thru.

COVID-19 testing requires a swab to be inserted into the back of the person’s nostril for several seconds. Most individuals experience minor discomfort at most. All tested individuals will receive information with further instructions at the test site and should continue to self-isolate at home while waiting for results, which should be available within approximately two to five days.

Community members, health care providers, and local business owners are encouraged to visit the St. Mary’s County Health Department’s website for local COVID-19 updates, data and information here.

 

Should be an update on the school food program since schedule only goes to June 3

UPDATED STATISTICS JUNE 2

The Maryland Department of Health website, as of 12:15 pm Tuesday, June 2, reports the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Maryland is at 54,175, up from 53,327 cases the day before.

All data provided by the state health department is preliminary and is subject to change based on additional reporting. Information for cases by ZIP code and cases and deaths by race represent data that is available to MDH. Data for ZIP codes with 7 or fewer cases is suppressed. MDH is continuously evaluating its data and reporting systems and will make updates as more data becomes available. Click here.

Reported cases in Southern Maryland: 518 in St. Mary’s County, 352 in Calvert County, and 1,133 in Charles County.

The St. Mary’s County Health Department offered this information as of 12:15 pm Tuesday, June 2:

Confirmed Cases in St. Mary’s County Residents: 518
Deaths: 24
Negative Test Results: 4,259*
Hospitalizations: 78**
Recovered and Released From Isolation: 231

Male: 309
Female: 209

Case Breakdown by Race/Ethnicity:
African-American/Black: 177
Caucasian/White: 209
Hispanic/Latino: 44
Other or Not Identified: 88

Case Breakdown in Long-term Care Facilities***

Charlotte Hall Veterans Home
Residents: 196
Staff: 78

Chesapeake Shores
Residents: 2
Staff: 6

St. Mary’s Nursing Center
Residents: 0
Staff: 0

Please note: Due to a technical issue, local zip code mapping will be delayed until further notice.

*Laboratories reporting results electronically through the National Electronic Data Surveillance System – Data from January 1, 2020 – present.

**Number of St. Mary’s County residents who have been hospitalized at any hospital in Maryland due to COVID-19. Data is not reflective of current patient status. Emergency Department visits removed from total count.

***For additional information on cases in congregate facility settings, visit the Maryland Health Care Facilities Resource Page.

St. Mary’s data will be updated at least daily by noon at the county health department’s website linked to above.

 

The Maryland Department of Health offered this statewide information as of 12:15 pm Tuesday, June 2:

Confirmed Cases in Maryland: 54,175
Negative Test Results: 261,640
Number of Deaths: 2,474
Number of Probable Deaths: 123
Current Hospitalized: 1,148
Acute Care: 667
Intensive Care: 481
Ever Hospitalized: 8,957
Released from Isolation: 3,855
Male: 25,950
Female: 28,225

Maryland residents can now see the number of cases by ZIP code. Click on the state’s website linked to above.