text: Lehigh Valley Congresswoman Susan Wild is urging the public to rely on the COVID-19 hotlines established by the region’s health networks and she’s working to develop a consistent plan for all of the region’s school districts.
  The Democratic lawmaker hosted a press call Friday on the heels of a lengthy conference call with Lehigh Valley leaders in all sectors ranging from health care to the local chamber of commerce.
  She plans to start tackling the most pressing issues immediately, as she waits for an expected vote Friday afternoon on the coronavirus aid package that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Trump administration have spent days hammering out.
  The package would fast-track federal aid to anxious Americans and calm teetering financial markets amid the global crisis. Central to the effort is free testing for the virus and guaranteed sick pay for workers who are taking time away from jobs, along with an infusion of dollars to handle unemployment benefits and boost food programs for children, families and seniors.
  Currently, Pennsylvania has 33 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, with 130 tests pending. Gov. Tom Wolf is urging Pennsylvanians to implement social distancing measures, like avoiding large gatherings, and he ordered more extreme steps in Montgomery County, the suburban Philadelphia county at the epicenter of the state’s outbreak.
  This new bipartisan group will continue to convene throughout the crisis to tackle the issues that arise, Wild promised.
  “I think that it is important the messaging to the public is not construed in anyway as a political or a partisan issue,” Wild said.
  Here’s what Wild had to say about everything from healthcare to protecting gig economy workers.
  The Valley’s health care system
  Lehigh Valley and St. Luke’s University health networks have both created coronavirus symptom hotlines and Wild is urging people to pick up the phone before they go to an emergency room or urgent care.
  LVHN: 1-888-402-5846 (LVHN)
  St. Luke’s: 1-866-785-8537 (STLUKES), option 7 or email coronavirus@sluhn.org
  Hotlines are manned by nurses who will begin the screening process and, if someone meets the testing criteria, will direct folks where they should get tested.
  “They currently do have the test kits that they need,” Wild said, adding that whether more will become available, if needed, is a concern. “We are hopeful that we will have enough for the entire community that needs to be tested.”
  Current guidelines from the CDC, which Wild says the health networks are following, say tests should be available for anyone who, in the opinion of their doctor, needs one. But reports from NPR and the Philadelphia Inquirer say state-level labs are overwhelmed or, in the case of Pennsylvania, still denying some tests based on older guidelines.
  When asked how many people could be tested a day in the Lehigh Valley, Wild said the health networks did not put a figure on that because it is gradually increasing.
  “There is nobody who has been perceived as needing a test that has been denied a test,” she said.
  State officials are working to address the shortage of masks, hand sanitizers and gloves in the state, she said.
  What about the primary?
  Pennsylvania is exploring how to handle its upcoming April 28 primary. Does the state need to invest in a full mail-in ballot election or prep for a rigorous sanitation policy?
  “That is yet to be determined and we will keep you posted,” Wild said.
  She also drove home the importance of the 2020 Census in determining future federal funding allocations.
  Will schools close? Should they close?
  Wild heard the most consternation from the Lehigh Valley school districts that joined the call. School leaders, parents and students want continuity and consistent information about whether schools need to close, she said.
  “There was discussion about getting a consistent plan,” Wild said. “We are not there yet.”
  Wild thinks it is crucial that all the school districts in the Lehigh Valley have one plan and they all follow that plan or there will be pandemonium for families and students. She’d like to see each Congressional district following the same plan.
  Wolf shut down all schools in Montgomery County, where 800,000 people live, in hopes of slowing the spread of the virus. And in Philadelphia, 63 schools closed because more than 2,000 of its 18,000 employees live in that county.
  Three schools -- Easton Arts Academy, Whitehall-Coplay and the Allentown school districts -- all closed Thursday and Friday for deep cleaning after students and staff reported they may have been exposed to the virus. And Easton Arts Academy extended the closure to Monday.
  Wolf administration officials, in an online address to hundreds of school district officials Friday, said they are otherwise leaving the decision to close schools to districts and would try to speedily approve requests for flexibility to meet the requirement that schools be open for instruction 180 days each school year.
  Wild plans to work with state elected officials to establish a clear plan for the Lehigh Valley’s school districts and determine how the region’s neediest children keep access to free meals if schools do close. She noted the Pennsylvania Department of Education is working on a way to do that right now.
  The lawmaker noted an infections disease specialist on the call discussed how young people have a low incidence of contracting coronavirus, but they often return home to parents and those most at-risk: elderly grandparents.
  St. Luke’s Dr. Jeffrey Jahre, senior vice president of medical and academic affairs and the section chief of infectious diseases, told lehighvalleylive.com that individuals under 19 make up only 2% of coronavirus cases worldwide.
  And the governor is discouraging gatherings of more than 250 people, which nearly every public school in the state does each day, Wild said.
  What about bartenders, servers and Uber drivers?
  The business community’s biggest worry is how long-term closures will hurt the local service industry and gig economy, Wild said. She vowed to continue to work with local businesses and the chamber to get them the help they need.
  The coronavirus aid package’s sick pay for workers is a crucial element of federal efforts to stop the rapid spread of the infection. Officials warn that the nation’s healthcare system could quickly become overwhelmed with gravely sick patients, as suddenly happened in Italy, one of the countries hardest hit by the virus.
  The ability to ensure paychecks will keep flowing — for people who stay home as a preventative measure or because they’re feeling ill or caring for others — can help assure Americans they will not fall into financial hardship.
  Caring for the seniors
  Wild outlined measures county nursing homes are taking to protect residents, like barring visitors and volunteers, and said she wants to find ways to curb the social isolation felt by seniors in nursing homes and those who self-isolate at home.
  The Associated Press contributed to this story. Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com. If there’s anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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