The Small Business Administration has released a report with information on the second round of funding approved by Congress for the Paycheck Protection Program. Since Round Two of PPP loan processing began on April 27, 2.2 million loans have been made to small businesses, surpassing the total number of all loans made in the first round of processing. The total value of these 2.2 million loans is over $175 billion, with an average loan size of $79,000. More than 56,500 North Carolina businesses have received funding in this second round of loans, valued at over $4.27 billion.More information from SBA here.
The FDA has authorized Roche’s serology or antibody test which is reportedly more accurate than other tests already on the market. Roche has automated testing machines installed in more than 100 U.S. labs, meaning the company can make the antibody tests available to patients immediately.
The CDC has issued interim guidance for meat and poultry facilities deemed critical infrastructure by President Trump. The guidance includes recommendations on distance between workers, type and duration of contact between workers, and the use of personal protective equipment. View more information from the CDC here.
The Department of Health and Human Services announced it is disbursing $12 billion to the hospitals and clinics that have been most heavily impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak nationwide. Four hospitals in North Carolina are set to receive approximately $79 million in funding to help them through the crisis. The Department is also directing $282.5 million to more than 250 rural hospitals and clinics across the state.
This funding comes on the heels of the disbursement by HHS of more than $72.5 million to 664 health care providers in the 7thDistrict appropriated by Congress under the CARES Act.
There are currently at least 1,159,245 cases and 67,710 deaths in the United States, as reported by Johns Hopkins. There are over 3.5 million cases and over 247,000 deaths worldwide.
We have 11,848 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases in North Carolina, and so far 430 deaths have been attributed to the outbreak across the state. 146,000 tests have been completed across the state so far.
The U.S. has now performed more than seven million COVID-19 tests, including 237,000 tests yesterday alone.
For today’s good news story, I’m highlighting Nancy Glasgow of Wilmington. Nancy was recognized by her niece Caroline, a recipient of this newsletter, for working non-stop to make quality masks with filter liners for health care workers at New Hanover Regional Medical Center. When NHRMC put out the call for supplies to help it cope with the COVID-19 outbreak, Nancy and others stepped up. Thank you to all!
