What is the Federal Government Doing in Response to COVID-19?
Health and Safety
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Administration for Community Living offers information for older adults, and people with disabilities.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is studying the virus worldwide and helping communities respond locally. Check the CDC’s Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) page for news and guidance.
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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid has guidance for Medicare recipients and Medicare providers.
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Corporation for National and Community Service guidance for volunteers and programs.
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Defense Commissary Agency is ensuring the quality and safety of food available at commissaries world-wide.
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Department of Defense supports the government response, and is working to protect the health of the military.
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Department of Energy is researching COVID-19 at the National Labs.
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Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) is developing new medical treatments.
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Department of Homeland Security is facilitating a whole-of-government response in confronting COVID-19, keeping Americans safe, and helping detect and slow the spread of the virus.
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Department of Labor has information for employers and workers on preparing workplaces and responding to COVID-19 in the workplace.
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Department of Veterans Affairs is caring for Veterans.
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Environmental Protection Agency has information about disinfectants that can kill COVID-19 and facts about water safety.
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Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warns of increase in child abuse due to school closures, and offers tips on what you can do to protect children and report abuse.
- Food and Drug Administration is working with the medical industry to develop vaccines, drugs, and diagnostic tests. For healthcare professionals, they offer FAQs about diagnostic testing.
- Indian Health Service is coordinating the public health response for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
- Military Community and Family Policy offers advice and information for the military community.
- Military Health System offers health advice, and updates on travel restrictions for members of the military.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse advice for people with substance use disorders.
- Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center published guidance for healthcare providers.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture answers questions about food safety and pet safety.
- U.S. Fire Administration published infection control guidance for first responders.
Travel, Immigration, and Transportation
- Department of Homeland Security has information on arrival restrictions for certain foreign nationals, restrictions for Canada and Mexico border crossing, and news and updates.
- Department of State has advisories for international travelers.
- Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) offers guidance for air travelers.
- Federal Transit Administration (FTA) offers guidance to transit agencies.
- Transportation Security Administration published a map of where TSA agents have tested positive for COVID-19.
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has information about office closings, appointments and events.
Money and Taxes
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has advice for managing the personal financial impact of coronavirus.
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Internal Revenue Service (IRS) delays federal tax filing until July 15, and offers advice for deducting COVID-19 costs from your taxes.
Education
- Department of Education information for schools.
- Federal Student Aid has information for students, borrowers, and parents.
Scams and Fraud
- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has tips to avoid scams related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), and identifies critical infrastructure during COVID-19.
- Department of Health and Human Services warns about medicare, COVID-19 testing and treatment scams.
- Department of Justice is investigating and prosecuting Coronavirus scams and fraud.
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is seeing a rise in Coronavirus scams, including fake emails from the CDC, and fraudulent testing and medical equipment like face masks.
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has COVID-19 scam information and is taking action against companies marketing fraudulent COVID-19 treatments.
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation warns consumers about potential scams.
- Social Security Administration warns Americans about fraudulent letters threatening the suspension of Social Security benefits.
Benefits and Grants
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Appalachian Regional Commission is working with grantees to process applications, and posted updates for upcoming events.
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Health Resources and Services Administration has information for grantees and health care providers.
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Institute for Museum and Library Services updates for grant applications and awardees.
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National Institutes of Health posted updates on the grants process.
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Social Security Administration answers questions about Social Security benefits and office closures.
Housing
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Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued guidance for public housing authorities, landlords, shelters, non-profits, grantees, and stakeholders.
Federal Building Status Updates and National Parks
- Advisory Council on Historic Preservation posted workforce status, and updates on the status review process.
- Defense Acquisition University facility and class status.
- Department of Defense facility status for the National Capital Region.
- Forest Service posted the status of National Forests and facilities.
- General Services Administration offers advice for federal tenant agencies and lessors.
- Legacy Management (Department of Energy) information on visitor center closings.
- National Archives status of National Archive facilities.
- National Capital Planning Commission offers office closure information, and online services.
- National Institutes of Health are researching COVID-19 treatments and a vaccine.
- National Park Service status of National Parks.
- National Science Foundation updates on facilities, meetings, and the grant submission process.
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Nuclear Regulatory Commission ensures the safety of nuclear facilities.
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Tennessee Valley Authority updates on facilities and campgrounds.
- U.S. Northern Command status updates.
Voting and Elections
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission has information for election officials and voters on voting safely.
- Visit your state’s election office website for state-wide voting guidance.
Communications
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Federal Communications Commission is ensuring that Americans stay connected during the COVID-19 pandemic. They’re also encouraging service providers to Keep Americans Connected.
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U.S. Agency for Global Media is covering the coronavirus pandemic.
Businesses
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Department of the Treasury is supporting American workers and businesses.
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Export-Import Bank supports the U.S. exporting community.
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Farm Credit Administration urges lenders to work with borrowers affected by COVID-19.
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Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is working with banks and consumers to respond to coronavirus.
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Financial Crimes Enforcement Network reminds financial institutions to remain alert, and report concerns.
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Maritime Administration has updates for the maritime industry.
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Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is working with banks and customers to manage the impact of the outbreak.
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Small Business Administration (SBA) has guidance for businesses, and is offering low-interest Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) businesses and non-profits impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19).
International Cooperation
- Department of State is working with international governments to combat COVID-19 and has also issued travel advisories.
- U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is providing funding to international organizations to combat COVID-19.
Cybersecurity
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Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is monitoring cybersecurity threats and risk, and issued an alert on enterprise VPN security.
Federal Workforce
- Chief Human Capital Officers Council advises Chief Human Capital Officers, HR Directors and Heads of Agencies.
- Office of Personnel Management posted information to Federal agencies and employees.
Here's a list of the agencies responding to coronavirus (COVID-19).
How Are States Responding to COVID-19?
Visit your state Health Department website for the latest coronavirus information, resources, and guidance.

What are your benefits? Click here to go to the Government Benefits website.
Many people are experiencing unexpected difficulties during the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Benefits.gov is here to help.
On Benefits.gov, you can find government benefits related to unemployment assistance, healthcare, and food and nutrition. You can also take our Benefit Finder to find additional benefits you may be eligible for.
For more information on the coronavirus, refer to Coronavirus.gov, offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the White House.
Benefits.gov does not administer benefits or accept applications for benefits. While we cannot answer questions about benefit applications, cases, or personal situations, we can help guide you on the next steps in the application process. For application information, refer to the Application Process or 'Quick Info' sections on each benefit page.
Per an article from The State:
"IF YOU HAVE BEEN LAID OFF
Apply for unemployment insurance immediately by submitting a claim to South Carolina’s Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW). In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, DEW is taking extra steps to quickly extend benefits to unemployed workers.
On March 19, the department eliminated its usual one-week waiting period for people who apply for unemployment insurance between March 15 and April 18. That means payment to approved claimants should arrive one week earlier.
Check eligibility requirements and disqualifications on the DEW website, dew.sc.gov.
While your claim is being evaluated, call early in the day (lines open at 8 a.m. on weekdays and close at 4 p.m.) and routinely check on the status of your claim. To speak to a representative about a claim, call the DEW toll-free line at 1-866-831-1724 and select option 3. Other useful phone numbers can be found at dew.sc.gov/contact. Stay on top of communications from the agency.
On March 19, DEW also suspended the requirement that unemployment insurance claimants apply to two jobs per week in order to receive benefits. That waiver applies to those who apply for unemployment between March 15 and April 18.
The maximum weekly benefit offered in South Carolina is $326 before taxes, according to the DEW.
Exceptions to the job application requirement also apply when employers who submit unemployment claims on behalf of their employees during a “temporary shutdown” or slowdown in business. Those workers can receive six weeks of unemployment insurance without needing to apply for other jobs.
If you are laid off, ask your employer about continuing health care coverage after your departure. Find out if you are eligible to receive severance pay or accrued vacation pay. Ask supervisors to confirm in writing that they won’t contest your unemployment claim.
If you are on good terms with your managers, ask for help to find other work opportunities. Lean on your professional and personal network to search for open positions.
If you need additional help, such as with affording basic needs, you can apply for various assistance programs — such as SNAP (formerly referred to as “food stamps”) — through the South Carolina Department of Social Services. Soup kitchens, food pantries and homeless shelters in the Midlands that serve meals plan to remain open during the coronavirus pandemic.
MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT LAYOFFS
Will S.C. extend unemployment insurance for people whose benefits are about to expire during the coronavirus pandemic?
No. State law allows benefits to be provided for up to 20 weeks — consecutive or not — within a calendar year.
“If someone started receiving benefits at the beginning of January and has consecutively taken benefits since then, they would be around the 11 of 20 week mark at this time,” DEW spokesperson Heather Biance said.
Will I still need to apply to at least two jobs per week in order to receive benefits, even if I lost my job due to the coronavirus pandemic?
Not if you applied between March 15 and April 18, 2020. On Thursday, DEW waived the job application requirement for laid off workers who submit unemployment insurance claims within the specified time frame, since the coronavirus is impacting South Carolina’s workforce and employers."

Benefits Eligibility Requirements
To determine if you are eligible to receive unemployment benefits, you must file an initial claim with DEW. Filing a claim is the only way for eligibility to be determined. The department will review your claim and determine if you meet the requirements to receive benefits.
Note: Employers finance the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program through tax contributions; it is not welfare, and funds are not withheld from your pay for these benefits.
The below requirements are outlined in the South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 41.
Situational Requirements
These requirements are a general guideline, and the outcome of your claim depends on your specific situation.
- You’re unemployed. (If you currently work less than full time due to being out of work and earn less than your weekly benefit amount, you’re still considered unemployed. When filing your weekly claim, report all work you performed and wages earned that week. Continue to seek full-time work.)
- It was not your fault you lost your job from your most recent employer.
- You're able to work.
- You’re available for work and willing to take any suitable offer.
- You report to your local comprehensive SC Works center as required.
- You must actively search for suitable work each week that you file a weekly certification for unemployment insurance benefits. Suitable work includes any trade, occupation, or business in which you are qualified based on your training or experience, and which pays at least 90% of your previous salary during your first eight paid weeks of unemployment and 75% of your previous salary after eight paid weeks of unemployment.
- You must complete at least two (2) work searches through SC Works Online Services (jobs.scworks.org) each week that you file a certification.
Monetary Requirements
To be monetarily eligible for UI benefits, you must:
- Have at least $1,092 in covered employment (with an employer who paid UI taxes) during the base period’s* highest quarter.
- Have earned at least $4,455 from covered employment during the base period*.
- Have total base period* wages that are equal to, or exceed, 1.5 times the high quarter wages’ total.
*The base period is defined as wages earned doing one year of insured work. Base-period wages typically establish monetary eligibility for UI benefits. There are two method’s used when calculating the base period: the standard base period and the alternate base period, both described below. When your initial claim is reviewed, DEW will decide which base period system your situation falls under. You will not have to determine this yourself.
Click here for information regarding weekly benefit amounts.
Disqualifications
Even when sufficient wages qualify you for benefits, other reasons can disqualify you including:
- Leaving work voluntarily without good cause.
- Being discharged for misconduct connected with employment.
- Being discharged for cause, other than misconduct.
- Refusing to accept a suitable job offer from an SC Works center or employer.
- Voluntarily retiring.
- Becoming unemployed as a party to a labor dispute.
Click here to apply for Unemployment Benefits
SC Gov. McMaster signs $45M aid package to slow coronavirus after House OKs bill
HOW DHEC PLANS TO SPEND THE MONEY:
▪ $14.8 million, on personal protective equipment for health care workers;
▪ $14.5 million, to cover additional staffing to help with disease surveillance and investigation, lab testing and information phone lines;
▪ $5.2 million, to cover technology, lab supplies, travel and cleaning costs;
▪ $5 million, on unanticipated costs based on the spread of COVID-19;
▪ $2.5 million, on an education campaign through television and radio ads and printed materials;
▪ $1.7 million, to cover the costs to quarantine and support indigent patients; and
▪ $1.3 million, to cover costs for lab samples and distribution of items from the Strategic National Stockpile.
Small Business Administration Disaster Assistance
The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering designated states and territories low-interest federal disaster loans for working capital to small businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Upon a request received from a state’s or territory’s Governor, SBA will issue under its own authority, as provided by the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act that was recently signed by the President, an Economic Injury Disaster Loan declaration.
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- Any such Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance declaration issued by the SBA makes loans available statewide to small businesses and private, non-profit organizations to help alleviate economic injury caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19). This will apply to current and future disaster assistance declarations related to Coronavirus.
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- SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance will coordinate with the state’s or territory’s Governor to submit the request for Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance.
- Once a declaration is made, the information on the application process for Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance will be made available to affected small businesses within the state.
- SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans offer up to $2 million in assistance and can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing.
- These loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that can’t be paid because of the disaster’s impact. The interest rate is 3.75% for small businesses. The interest rate for non-profits is 2.75%.
- SBA offers loans with long-term repayments in order to keep payments affordable, up to a maximum of 30 years. Terms are determined on a case-by-case basis, based upon each borrower’s ability to repay.
- SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans are just one piece of the expanded focus of the federal government’s coordinated response, and the SBA is strongly committed to providing the most effective and customer-focused response possible.
- For questions, please contact the SBA disaster assistance customer service center at 1-800-659-2955 (TTY: 1-800-877-8339) or e-mail disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.
Areas eligible for SBA disaster loans
Small business owners in all U.S. states and territories are currently eligible to apply for a low-interest loan due to Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Apply for a loan with SBA
Applicants are encouraged to apply online for a disaster loan. If you do not have access to a computer or smartphone, please call us at 1‐800‐659‐2955 for assistance.