NCDHHS Revises the Vaccine Plan to Simplify Who is Eligible

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) revised its vaccine distribution plan on Jan. 14 to simplify who is eligible to receive the vaccine.

North Carolina moves through vaccination phases by aligning to federal priorities while giving local health departments and hospitals the flexibility to move to the next priority group when they are ready. NCDHHS says that providers who are ready may vaccinate individuals in Phases 1 and 2.

Phase 1 – all health care workers, LTC residents & staff
Phase 2 – Older Adults (65+)
Phase 3 – Frontline Essential Workers such as first responders (firefighters, police), education (teachers, support staff, daycare), food and agriculture, manufacturing, corrections workers, U.S. Postal service workers, public transit workers and grocery store workers
Phase 4 – Adults at High Risk for exposure and increased risk of severe illness
Phase 5 – Everyone

“We know that people are doing all that they can to learn about the vaccines so they can make the best decision for themselves and their families," said NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen. "It can be hard to know what is true and what can be trusted. We are here to provide you with honest, factual information.”

In order to assure an orderly process, the Orange County Health Department requests individuals who are in either Phase 1 or Phase 2 to register to receive a vaccination by following three simple steps.

Complete the Vaccine Interest Form (VIF) at https://redcap.link/OCHDvax or call 919-913-8088 if you don’t have access to a computer or would like help filling out the form. Foreign language interpreters will be available. We are anticipating very high call volume. Please be patient for a return call if you decide to leave a voicemail.
Register for the vaccine. You will receive an email with a link to an online registration form to enter your data into the COVID-19 Vaccine Management System (CVMS). It will take several minutes to complete. It is only available in English, but county staff are available to help register in other languages besides English by calling 919-913-8088.
Schedule your vaccine appointment. When an individual is eligible to receive a vaccine, you will receive another email from the Orange County Health Department to schedule an appointment.

“We are working as quickly as possible to vaccinate all eligible people, but limited availability of vaccine means we are not able to schedule appointments for everyone who is eligible right away,” said Orange County Health Director Quintana Stewart. “Please be patient as we work through this process.”

Click here for more information.

Nominations being accepted for 31st Annual Pauli Murray Awards

The Orange County Human Relations Commission is accepting nominations for the 31st Annual Pauli Murray Awards, which are presented annually to an Orange County youth, adult, and business that have served the community with distinction in the pursuit of equality, justice, and human rights for all citizens.

The Pauli Murray Awards are presented to those who embody the attributes and spirit of Pauli Murray by encouraging diversity in the workforce, promoting and participating in community activities related to social justice issues, or demonstrating positive roles in human relations.

Nominations may be made online: www.orangecountync.gov/ThePauliMurrayAward

Nominations are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, February 12, 2021. Individual (over 18) and Youth (full-time student in grades 6-12 or a college student 18 or younger) nominees must reside in Orange County. Business nominees must operate or conduct business within Orange County. For additional information, contact the Human Relations Commission at (919) 245-2487 or Human_Relations@orangecountync.gov.

Monday Memo is a regular column from the Chair of the Orange County Board of Commissioners. The inaugural edition on Jan. 11 included an update on the county's COVID vaccination efforts and a look at an ordinance that will provide new safeguards against LGBTQ discrimination in our community. The ordinance will be considered at the Jan. 19 meeting of the Orange County Board of Commissioners.

Click here to read the column.

County offers another round of grant program for small businesses, farms and food processors

Orange County’s Board of Commissioners have approved emergency funds throughout 2020 to assist our many small businesses, farms and food processors that have faced critical financial hardships during the current COVID-19 crisis. Thus far, Orange County’s total pandemic-related emergency financial assistance has already provided 78 separate awards totaling $520,130 for the benefit of these valued small business and agricultural ventures. This assistance was made in the form of two now-completed “Round 1” (loans and grants) and “Round 2” (grants) programs.

Orange County is now offering a “Round 3” emergency grant program, managed by the Economic Development office.

The Orange County Emergency Small Business Funding Program assists Orange County-based small businesses that are experiencing financial difficulties such as mandated shutdowns, employee layoffs, and operating losses as a result of ongoing efforts at the Federal, State and local authorities to contain and minimize the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Application Location: The application will be available at Noon, Monday, Jan. 4, 2021, on the Orange County website: orangecountync.gov/2362/Emergency-Small-Business-Funding-Program.
Application Deadline: Final applications must be received by 5 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021

Click here for more information.

Tax Office announces error in listing forms; mails corrected forms

The Orange County Tax Office announced an error during printing of the 2021 Real and Personal Listing Forms caused the signature block not to print on the bottom of the form. The error was caught quickly, and corrected forms were mailed Jan. 5.

The corrected form will have the signature line at the bottom of the page as it normally does for the property owner to sign, print and date. When returning your form, please use the corrected form.

The Board recently extended the deadline to submit the listing forms from Jan. 31 to Feb. 28, 2021.

This error was on the part of our printer and there is no cost to the county to correct it. The Tax Office and the printing company both apologize for any inconvenience the error may cause.

Questions may be directed to 919-245-2100 or tax@orangecountync.gov.

Go fort and build! Join the Orange County Public Library for a virtual evening of stories, games, and fort building in your living room. Register online (orangecountylibrary.org) or call us 919-245-2525. Only one registration per household is needed

Animal Services announces new program to help low-income families with pet medical expenses

In order to keep more pets in their homes with their families, Orange County Animal Services has developed a fund that can assist Orange County residents with non-emergency veterinary expenses.

"In general, we see many heartbreaking pet surrenders to our shelter as a result of owners not being able to afford to properly care for their pets when they need medical attention," said Orange County Animal Services Director Bob Marotto. "We know that, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, we will likely see increases in these types of surrenders as a result of unemployment and other economic pressures."

This fund is available to Orange County residents based on their needs and ability to meet income criteria. Please see more information about how to qualify and coverage details here. Obtaining this assistance would require collaboration with local veterinarians or specialists, and may cover full or partial medical expenses for issues such as: skin infections and other skin issues, dental issues, minor surgeries, etc.

Funds will be issued to veterinarians and veterinary clinics or hospitals for these services for dogs, cats and other pets from economically challenged households in Orange County.

"This type of program will help people retain their pets and will be extremely beneficial for pets, pet owners, and Orange County Animal Services," said Marotto.

OCAS has established a GoFundMe for residents who wish to donate to the campaign. All funds received will be used for the program.

Orange County COVID-19 Updated Data Jan. 15, 2021

The Orange County Health Department has provided the following information about COVID-19 cases in Orange County as of 9 a.m. today:

TOTAL CASES: 5,883
TOTAL DEATHS: 68
TOTAL VACCINES: 1,790

Data Considerations:
1. Any demographic groups with very small numbers have been suppressed to protect
patient confidentiality.
2. We are missing race and ethnicity data for between 30-40% of confirmed cases.
3. We don’t know who may have COVID-19 that wasn’t able to get tested, and we don’t know what groups the patients with missing data fall under.
This data should not be used to make generalizations about who may or may not have higher rates of infection.

Click here for more information.

www.orangecountync.gov