• DHSS_PressRelease_NewAKCases_2020329.pdf

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Seventeen new cases of COVID-19 detected; first case in a long-term care facility

March 28, 2020 ANCHORAGE — The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) today announced 17 new positive cases of COVID-19 in six Alaska communities – Anchorage (10), Eagle River (1), Fairbanks (3), North Pole (1), Homer (1) and Soldotna (1).

Ten of the cases are still under investigation. Two cases are known to be travel-related and five are close contacts of previously diagnosed individuals. Five patients are older adults (aged 60+), nine are adults aged 30-59, two are young adults aged 19-29 and one is a child. Seven are male and 10 are female.

This brings Alaska’s total case count to 102. Of these total cases, six have been hospitalized; one new hospitalization was added in this most recent 24-hour period.

In Fairbanks, one of the new positive cases is a resident of a long-term care facility. Foundation Health Partners issued a press release today describing the steps the facility is taking in accordance with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State of Alaska Section of Epidemiology.

“The facility is doing an excellent job of responding swiftly to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” said Dr. Joe McLaughlin, Alaska’s State Epidemiologist. “They are working closely with our epidemiologists to determine which residents and staff are at highest risk for exposure and implementing control measures that are consistent with national guidelines.”

“Together with experts at the CDC, the state has developed and published guidelines for long-term care providers for this this type of situation,” said John Lee, Director of the DHSS Division of Senior and Disabilities Services. “We know how serious COVID-19 infections can be, particularly among older adults. We continue to work with this facility and all providers across the state in mitigating the spread of COVID-19.”

Lee is leading a tactical group within the Medical Branch of the Unified Command focused on protecting Alaska’s long-term care centers, as well as older adults and those with underlying health conditions who are at risk for severe illness from COVID-19. State health officials are also being guided in their response by a CDC report issued yesterday that analyzes a COVID-19 outbreak in a long-term care skilled nursing facility in King County, Washington.

So far the communities in Alaska that have had laboratory-confirmed cases include Anchorage (including JBER), Eagle River/Chugiak, Girdwood, Homer, Seward, Soldotna, Sterling, Fairbanks, North Pole, Palmer, Ketchikan and Juneau.

Stay informed:

• Alaska’s Response
• Find more information about how to keep yourself and your family healthy at the DHSS webpage, alaska.gov
• Visit the governor’s webpage on COVID-19 at gov/covid19news
• Visit alaska.gov/covid19 on the Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Management webpage for Unified Command information, community press releases and other documents.
• United States response: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leads the U.S. response.
• Global response: The World Health Organization guides the global response.

This press release covers new cases between March 27 at 3 p.m. and March 28 at 3 p.m. when daily case counts are updated at coronavirus.alaska.gov.

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• DHSS_PressRelease_20200327.pdf

**COVID-19 HEALTH MANDATE**

Issued: March 27, 2020

By: Governor Mike Dunleavy

Commissioner Adam Crum, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services

Dr. Anne Zink, Chief Medical Officer, State of Alaska

To prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the State of Alaska is issuing its twelfth health mandate based on its authority under the Public Health Disaster Emergency Declaration signed by Governor Mike Dunleavy on March 11, 2020.

Given the increasing concern for new cases of COVID-19 being transmitted via community spread within the state, Governor Dunleavy and the State of Alaska are issuing the following mandate to go into effect March 28, 2020 at 8:00 am and will be reevaluated by April 11, 2020.

This mandate is issued to protect the public health of Alaskans. The Governor looks to establish consistent mandates across the State in order to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. The goal is to flatten the curve and disrupt the spread of the virus.

The purpose of this mandate is to control the movement of individuals within Alaska in order to prevent, slow, and otherwise disrupt the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The State of Alaska and the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) acknowledge the importance of minimizing intrastate travel to avoid introducing new COVID-19 cases into Alaska communities and slow the spread of the virus in state. It is imperative that Alaskans heed these guidelines.

Critical infrastructure is vital to keeping Alaska safe, and as a result businesses and employees of critical infrastructure industries must, to the extent reasonably feasible, take reasonable care to protect their staff and operations during this pandemic. If your business is included in “Alaska’s Essential Services and Critical Infrastructure” (formerly Attachment A), you must submit a travel plan or protocol for maintaining critical infrastructure to akcovidplans@ak-prepared.com. The plan should outline how you will avoid the spread of COVID-19 and not endanger the lives of the communities in which you operate, of others who serve as a part of that infrastructure, or the ability of that critical infrastructure to function. If you have already submitted a plan pursuant to Health Mandate 10.1 related to interstate travel, you do not need to submit another plan.

Critical infrastructure includes those items listed in “Alaska’s Essential Services and Critical Infrastructure” (formerly Attachment A) https://gov.alaska.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/03232020-COVID-19-Health-Mandate-010-Attachment-A.pdf

Health Mandate 012 – Intrastate Travel – Limiting travel between communities to critical infrastructure or critical personal needs.

Effective 8:00 am March 28, 2020

All in-state travel between communities, whether resident, worker, or visitor, is prohibited unless travel is to support critical infrastructure, or for critical personal needs. Certain Small Alaskan communities may implement further travel restriction pursuant to “Alaska Small Community Emergency Travel Order – Attachment B.”

Personal travel is prohibited except as necessary to meet critical personal needs or work in critical infrastructure jobs. Critical personal needs include buying, selling, or delivering groceries and home goods; obtaining fuel for vehicles or residential needs; transporting family members for out-of-home care, essential health needs, or for purposes of child custody exchanges; receiving essential health care; providing essential health care to a family member; obtaining other important goods; and engaging in subsistence activities. Travelers are reminded to follow social distancing measures, including, to the extent reasonably feasible, keeping six feet away from others, avoiding crowded places, and limiting public gatherings to less than ten people. Read the “Mandate 11 and 12 FAQ’s” for more details.

No one traveling to or from any community for critical reasons or critical personal travel may be subject to any automatic quarantine or isolation on arrival except as allowed under Alaska Statutes or Health Mandates.

Air carriers and other travel-related businesses have no duty to verify that intrastate travelers meet the criteria for permissible travel under this heath mandate. Air carriers shall inquire if travelers are permitted to travel under this mandate and shall rely upon a traveler’s assurance that they are eligible to travel.

***This Mandate supersedes any local government or tribal mandate, directive, or order restricting intrastate travel ***

For the latest information on COVID-19, visit coronavirus.alaska.gov

State of Alaska COVID-19 Mandate 012

Mandates available at https://gov.alaska.gov/home/covid19-healthmandates/

• COVID_MANDATE-012_AlaskaSmallCommunityEmergencyTravelOrder_AttachmentB.pdf

**COVID-19 HEALTH MANDATE**

Issued: March 27, 2020

By: Governor Mike Dunleavy

Commissioner Adam Crum, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services

Dr. Anne Zink, Chief Medical Officer, State of Alaska

To prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the State of Alaska is issuing its eleventh health mandate based on its authority under the Public Health Disaster Emergency Declaration signed by Governor Mike Dunleavy on March 11, 2020.

Given the increasing concern for new cases of COVID-19 being transmitted via community spread within the state, Governor Dunleavy and the State of Alaska are issuing the following mandate to go into effect March 28, 2020 at 5:00 pm and will be reevaluated by April 11, 2020.

This mandate is issued to protect the public health of Alaskans. The Governor looks to establish consistent mandates across the State in order to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. The goal is to flatten the curve and disrupt the spread of the virus.

The purpose of this mandate is to restrict the movement of individuals within the State of Alaska in order to prevent, slow, and otherwise disrupt the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The State of Alaska and the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) acknowledge the importance of social distancing, while maintaining essential healthcare services, public government services, and other essential business activities, to prevent, slow, and otherwise disrupt the spread of COVID-19 in Alaska. It is imperative that Alaskans heed these guidelines.

Health Mandate 011 – Social Distancing

Effective 5 p.m. March 28, 2020:

All persons in Alaska, except for those engaged in essential health care services, public government services, and essential business activities, are mandated to remain at their place of residence and practice social distancing. For the purpose of this mandate, social distancing is defined as maintaining a distance of six feet or greater from any individuals with whom you do not currently reside. Read the “Mandate 11 & 12 FAQ’s” for more details, which can be found here: http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Epi/id/Pages/COVID-19/default.aspx

Critical infrastructure includes those items listed in “Alaska’s Essential Services and Critical Infrastructure” (formerly Attachment A) https://gov.alaska.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/03232020-COVID-19-Health-Mandate-010-Attachment-A.pdf

1. The Governor orders individuals to abide by the following:

1. Work from home as much as possible (see Alaska Essential Services and Critical Workforce Infrastructure Order).
2. Immediately isolate any family member who is ill. www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/guidance-prevent-spread.html#precautions
3. Outdoor activity (e.g., walking, hiking, bicycling, running, fishing or hunting) is permitted when a distance of six or more feet can be maintained between individuals not in the same household.
4. Any individual who exhibits symptoms of illness must not leave their home, including to work, except as necessary to seek or receive medical care.
5. All individuals shall cease participation in public or private gatherings that include non-household members, regardless of the number of people involved. This includes, but is not limited to, weddings, faith gatherings, graduations, and funeral events.
6. Individuals experiencing homelessness are exempt from this mandate but are urged to obtain shelter.

1. The Governor orders the closure of non-essential businesses:

1. All businesses within Alaska, except those listed in Alaska Essential Services and Critical Workforce Infrastructure Order, are required to cease all activities at facilities located within the state except Minimum Basic Operations, as defined in Section II(c). For clarity, businesses may also continue operations consisting exclusively of employees or contractors performing activities at their own residences (i.e., working from home).
2. For purposes of this Mandate, covered businesses include any for-profit, non-profit, or educational entities, regardless of the nature of the service, the function they perform, or corporate or entity structure.
3. “Minimum Basic Operations” include the following, provided that employees comply with Social Distancing Requirements as defined in this Section, to the extent possible, while carrying out such operations:

   1. The minimum necessary activities to maintain the value of the business’s inventory, ensure security, process payroll and employee benefits, or for related functions.
   2. The minimum necessary activities to facilitate employees of the business being able to continue to work remotely from their residences.

III. The Governor orders employers to abide by the following:

1. Businesses providing essential services and critical infrastructure will, to the extent reasonably feasible, take reasonable precautions to ensure the health of their service sector and employees.
2. Public-facing businesses providing essential services and critical infrastructure will proactively promote social distancing between employees and others, including, but not limited to, expanding delivery options, drive-through services, limiting the number of individuals in a building, clearly spacing lines to keep individuals six feet apart, or making appointment times to minimize interactions between members of the public.
3. Employers will evaluate which of their employees can feasibly work remotely from home and to the extent reasonable, take steps to enable employees to work from home.

A violation of a state COVID-19 Mandate may subject a business or organization to an order to cease operations and/or a civil fine of up to $1,000 per violation.

In addition to the potential civil fines noted above, a person or organization that fails to follow the state COVID-19 Mandates designed to protect the public health from this dangerous virus and its impact may, under certain circumstances, also be criminally prosecuted for Reckless Endangerment pursuant to Alaska Statute 11.41.250. Reckless endangerment is defined as follows:

(a) A person commits the crime of reckless endangerment if the person recklessly engages in conduct which creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury to another person.

(b) Reckless endangerment is a class A misdemeanor.

Pursuant to Alaska Statute 12.55.135, a defendant convicted of a class A misdemeanor may be sentenced to a definite term of imprisonment of not more than one year.

Additionally, under Alaska Statute 12.55.035, a person may be fined up to $25,000 for a class A misdemeanor, and a business organization may be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding the greatest of $2,500,000 for a misdemeanor offense that results in death, or $500,000 for a class A misdemeanor offense that does not result in death.

This mandate supersedes any local government or tribal mandate, directive, or order.

For the latest information on COVID-19, visit coronavirus.alaska.gov

State of Alaska COVID-19 Mandate 011

Mandates available at https://gov.alaska.gov/home/covid19-healthmandates/

3-27-2020

Economic Hardship Related to COVID-19

CVEA urges members who are experiencing financial hardships caused by COVID-19 to contact our Customer Service Representatives at 907-822-3211 in the Copper Basin, and 907-835-4301 in Valdez, to address any concerns.

Evaluation will be on a case-by-case basis, and this begins with communicating with CVEA.