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Apparently you either relied on someone else for your information, or you just didn't pay attention. So let me refresh your memory.Here's the Timeline of the Trump Administration's Response to the Wuhan CoronavirusBeth Baumann | Apr 13, 2020 8:00 PMSource: AP Photo/Alex BrandonThe Trump campaign on Monday released a timeline of the Trump administration's response to the Wuhan coronavirus. Below is the timeline of events around the world and throughout the United States. Prominent decisions and actions are bolded.DECEMBER:December 31: China reports the discovery of the coronavirus to the World Health Organization.JANUARY:January 3: CDC Director Robert Redfield sent an email to the director of the Chinese CDC, George Gao, formally offering to send U.S. experts to China to investigate the coronavirus.January 5: CDC Director Redfield sent another email to the Chinese CDC Director, George Gao, formally offering to send U.S. experts to China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak,January 6: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a travel notice for Wuhan, China due to the spreading coronavirus.January 7: The CDC established a coronavirus incident management system to better share and respond to information about the virus.January 11: The CDC issued a Level I travel health notice for Wuhan, China.January 17: The CDC began implementing public health entry screening at the 3 U.S. airports that received the most travelers from Wuhan – San Francisco, New York JFK, and Los Angeles.January 20: Dr. Fauci announces the National Institutes of Health is already working on the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus.January 21: The CDC activated its emergency operations center to provide ongoing support to the coronavirus response.January 23: The CDC sought a “special emergency authorization” from the FDA to allow states to use its newly developed coronavirus test.January 27: President Trump tweeted that he made an offer to President Xi Jinping to send experts to China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak.January 27: The CDC issued a level III travel health notice urging Americans to avoid all nonessential travel to China due to the coronavirus.January 27: The White House Coronavirus Task Force started meeting to help monitor and contain the spread of the virus and provide updates to the President.January 29: The White House announced the formation of the Coronavirus Task Force to help monitor and contain the spread of the virus and provide updates to the President.January 31: The Trump Administration:Declared the coronavirus a public health emergency.Announced Chinese travel restrictions.Suspended entry into the United States for foreign nationals who pose a risk of transmitting the coronavirus.January 31: The Department of Homeland Security took critical steps to funnel all flights from China into just 7 domestic U.S. airports.FEBRUARY:February 3: The CDC had a team ready to travel to China to obtain critical information on the novel coronavirus, but were in the U.S. awaiting permission to enter by the Chinese government.February 4: President Trump vowed in his State of the Union Address to “take all necessary steps” to protect Americans from the coronavirus.February 6: The CDC began shipping CDC-Developed test kits for the 2019 Novel Coronavirus to U.S. and international labs.February 7: President Trump told reporters that the CDC is working with China on the coronavirus.February 9: The White House Coronavirus Task Force briefed governors from across the nation at the National Governors’ Association Meeting in Washington.February 11: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) expanded a partnership with Janssen Research & Development to “expedite the development” of a coronavirus vaccine.February 12: The U.S. shipped test kits for the 2019 novel coronavirus to approximately 30 countries who lacked the necessary reagents and other materials.February 12: The CDC was prepared to travel to China but had yet to receive permission from the Chinese government.February 14: The CDC began working with five labs to conduct “community-based influenza surveillance” to study and detect the spread of coronavirus.February 18: HHS announced it would engage with Sanofi Pasteur in an effort to quickly develop a coronavirus vaccine and to develop treatment for coronavirus infections.February 22: A WHO team of international experts arrives in Wuhan, China.February 24: The Trump Administration sent a letter to Congress requesting at least $2.5 billion to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.February 26: President Trump discussed coronavirus containment efforts with Indian PM Modi and updated the press on his Administration’s containment efforts in the U.S. during his state visit to India.February 29: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowed certified labs to develop and begin testing coronavirus testing kits while reviewing pending applications.February 29: The Trump Administration:Announced a level 4 travel advisory to areas of Italy and South Korea.Barred all travel to Iran.Barred the entry of foreign citizens who visited Iran in the last 14 days.MARCH:March 3: The CDC lifted federal restrictions on coronavirus testing to allow any American to be tested for coronavirus, “subject to doctor’s orders.”March 3: The White House announced President Trump donated his fourth-quarter salary to fight the coronavirus.March 4: The Trump Administration announced the purchase of approximately 500 million N95 respirators over the next 18 months to respond to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.March 4: Secretary Azar announced that HHS was transferring $35 million to the CDC to help state and local communities that have been impacted most by the coronavirus.March 6: President Trump signed an $8.3 billion bill to fight the coronavirus outbreak.The bill provides $7.76 billion to federal, state, & local agencies to combat the coronavirus and authorizes an additional $500 million in waivers for Medicare telehealth restrictions.March 9: President Trump called on Congress to pass a payroll tax cut over coronavirus.March 10: President Trump and VP Pence met with top health insurance companies and secured a commitment to waive co-pays for coronavirus testing.March 11: President Trump:Announced travel restrictions on foreigners who had visited Europe in the last 14 days.Directed the Small Business Administration to issue low-interest loans to affected small businesses and called on Congress to increase this fund by $50 billion.Directed the Treasury Department to defer tax payments for affected individuals & businesses, & provide $200 billion in “additional liquidity.”Met with American bankers at the White House to discuss coronavirus.March 13: President Trump declared a national emergency in order to access $42 billion in existing funds to combat the coronavirus.March 13: President Trump announced:Public-private partnerships to open up drive-through testing collection sites.A pause on interest payments on federal student loans.An order to the Department of Energy to purchase oil for the strategic petroleum reserve.March 13: The Food & Drug Administration:Granted Roche AG an emergency approval for automated coronavirus testing kits.Issued an emergency approval to Thermo Fisher for a coronavirus test within 24 hours of receiving the request.March 13: HHS announced funding for the development of two new rapid diagnostic tests, which would be able to detect coronavirus in approximately 1 hour.March 14: The Coronavirus Relief Bill passed the House of Representatives.March 14: The Trump Administration announced the European travel ban will extend to the UK and Ireland.March 15: President Trump held a phone call with over two dozen grocery store executives to discuss on-going demand for food and other supplies.March 15: HHS announced it is projected to have 1.9 million COVID-19 tests available in 2,000 labs this week.March 15: Google announced a partnership with the Trump Administration to develop a website dedicated to coronavirus education, prevention, & local resources.March 15: All 50 states were contacted through FEMA to coordinate “federally-supported, state-led efforts” to end coronavirus.March 16: President Trump:Held a teleconference with governors to discuss coronavirus preparedness and response.Participated in a call with G7 leaders who committed to increasing coordination in response to the coronavirus and restoring global economic confidence.Announced that the first potential vaccine for coronavirus has entered a phase one trial in a record amount of time.Announced “15 days to slow the spread” coronavirus guidance.March 16: The FDA announced it was empowering states to authorize tests developed and used by labs in their states.March 16: Asst. Secretary for Health confirmed the availability of 1 million coronavirus tests, and projected 2 million tests available the next week and 5 million the following.March 17: President Trump announced:CMS will expand telehealth benefits for Medicare beneficiaries.Relevant Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act penalties will not be enforced.The Army Corps of Engineers is on ”standby” to assist federal & state governments.March 17: President Trump spoke to fast food executives from Wendy’s, McDonald’s and Burger King to discuss drive-thru services recommended by CDCMarch 17: President Trump met with tourism industry representatives along with industrial supply, retail, and wholesale representatives.March 17: Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin met with lawmakers to discuss stimulus measures to relieve the economic burden of coronavirus on certain industries, businesses, and American workers.March 17: Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced a partnership between USDA, Baylor University, McLane Global, and Pepsi Co. to provide one million meals per weak to rural children in response to widespread school closures.March 17: The Treasury Department:Contributed $10 billion through the economic stabilization fund to the Federal Reserve’s commercial paper funding facility.Deferred $300 billion in tax payments for 90 days without penalty, up to $1 million for individuals & $10 million for business.March 17: The Department of Defense announced it will make available to HHS up to five million respirator masks and 2,000 ventilators.March 18: President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which provides free testing and paid sick leave for workers impacted by the coronavirus.March 18: President Trump announced:Temporary closure of the U.S.-Canada border to non-essential traffic.Plans to invoke the Defense Production Act in order to increase the number of necessary supplies needed to combat coronavirus.FEMA has been activated in every region at its highest level of response.The U.S. Navy will deploy USNS Comfort and USNS Mercy hospital ships.All foreclosures and evictions will be suspended for a period of time.March 18: Secretary of Defense Mark Esper confirmed:1 million masks are now immediately available.The Army Corps of Engineers is in NY consulting on how to best assist state officials.March 18: HHS temporarily suspended a regulation that prevents doctors from practicing across state lines.March 18: President Trump spoke to:Doctors, physicians, and nurses on the front lines containing the spread of coronavirus.130 CEOs of the Business Roundtable to discuss on-going public-private partnerships in response to the coronavirus pandemic.March 19: President Trump announced:Very encouraging progress shown by anti-malaria drug Hydroxychloroquine for fighting coronavirus.Carnival Cruise Lines will make ships available for use as hospitals in impacted areas to use for non-coronavirus patients.March 19: Vice President Pence announced tens of thousands of ventilators have been identified that can be converted to treat patients.March 19: The State Department issued a global level 4 health advisory, telling Americans to avoid all international travel due to coronavirus.March 19: President Trump directed FEMA to take the lead on the Federal Government’s coronavirus response & visited FEMA HQ with Vice President Pence for a video call with Governors.March 20: The U.S. and Mexico agree to mutually restrict nonessential cross-border traffic.March 20: Secretary Mnuchin announced at the direction of President Trump that tax day will be moved from April 15 to July 15 for all taxpayers and businesses.March 20: President Trump:Spoke with Sen. Schumer about coronavirus response & stimulus measuresHeld a call with over 12,000 small business owners to discuss relief effortsAnnounced the CDC will invoke Title 42 to provide border patrol with tools to secure the bordersMarch 20: The Department of Education announced it will:Not enforce standardized testing requirements for the remainder of the school yearAllow federal student loan borrowers to stop payments without penalty for 60 daysMarch 20: Secretary Azar announced:FEMA is coordinating and assisting coronavirus testing at labs across the countryThe CDC is suspending all illegal entries to the country based on the public health threat, via Section 362 of the Public Health & Security ActMarch 20: Secretary Azar sent a letter to all 50 Governors that the federal government is buying and making available 200,000 testing swabsMarch 21: Vice President Pence announced to date over 195,000 Americans tested for coronavirus and have received their resultsMarch 21: The Trump Administration announced HHS placed an order for hundreds of millions of N95 masks through FEMAMarch 21: The FDA announced it had given emergency approval to a new coronavirus test that delivers results in hours, with an intended rollout of March 30March 21: Adm. Giroir confirmed 10 million testing kits had been put into the commercial market from March 2 through March 14March 22: President Trump approved major disaster declarations for:Washington StateCaliforniaMarch 22: President Trump announced:Governors will remain in command of National Guard forces & the federal govt will fund 100% of operations costHe directed the federal govt to provide 4 large federal medical stations with 2,000 beds for CA & 1,000 beds for NY & WA.March 22: President Trump confirmed his administration was working with Peru & Honduras to return Americans stranded in both countries as a result of travel restrictions.March 22: Vice President Pence announced:The testing backlog will be resolved by midweek.To date, over 254,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 22: President Trump announced that the USNS Mercy will be deployed to Los Angeles.March 22: FEMA issued guidance for tribal governments to seek federal assistance under the President’s emergency declaration.March 23: President Trump signed an executive order invoking section 4512 of the Defense Production Act to prohibit the hoarding of vital medical supplies.March 23: VP Pence announced:313,000 Americans were tested for the coronavirus & received results.FEMA established a supply chain stabilization task force so Americans get supplies they need.HHS will have commercial labs prioritize testing for hospitalized patients.March 23: The White House Office of Science & Technology Policy announced a public-private consortium to:Advance coronavirus research.Provide access to computing technology and resources for researchers.March 23: Attorney General Barr announced:The Justice Department held a National Task Force meeting on hoarding and price gouging.Each of the 93 U.S. Attorney General offices is designating a lead prosecutor to prevent hoarding.March 23: President Trump announced HHS is working to designate essential medical supplies as “scarce” to prohibit hoarding of these items.March 23: The Treasury Department announced it is working with the Federal Reserve to lend up to $300 billion to businesses and local governments.March 24: President Trump announced the Army Corps of Engineers & the National Guard are constructing four hospitals and four medical centers in New York.March 24: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for the state of Iowa related to the coronavirus outbreak.March 24: Vice President Pence:Confirmed FEMA sent New York 2,000 ventilators.Announced individuals who have recently been in New York should self-quarantine for 14 days.March 24: Dr. Deborah Birx announced the U.S. has conducted more coronavirus tests in the last week than South Korea has over the prior eight weeks.March 24: The U.S. Army issued orders for three army hospitals to deploy their health care professionals to New York and Washington state, at the direction of Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy.March 25: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the #coronavirus outbreak for:TexasFloridaNorth CarolinaMarch 25: President Trump & Vice President Pence held a conference call with 140 non-profit organization leaders, including The Salvation Army & The Red Cross, to discuss coronavirus response efforts.March 25: President Trump signed a bill reauthorizing The Older Americans Act, which supports senior citizens by providing meals, transportation, and other crucial services.March 25: Vice President PenceHeld a conference call with equipment manufacturers to discuss on-going coronavirus response efforts.Announced 432,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received results.Confirmed 4,000 ventilators were delivered to New York.March 25: Vice President Pence held discussions with multiple governors, including the Governor of Indiana & the Governor of MichiganMarch 26: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:IllinoisNew JerseyMarylandMissouriMarch 26: President Trump announced the USNS Comfort will depart for NYC on Saturday to assist in the coronavirus response – 3 weeks ahead of schedule!March 26: President Trump participated in a video conference with the leaders of the G20 to discuss the global coronavirus response & the need for countries to share information and data on the spread of the virus.March 26: President Trump held a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss the coronavirus.March 26: Vice President Pence announced 552,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 26: Dr. Fauci announced the Federal Government is working with companies to speed up production of potential coronavirus vaccines while those drugs are still in the trial phase.March 27: President Trump signed The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act into law.March 27: President Trump signed a Defense Production Act memorandum ordering General Motors (GM) "to accept, perform, and prioritize federal contractors for ventilators.March 27: President Trump signed an executive order allowing the military to activate members of the Selected Reserve and Ready Reserve to active duty to assist with the Federal response to the coronavirus.March 27: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:South CarolinaPuerto RicoMarch 27: President Trump appointed Office of Trade and Manufacturing policy director Peter Navarro to serve as the Defense Production Act Policy Coordinator.March 27: President Trump announced that 100,000 ventilators are projected to be manufactured in the next 100 days, three times the amount typically manufactured in one year.March 27: President Trump announced that Boeing offered the use of three "Dreamlifter" cargo air crafts to transport medical supplies across the country.March 27: Partnering with FEMA, the CDC, and the Coronavirus Task Force, Apple released a coronavirus app which allows users to screen for their symptoms.March 27: President Trump spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson about the global coronavirus response and committed to helping provide ventilators to the U.K. where possible.March 27: Vice President Pence announced that 685,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their test results.March 27: Emory University began enrolling participants for a phase one clinical trial, sponsored by the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), of a new, potential coronavirus vaccine.March 27: FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor spoke to the director of each of the state's emergency operations about the state-led, federally-supported coronavirus response effort.March 27: The USNS Mercy arrived in the port of Los Angelse to help relieve the strain on hospital facilities in Southern California.March 28: President Trump visited Norfolk, VA to send off the USNS Comfort to New York City where it will help relieve the strain on local hospitals.March 28: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:GuamMichiganMassachusettsKentuckyColoradoMarch 28: President Trump spoke with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis regarding the coronavirus response effort.March 28: The CDC issued new guidance for residents of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to avoid non-essential domestic travel for 14 days to #StopTheSpread of the coronavirus within the U.S.March 29: President Trump announced that CDC guidelines will be extended through April 30 to promote #socialdistancing and other measures to stop the spread of the #coronavirus.March 29: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:ConnecticutOregonGeorgiaWashington DCMarch 29: President Trump met with supply chain distributors including FedEx, Cardinal Health, and UPS to discuss ways to get state and local governments necessary medical supplies to combat the coronavirus.March 29: President Trump congratulated the Army Corps of Engineers for having completed construction on a 2,900 bedroom temporary hospital at the Javits Center in New York.March 29: President Trump tweeted his support for the FDA to expedite the approval process to approve mask sterilization equipment produced by Battelle.March 29: President Trump announced the on-going study of 1,100 patients in New York being treated with Hydroxychloroquine for coronavirus.March 29: President Trump directed the Treasury & Labor Departments to look at reinstating deductions of business expenses at restaurants, bars, and entertainment businesses to help the hospitality industry.March 29: The first "Project Airbridge" shipment of medical supplies from abroad, organized by FEMA, landed at JFK airport, carrying 80 tons of masks, face shields, and other vital medical supplies.March 29: President Trump announced that Cigna and Humana are waving co-pays for coronavirus treatment.March 29: Vice President Pence sent a letter to hospital administrators requesting that hospitals across the country report their coronavirus data to the Federal Government in addition to state authorities.March 29: Adm. Giroir announced that 894,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 29: HHS accepted 30 million doses of Hydroxychloroquine, donated by Sandoz, and one million doses of Chloroquine, donated by Bayer Pharmaceuticals, for clinical trials and possible treatment of coronavirus patients.March 30: President Trump announced that one million Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 30: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:AlabamaKansasPennsylvaniaRhode IslandMarch 30: Secretary Azar announced that the FDA has approved Battelle’s N95 mask sanitization process for use to decontaminate tens of thousands of masks per day.March 30: President Trump announced further private sector commitments to manufacture personal protective equipment by MyPillow, Honeywell, Jockey, Procter & Gamble, and United Technologies.March 30: President Trump announced, to date, FEMA has dedicated $1.3 billion to assist New York State’s coronavirus response.March 30: President Trump announced “more than 14,000” National Guard service members have been activated to respond to the coronavirus outbreak.March 30: President Trump spoke with the nation’s governors about their need for medical supplies.March 30: President Trump announced that in the coming days the Federal Government will be delivering:400 ventilators to Michigan300 ventilators to New Jersey150 ventilators to Louisiana150 ventilators to Illinois50 ventilators to ConnecticutMarch 30: President Trump spoke to Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of Italy and pledged to send $100 million of medical supplies to aid Italy’s battle against coronavirus.March 30: Answering President Trump’s call for the private sector to join the fight against the #coronavirus, Ford Motor Company committed to producing 50,000 ventilators in the next 100 days.March 30: On coronavirus testing, Secretary Azar announced that the U.S. is currently testing nearly 100,000 samples per day.March 30: HHS took steps to accelerate a clinical trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine developed by Janssen Research & Development.March 30: CMS announced new regulatory changes to cut red tape and give flexibility to America’s health care workers by relaxing hospital workforce regulations, expanding child care, meal, and laundry services for health care workers, expanding tele-health reimbursement, and more.March 30: The USNS Comfort arrived in New York Harbor, providing more than 1,000 more hospital beds for patients without coronavirus, to relieve pressure on local hospitals.March 30: The USNS Mercy began treating patients in Los Angeles.March 31: President Trump officially issued “30 Days To Slow The Spread” guidance to mitigate the outbreak of coronavirus.March 31: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:OhioMontanaMarch 31: President Trump participated in a conference call with executives of American Network Service Providers to promote connectivity amid social distancing.March 31: President Trump announced that the federal government is stockpiling 10,000 ventilators to be urgently distributed as needed once the coronavirus pandemic hits its peak in the U.S.March 31: President Trump announced that the Treasury Department and SBA are rapidly mobilizing money from the CARES Act’s $349 billion paycheck protection program, with the program set to be “up and running” by April 3.March 31: President Trump spoke to Michigan Governor Whitmer about the state’s need for ventilators.March 31: President Trump announced the Army Corps of Engineers & FEMA will construct:8 facilities with 50,000 bed capacity in CaliforniaA field hospital with 250 bed capacity in Michigan2 field hospitals in Louisiana with 500 bed capacityAn alternative care sight in New Orleans with a 3,000 bed capacityMarch 31: President Trump spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan about the international effort to defeat the coronavirus and support the global economy.March 31: President Trump and the First Lady spoke with their Majesties King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain about efforts to combat the coronavirus.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 10 states now have access to federal funding for The National Guard to respond to the coronavirus outbreak.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 17,000 National Guard Servicemen have been activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus response.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 1.1 million coronavirus tests have been completed.March 31: Adm. Giroir & Surgeon General Adams issued an open letter to the U.S. health care community about how to optimize the use of ventilators.March 31: The FDA issued an emergency use authorization for a two-minute coronavirus antibody test developed by Bodysphere Inc.March 31: The Treasury Department and IRS launched the employee retention credit, created by the CARES Act to incentivize businesses to keep their employees on payroll, and said businesses can begin using it.March 31: The VA announced that it had expanded virtual services to veterans, continuing to provide care while limiting in-person interactions that could potentially harm vulnerable populations at VA facilities.APRIL:April 1: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration related to the coronavirus outbreak for:North DakotaHawaiiThe Northern Mariana IslandsApril 1: President Trump spoke to Walmart CEO Doug McMillon about the need to procure gowns for hospitalsApril 1: President Trump spoke to military families whose relocation or reunion with loved ones was impacted by the coronavirus.April 1: President Trump announced that the construction & refurbishing of two additional hospital ships like the USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort are being considered.April 1: Vice President Pence announced that 1.2 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 1: The White House, HHS, and the FDA worked with Senator Rob Portman to acquire and authorize for use over two million gowns donated to the Strategic National Stockpile by Cardinal Health.April 1: Dr. Birx announced that the White House issued a challenge to universities and states to develop ELISA, or Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays, tests to detect coronavirus antibodies in larger communities more quickly.April 1: The Treasury Department released FAQs to help small and medium businesses understand the paid sick and family leave tax credits now offered under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.April 1: The Department of Labor posted a temporary rule to implement the Families First Coronavirus Response Act in order to provide paid sick and family leave.April 1: In New York City, the USNS Comfort began treating its first patients.April 1: The VA opened its East Orange, NJ medical center to serve non-veteran coronavirus patients to assist the state and FEMA in their response to coronavirus.April 1: The Treasury Department announced that Social Security recipients, including senior citizens, disabled Americans, and low-income Americans who do not file tax returns will have their coronavirus relief payments directly deposited into their bank accounts.April 2: President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to direct 3M to produce more N95 respirator masks.April 2: President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to help 6 companies (General Electric, Hill-Rom Holdings, Medtronic, ResMed, eRoyal Philips, and Vyaire Medical) get the supplies they need to make ventilators.April 2: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the #coronavirus outbreak for:VirginiaTennesseeThe U.S. Virgin IslandsApril 2: President Trump discussed the production of ventilators with GM CEO Mary Barra.April 2: President Trump announced that The Javits Center temporary hospital will be converted into a coronavirus hospital.April 2: President Trump announced that the Department of Defense will be establishing 48 more ICU beds in New York.April 2: President Trump announced that the Federal Government will be establishing a coronavirus hospital in Louisiana and Texas.April 2: President Trump took an additional coronavirus test and tested negative.April 2: President Trump ordered the Federal Government to cover the costs of all National Guard operations in states with recently approved disaster declarations.April 2: President Trump sent Senator Chuck Schumer a letter debunking false claims made against the Trump Administration’s coronavirus response.April 2: Secretary Mnuchin and Small Business Administrator Jovita Carranza announced that the Paycheck Protection Program, created by the CARES Act to provide $350 billion in loans to small businesses, will be launched tomorrow.April 2: Secretary Mnuchin announced that the first relief payments will be dispersed within two weeks.April 2: Vice President Pence announced that 1.3 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 2: Vice President Pence announced that all Blue Cross Blue Shield Members will be waiving out of pocket costs for coronavirus treatment.April 2: Rear Adm. Polowczyk announced FEMA’s Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force has delivered:27.1 million surgical masks19.5 N95 million respirator masks22.4 million surgical gloves5.2 million face shieldsOver 7,600 ventilatorsApril 2: First Lady Melania Trump had a phone call with Mrs. Sophie Grégoire Trudeau of Canada, who is recovering from the coronavirus.April 2: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced $25 billion in federal funding to support public transportation systems in response to the coronavirus.April 2: The Department of Justice and HHS distributed 192,000 N95 respirator masks confiscated from price gougers to health care workers in New York and New Jersey.April 2: The FDA approved the first coronavirus antibody test, developed by Cellex.April 2: The FDA issued new guidance to increase the supply of blood donations, reducing the deferral period for gay men from 12 months to 3 months.April 2: The Department of Education donated 5,760 N95 respirator masks discovered in storage to aid the fight against the coronavirus.April 2: Secretary Pompeo announced that the State Department has now brought home 30,000 Americans stranded overseas as a result of coronavirus-related travel restrictions.April 2: April 2: HHS announced it was relaxing enforcement of HIPAA violations to encourage health care providers to share coronavirus data and information with federal and state health care officials.April 2: The Trump Administration issued recommendations to nursing homes to help mitigate the spread of coronavirus.April 2: HUD announced it was immediately making $3 billion of CARES Act funding available to help America’s low-income families and most vulnerable citizens across the nation.April 2: The Energy Department announced it would immediately make 30 million barrels of the strategic petroleum reserve’s (SPR’s) oil storage capacity available to struggling U.S. oil producers.April 3: President Trump announced new voluntary CDC guidelines that all Americans wear non-medical, fabric or cloth face masks to prevent asymptomatic spread of coronavirus.April 3: The President met with energy execs from Phillips 66, Devon Energy, Continental Resources, Hilcorp Energy, Occidental Petroleum, The American Petroleum Institute, The Energy Transfer Partners, Chevron, & Exxon Mobil to discuss coronavirus’ impact on the energy industry.April 3: President Trump spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss convening the five permanent members of the UN Security Council in an effort to defeat the coronavirus and discuss its impact on the world.April 3: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:New HampshireWest VirginiaIndianaArkansasOregonApril 3: President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum blocking the export of N95 and other respirator masks, surgical masks, PPE gloves, and surgical gloves to ensure they are available in the U.S. – designating them as “scarce” under the Defense Production Act.April 3: President Trump announced that Anthem will waive co-pays for coronavirus treatment for 60 days.April 3: President Trump announced that uninsured Americans will have their coronavirus treatment covered, using funding from the CARES Act.April 3: Trump Administration officials spoke to the directors of the two largest health care providers in Louisiana, Ochsner and LCMC Health, to discuss their need for medical supplies.April 3: President Trump directed FEMA to send Ochsner Surgical Gowns.April 3: President Trump announced that 9,000 retired Army medical personnel have volunteered and are assisting the federal response to the coronavirus.April 3: President Trump announced that the DOJ and HHS have together secured:200,000 N95 masks130,000 surgical masks600,000 glovesfrom hoarders and have distributed the supplies to health care workers.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that 1.4 million coronavirus tests have been completed to date.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that 18,000 machines are already available across the country to administer Abbott 15 Minute Coronavirus Tests, with another 1,200 soon to be distributed to states.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that a Project Airbridge flight landed in Columbus, Ohio with medical supplies.April 3: Secretary Azar announced a public-private partnership with Oracle to collect crowd-sourced data on coronavirus therapeutic treatments.April 3: The SBA launched the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, issuing more than 17,500 loans valued at $5.4 billion.April 3: The Army Corps of Engineers is working with states to assess 750 requests for temporary hospital facilities, having completed 673 already.April 3: The FDA announced it would coordinate the national effort to develop blood-related therapies for COVID-19.April 3: The Defense Department’s Joint Acquisition Task Force launched a new portal giving the private sector the ability to submit information and solutions to the DoD.April 3: The State Department announced that they have awarded contracts for 8 new medical facilities, totaling 9,693 new beds.April 3: The Department of Labor issued guidance to help employers reduce their use of N95 respirators, freeing up supply for the coronavirus response.April 3: HUD announced it is making $200 million in Indian housing block grants for Indian Tribes under the CARES Act.April 3: EPA Administrator Wheeler held a call with retailers and marketplace platforms to discuss ways to protect consumers from fake disinfectants.April 3: First Lady Melania Trump held a phone call with Mrs. Brigitte Macron of France to discuss the coronavirus response.April 4: President Trump announced that 1,000 members of the Defense Department’s Medical Corps will be deployed to New York to assist in the fight against coronavirus.April 4: President Trump spoke to commissioners of major league sports organizations including the MLB, NFL, & NBA, recognizing what the leagues, teams, and players are doing in their communities to combat coronavirus.April 4: President Trump tweeted encouragement to American children unable to start their Little League baseball season on time due to coronavirus.April 4: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:NebraskaWisconsinMaineNevadaApril 4: President Trump announced that he was considering a second coronavirus task force focused on the economy.April 4: President Trump urged PM Modi of India to allow Hydroxychloroquine to be shipped to the United States.April 4: President Trump announced that the U.S. government has repatriated over 40,000 Americans from 75 countries.April 4: Vice President Pence spoke to Governors of New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Maryland.April 4: FEMA obligated $44 million to Iowa under the state’s major disaster declaration to combat the coronavirus.April 5: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:South DakotaNew MexicoOklahomaMississippiApril 5: April 5: President Trump announced that by Tuesday, 3,000 military and medical personnel will have deployed to New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to assist in the coronavirus response effort.April 5: President Trump announced that the Trump Administration will be sending New York 600,000 N95 masks tomorrow, including 200,000 to Suffolk County alone.April 5: President Trump announced that the Administration will soon send:300 ventilators to Michigan200 ventilators to Louisiana600 ventilators to Illinois100 ventilators to Massachusetts500 ventilators to New JerseyApril 5: President Trump announced the establishment of a federal coronavirus medical station in Washington D.C.April 5: President Trump announced that Washington has returned 400 ventilators to the strategic national stockpile.April 5: President Trump announced that 1.67 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 5: President Trump announced that the government has stockpiled 29 million doses of HydroxychloroquineApril 5: Dr. Birx announced that testing in the New York metro area, New Jersey, Louisiana, and Washington has exceeded the testing rate of Spain and ItalyApril 5: Adm. Polowczyk announced that three Project Airbridge flights of medical supplies landed across the US today carrying:1 million gowns2.8 million surgical masks11.8 million glovesApril 5: Adm. Polowczyk spoke to top health officials from states severely impacted by the coronavirus to discuss the supply chain.April 5: Secretary Wilkie announced that the VA is making 1,500 beds available at VA hospitals to help states and localities across the country.April 5: Vice President Pence spoke to governors from states severely impacted by the coronavirus, including Michigan, Louisiana, and Illinois.April 5: FEMA and The Army Corps of Engineers completed renovations at the McCormick Place Pavilion in Chicago, providing an additional 500 hospital beds for the cityApril 6: President Trump announced an agreement with 3M to produce and import 55.5 million N95 masks each month for the next three months.April 6: President Trump held a call with CEOs from pharmaceutical and bio-tech companies to discuss potential coronavirus therapeutics.April 6: President Trump had a “very friendly” phone call with former Vice President Joe Biden to discuss the coronavirus.April 6: President Trump announced that 1.79 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 6: President Trump approved Governor Murphy’s request to allow New Jersey patients aboard the USNS Comfort.April 6: President Trump approved Governor Cuomo’s request to allow the treatment of coronavirus patients on the USNS Comfort.April 6: President Trump announced that CVS will open two new drive-thru coronavirus testing sites in Georgia and Rhode Island. Both will use Abbott’s rapid coronavirus test.April 6: President Trump announced that the FDA authorized Inovio’s potential coronavirus vaccine for a clinical trial, wile 10 potential coronavirus therapeutic agents are in “active trials” with another 15 potential therapeutics in plans for clinical trials.April 6: President Trump praised the work of the private sector, including Apple and Salesforce, who have agreed to donate personal protective equipment to help defeat the coronavirus.April 6: President Trump announced that The Army Corps of Engineers is building 22 field hospitals and alternative care sites in 18 states.April 6: President Trump announced that 8,450 hospital beds and 8,000 ventilators have been deployed across the country from federal stockpiles.April 6: Vice President Pence announced that to date $4.1 billion has been allocated to states under federal disaster declarations.April 6: Vice President Pence announced that 21,000 National Guard Servicemen have been activated across the country to assist in the fight against coronavirus.April 6: VP Pence announced that thanks to California’s donation of 500 ventilators, the federal government will send:200 ventilators to MD100 ventilators to DE100 ventilators to NV50 ventilators to DC50 ventilators to Guam & the Northern Mariana IslandsApil 6: The CDC began publishing a new, data-centered coronavirus surveillance report on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).April 6: HHS announced an additional $186 million in CDC funding for state and local jurisdictions combatting the coronavirus.April 6: HHS announced it will be purchasing 15-minute coronavirus tests from Abbott for state, territorial, and tribal labs and for the Strategic National Stockpile.April 6: The Department of Education announced a streamlined process making it easier for states to use federal education funding for distance learning during the coronavirus outbreak.April 7: President Trump participated in a conference call with banking executives to discuss how to best deliver financial aid and technical assistance to small businesses.April 7: President Trump announced the SBA has processed “more than $70 billion” in loans to help small businesses as part of the Paycheck Protection Program.April 7: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Minnesota related to the coronavirus outbreak.April 7: President Trump announced that in addition to the 8,675 ventilators in the strategic national stockpile, the federal government will be acquiring 110,000 ventilators in the next three months to be distributed to states in need.April 7: President Trump announced that 1.87 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 7: President Trump announced his intent to ask Congress for an additional $250 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program to loan to small businesses.April 7: Vice President Pence participated in a conference call with over 500 business owners to discuss their needs amid the coronavirus response effort.April 7: CMS Administrator Verma announced that CMS will make available an additional $30 billion in grants this week for health care organizations with increased operating costs due to the coronavirus.April 7: The State Department announced an additional $225 million in health, humanitarian, and economic assistance to reduce the transmission of the coronavirus around the world.April 7: As part of Project Airbridge, UPS and FEMA began shipments of 25 flights with more than three million pounds of medical supplies.April 7: The Department of Transportation finalized a requirement that airlines who receive assistance under the CARES Act continue flights to destinations they were serving before the outbreak, ensuring commercial flights are available.April 7: The EPA distributed over 1,100 N95 masks to the California Office of Emergency Services.April 8: President Trump spoke to over 10,000 faith leaders & more than 3,000 state, local, and tribal officials to discuss the coronavirus response effort.April 8: Secretary Pompeo announced that since January, over 50,000 Americans have been repatriated by 90 countries in over 480 flights.April 8: Under the DPA, HHS announced a $646.7M contract with Philips to produce 2,500 ventilators for the Strategic National Stockpile by the end of May, and a total of 43,000 by December.April 8: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Vermont related to the coronavirus outbreak.April 8: President Trump announced that a Project Airbridge shipment of protective gowns landed in Dallas, Texas.April 8: President Trump announced that 10 drugs to potentially be used against the coronavirus are currently in clinical trial.April 8: President Trump thanked Indian PM Modi for allowing a shipment of the life-saving drug hydroxychloroquine to be released to the U.S.April 8: Vice President Pence announced:$98B in forgivable loans were disbursed through the Paycheck Protection Program27,000 National Guard service members were activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus responseApril 8: The CDC issued new guidance for how essential and critical workers who have been exposed to the coronavirus can return to work, with precautions.April 8: Four additional flights as part of Project Airbridge landed across the country, delivering PPE and other medical supplies.April 8: Customs and Borders Protection announced with FEMA that it will detain shipments of PPE in order to keep critical medical supplies within the U.S. for domestic use.April 8: HHS announced an agreement with DuPont and FedEx to rapidly manufacture and deliver 2.25M new Tyvek Protective Suits to the Strategic National Stockpile over the next five weeks.April 8: HHS expanded telehealth services for Native Americans through The Indian Health Service.April 8: HHS authorized pharmacists to order and administer coronavirus tests, further expanding the availability of testing.April 8: HHS awarded $1.3B from the CARES Act to 1,387 health centers in all 50 states, 8 territories, and the District of Columbia to fight coronavirus.April 8: CMS issued updated guidance based on CDC guidelines to protect patients and health care workers in hospitals from the coronavirus.April 8: The USDA announced its approval of Arizona's & California’s request for food stamp recipients to purchase food online, allowing these recipients to purchase groceries for delivery.April 8: The VA announced that it has begun using funding from the CARES Act to pay overtime, hire new staff, and purchase supplies including PPE, beds, and pharmaceuticals.April 9: President Trump spoke with mental health advocates from across the country to discuss their work amid the coronavirus outbreak.April 9: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:AlaskaIdahoApril 9: President Trump announced that 24 Project Airbridge flights have been completed to date, with an additional 49 flights scheduled.April 9: President Trump announced that there are currently 19 potential coronavirus therapies being tested and another 26 potential therapies in active planning for clinical trials.April 9: President Trump announced that, to date, over 2 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that $125B in Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans has been approved to date.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that a total of 29,000 National Guard service members have been activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus response.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that to date 4,100 military medical personnel have been deployed to New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.April 9: The Treasury Department announced that it extended over 300 tax filing, payment, and administrative deadlines to give relief to taxpayers.April 9: Working with the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve announced new lending programs providing up to $2.3T in loans to businesses and state & local governments.April 9: HHS announced it would relax enforcement of HIPPAA for pharmacies and other organizations that are working at coronavirus testing sites, helping these groups focus on testing.April 9: Secretary of Education DeVos announced that $6.3B in CARES Act funding will be immediately distributed to colleges and universities to provide cash grants to students affected by the coronavirusApril 9: The EPA announced that more than 11,500 pieces of PPE have been transferred to FEMA, which will be later transferred to state and local agencies across New England combating the coronavirus.April 9: The USDA launched the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Program in Michigan, which will help feed children eligible for USDA school lunch programs who are now home during the coronavirus outbreak.April 9: The USDA announced relief for farmers across the country by giving borrowers 12 months to repay marketing assistance loans (MAL), helping protect farmers from being forced to sell crops to make loan payments.April 9: CMS temporarily suspended a number of regulations so that hospitals, clinics, and other health care providers can book the number of staff to confront the coronavirusApril 10: President Trump announced that 60 mask sterilization systems, with the ability to clean over 80,000 masks approximately 20 times, will be sent to 10 cities.April 10: President Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the global coronavirus response and the global energy market.April 10: President Trump announced that a field hospital in Seattle will be leaving, as Washington State’s coronavirus outbreak becomes more manageable.April 10: President Trump announced that his administration is working to bring blood-based serology tests to market “as quickly as possible” so Americans can determine if they have had the coronavirus.April 10: President Trump announced that he will be establishing an “Opening Our Country Council” with more details coming early next week.April 10: President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum to facilitate the supply of medical equipment and other humanitarian relief to Italy.April 10: Dr. Fauci spoke to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon to discuss coronavirus mitigation in those states.April 10: Vice President Pence, CDC Director Redfield, & Surgeon General Adams spoke to over 400 leaders of the African American community, including Jesse Jackson, NAACP representatives, & the National Black Nurses Association to discuss the impact of the coronavirus.April 10: Vice President Pence spoke to Colorado Governor Jared Polis about the specific needs of his state’s battle against the coronavirus.April 10: Vice President Pence announced that more than 2.1M coronavirus tests have been completed to date.April 10: Vice President Pence announced that:29,600 National Guard Troops have been activated4,700 active duty medical personnel have been deployed to nine statesApril 10: Vice President Pence announced that to date, 26 Project Airbridge flights have landed in the U.S. with PPE, with four flights scheduled to land today with 250,000 gowns and 25M pairs of gloves.April 10: HHS began delivering $30B in relief funding to health care providers, part of the $100B allocated to health care providers by the CARES Act.April 10: The FDA approved an emergency authorization for a blood purification device to treat coronavirus patients.April 10: Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced $1B for Amtrak to continue rail service and respond to the spread of the coronavirus.April 10: The Treasury Department launched a web portal to help Americans who did not file tax returns receive their coronavirus relief payments under the CARES Act.April 10: The Treasury Department announced it will launch a new “get my payment” app where Americans can enter their direct deposit information to get coronavirus relief payments quicker.April 10: The VA deployed medical staffers to New Orleans to help “surge” personnel in the area, which is currently being heavily impacted by the coronavirus.April 11: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Wyoming related to the coronavirus outbreak, marking the first time in U.S. history a President has declared that a major disaster exists in all 50 states.April 11: The DoD announced it is using The Defense Production Act to get the private sector to produce 39 million N95 masks within 90 days, a $133M investment.April 11: Three Project Airbridge flights landed in Chicago, Illinois, delivering over 62 million gloves.April 11: The Department of Justice announced it is monitoring state and local social distancing regulations to ensure religious organizations are not unfairly targeted.April 11: The USDA added Florida & Idaho to the food stamp online pilot program, allowing food stamp recipients to purchase food online.April 11: CMS expanded the requirements that private health insurers provide free coronavirus testing, saying that this includes anti-body testing and costs related to coronavirus testing, like emergency room or urgent care visits.April 12: A deal brokered by President Trump was announced between The OPEC countries, Russia, and the U.S. to cut production and stabilize the oil market amid dual disruptions from coronavirus and the price war between Saudi Arabia & Russia.April 12: The FDA issued an emergency authorization to devices from Advanced Sterilization Products, which can decontaminate approximately 4 million N95 respirators each day.April 12: The FBI uncovered an international fraud scheme related to the attempted purchase of 39 million N95 masks by a Service Employees International Union Affiliate.Editor's Note: Want to support Townhall so we can keep telling the truth about China and the virus they unleashed on the world? 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FOREWORDBy Barbara EhrenreichIn many ways, the American dialogue about poverty remains the same as it was in the early 1960s, when poverty was first “discovered” as a national problem. Liberals want the government to do more for the poor — through expanded social programs or raising the minimum wage - while conservatives emphasize self-reliance over government assistance. Both sides seem to agree that there is an intergenerational “cycle of poverty,” leading children born in poverty into lifetimes of economic difficulty, and that ways must be found to interrupt this cycle.But many things have changed in the last 50 years, some of them so recently as to have gone largely unnoticed by pundits and policy makers. The poor, and especially poor people of color, have long been over- represented in the prison population. This used to be attributed to the fact that the poor are more likely to be tempted by criminal activities such as theft and drug dealing. Just in the last ten years, however, it has become apparent that being poor is in itself a crime in many cities and counties, and that it is a crime punished by further impoverishment. As Karen Dolan explains in this hard-hitting report, a simple traffic violation – such as a broken tail-light – can bring down a cascade of fees and fines, which mount quickly if not paid on time and can lead to incarceration.The mid-00s were a turning point in the criminal justice system’s treatment of misdemeanors. Local governments increased the fees, fines and court costs they levied for minor transgressions, and at the same time, increased the number of possible misdemeanors to include truancy (for which parents can be punished), driving with an expired license (as is the case in Washington, DC), putting one’s feet up on a subway seat (in New York City), and a variety of other minor infractions. The latter two are grounds for immediate arrest, leading to the imposition of fines and court costs. If the defendant cannot pay, he or she may be jailed and, in the ugliest twist of all – later charged for the cost of room and board, then re-jailed for failing to pay that. If the defendant is put on probation, he or she must pay for the probation officer and anything else required for monitoring, like an ankle bracelet.Ferguson, Missouri helped bring attention to the extent of “offender-funded” criminal justice services. The city was relying on fees, fines, and court costs for 20 percent of its budget, effectively turning it into an occupied territory, with a 95 percent white police force supporting itself by forcibly preying on a nearly 70 percent black population.Who benefits from this “criminalization of poverty”? In the short-term, municipalities and counties may appear to benefit, as well as the private companies that increasingly provide probation services and operate detention facilities and prisons. In addition, the increasing barriers, such as drug testing and criminal record searches, to social benefits like public housing, SNAP, and TANF may also temporarily help relieve cash-strapped local governments.But the overall effect is to perpetuate poverty and even expand the poverty population, to no possible good effect. Poor and indigent people cannot afford to pay for the means to coerce and incarcerate them, and nothing is gained by repeatedly jailing them. The criminalization of poverty – and increasing impoverishment of people judged to be criminals — amounts to a system of organized sadism.This is the real “cycle of poverty:” Poverty leads easily to criminal charges from unpaid debts, unrenewed licenses and the like. Criminal charges in turn lead to ever-mounting debt and, despite laws prohibiting debtors’ prisons, to incarceration. There is no mystery about where government needs to intervene — first, by stopping the persecution of people who are already struggling to get by, and second, by mitigating that struggle.INTRODUCTIONBeing Poor in a Hostile NationPoor people, especially people of color, face a far greater risk of being fined, arrested, and even incarcerated for minor offenses than other Americans. A broken taillight, an unpaid parking ticket, a minor drug offense, sitting on a sidewalk, or sleeping in a park can all result in jail time. In this report, we seek to understand the multi-faceted, growing phenomenon of the “criminalization of poverty.”In many ways, this phenomenon is not new. The introduction of public assistance programs gave rise to prejudices against beneficiaries and to systemic efforts to obstruct access to the assistance. As University of California-Irvine professor Kaaryn Gustafson has noted, the intersections of race, income and gender bias were at play in the 1960s and 1970s as black, single mothers were targeted as criminal, lazy, promiscuous welfare cheats.The 1980s saw this demographic become the emblem of all that is wrong with government assistance for the poor — the infamous Welfare Queen. Black, single mothers were fictionalized as criminally defrauding the taxpayer, taking in public assistance while driving Cadillacs, eating bon-bons, and presumably getting rich off of drug-dealing boyfriends. Thus the 1990s brought aggressive state attacks on welfare recipients as they were increasingly investigated for fraud and other suspected criminal activities. The welfare system became a system of criminalization and punishment, rather than a program to assist needy families.So-called welfare reform, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, ended federal cash aid programs and replaced them with time-limited, restrictive, state block-grants. New punishable behaviors were mandated and policed, all but erasing the already tenuous line between the welfare and criminal justice systems.Today, when applying for welfare in the United States, many applicants are photographed, finger-printed, drug-tested, interrogated, and asked to prove paternity of children. Similarly, eligibility for public housing is restricted or denied if the applicant has a criminal record, including misdemeanors or a prior lease violation. Further, local Public Housing Authorities can be even more restrictive and evict occupants if a member of their family or another person residing in — or in some cases visiting — commits a crime, such as a misdemeanor drug offense.Poverty, in other words, is too often treated as a criminal offense. As with other forms of criminalization, black women, men, and youth are disproportionally targeted and affected by creating obstacles to safety net assistance programs. Case studies of three cities in California (Lancaster, Antioch, and Palmdale) illustrate the profiling of black women in Section 8 housing.For example, in Antioch, African-Americans in 2008 were four times as likely as white Section 8 occupants to be targeted and searched by law enforcement as a result of noncriminal complaints.Twelve states now mandate drug testing for receipts of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF or “welfare”). According to the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), at least 30 states have proposed legislation mandating drug testing for eligibility to receive welfare assistance. Some even extend this presumption of criminality into eligibility to receive other forms of economic assistance, such as food assistance and unemployment benefits.Additionally, welfare reform has produced more inroads for the criminalization of low-income and poor people through data compiled in these investigations. For example, food stamp records obtained by law enforcement officers are used to find and arrest people with outstanding arrest warrants.Not only are these incursions into one’s civil liberties being challenged as unconstitutional, they serve to further criminalize the status of being poor in the United States. On a practical level, the CLASP report finds these methods are costly, unnecessary, and ineffective.This form of criminalizing poverty — racial profiling and targeting of poor black and Latina single mothers trying to access public assistance — is a relatively familiar reality. Less well-known are the new and growing trends which increase this criminalization of being poor that affect or will affect hundreds of millions of Americans. These troubling trends are eliminating their chances to get out of poverty and access resources that make a safe and decent life possible.In this report we will summarize these realities, filling out the true breadth and depth of this national crisis. The key elements we examine are:• the targeting of poor people with fines and fees for misdemeanors and the resurgence of debtors’ prisons (the imprisonment of people unable to pay debts resulting from the increase in fines and fees);• mass incarceration of poor ethnic minorities for non-violent offenses and the barriers to employment and re-entry into society once they have served their sentences;• excessive punishment of poor children that creates a “school-to-prison pipeline”;• increase in arrests of homeless people and people feeding the homeless and criminalizing life- sustaining activities such as sleeping in public when no shelter is available; and• confiscating what little resources and property poor people might have through “civil asset forfeiture.”If you are poor in America, you are criminalized at every turn. As Barbara Ehrenreich has put it, “When you leave the relative safety of the middle class, you might as well have given up your citizenship and taken residence in a hostile nation.”SECTION 1The Rise of Debtors' Prisons in 21st Century AmericaPoor people are facing more fines and fees for misdemeanors like traffic violations. When they are unable to pay these fines, they are suffering harsher outcomes. They often wind up in jail or prison, where they accrue additional debt due to charges for costs related to public defender services, room and board during lockup, probation and parole supervision, drug and alcohol abuse treatment, and DNA samples.9How the American Debtors’ Prison Made a ComebackIn 1833, the United States ended the longstanding tradition of debtors’ prison. Prior to that time, citizens were placed in prison if they were unable to pay a debt. Over 100 years later, the U.S. courts dealt with this question again in Bearden v. Georgia (1983), a Supreme Court decision which held that it is unconstitutional to imprison those that cannot afford to pay their debt or restitution in criminal cases.11The case of Bearden v. Georgia involved the story of an illiterate young man, Danny Bearden. In 1980, he was sentenced to three years of probation in connection to a burglary charge. He was ordered to pay $750 in fines and restitution, $200 of which was due immediately. Possessing only a high school education, Danny had recently lost his job and was having trouble finding a new one.He borrowed $200 from his parents but was arrested a few months later for owing the court $550. He languished in jail for two years before the Supreme Court’s decision earned him his freedom.12 Bearden challenged the state of Georgia and won. The decision in Bearden v. Georgia ruled that debtors can be incarcerated only if the act of not paying their debt or restitution was “willful.”13War veteran Stephen Papa returned from Iraq poor and homeless. He was able to secure employment, but continued to face further hardship after one night of drunkenness that led to a conviction for property destruction and resisting arrest. He faced fines and court fees of $2,600, of which he was ordered to pay the first $50 at the time of his sentencing. Because Papa fell $25 short, he went to jail for 22 days and lost his job. Rather than allowing him to continue working in order to pay the fine, the judge sent him to jail for being poor.10Page 9Despite this ruling, poor people have continued to be jailed for not paying their debts — and the trend is increasing. Sometimes, if a person is not able to afford the full amount of the fine or debt, they are permitted to make monthly installments. But on top of this, they often also face additional fees linked to privatized probation services.14 When they are unable to pay, they are often placed in jail or prison with additional fines levied. It is an endless and vicious cycle targeting an already victimized sector of the population. In addition, it costs the taxpayer more money to keep people in jail or prison than if they were permitted to remain employed and pay their fine or debt overtime.15Increase in Criminal Fees Figure 1.National Public Radio (NPR), with assistance from New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice and the National Center for State Courts, conducted a year-long, state-by-state investigation into some of the many fines, fees, and court-related costs for which poor people have been charged and jailed. They found that since 2010, 48 states have increased criminal and civil court fees as governments passed on many costs of running the criminal just system onto defendants.A recent United States Department of Justice investigation into the Ferguson Police Department highlights Ferguson as a case in point. The Justice Department’s March 4, 2015 report states of Ferguson:The City budgets for sizeable increases in municipal fines and fees each year, exhorts police and court staff to deliver those revenue increases, and closely monitors whether those increases are achieved. City officials routinely urge Chief Jackson to generate more revenue through enforcement.Page 10Ferguson has allowed its focus on revenue generation to fundamentally compromise the role of Ferguson’s municipal court. The municipal court does not act as a neutral arbiter of the law or a check on unlawful police conduct. Instead, the court primarily uses its judicial authority as the means to compel the payment of fines and fees that advance the City’s financial interests. This has led to court practices that violate the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process and equal protection requirements. The court’s practices also impose unnecessary harm, overwhelmingly on African- American individuals, and run counter to public safety.Most strikingly, the court issues municipal arrest warrants not on the basis of public safety needs, but rather as a routine response to missed court appearances and required fine payments. In 2013 alone, the court issued over 9,000 warrants on cases stemming in large part from minor violations such as parking infractions, traffic tickets, or housing code violations. Jail time would be considered far too harsh a penalty for the great majority of these code violations, yet Ferguson’s municipal court routinely issues warrants for people to be arrested and incarcerated for failing to timely pay related fines and fees.” 16In Ferguson and other cities nationwide, poor and low-income people are facing harsher outcomes linked to their inability to pay fines and debts. When they are unable to pay, they go to jail or prison and accrue additional debt linked to payment for a public defender, room and board during lockup, probation and parole supervision, drug and alcohol abuse treatment, and DNA samples.17 NPR noted that some of these previously free government services are constitutionally required, like the right to a public defender. In addition, technology, such as electronic monitors, aimed at helping defendants avoid jail time, is available only to those who can afford to pay for it.The NPR investigation built on a 2010 Brennan Center report on the 15 states with the largest prison populations, which found that each of them had a practice of arresting people because they were unable to pay fines, fees, debts or because they did not attend hearings about these debts.18the corporate 'press' exasperates the situation by printing that the "subject" has a 'criminal record' thereby making it appear to the reading public that the "subject" is already a criminal and now deserves whatever 'justice' is in store...Policy Recommendations• The 1983 Bearden v. Georgia Supreme Court ruling protecting defendants from going to jail because they are too poor to pay their fines must be enforced. Before non-payment or under- payment of a court fine or fee is treated as a civil contempt of court charge, it must first be determined by common standards whether or not the person has the ability to pay.• Imprisonment should not be offered as a way of paying down court-imposed debt. If the debt cannot be paid, the fee should not be levied.• States should not be allowed to arrest citizens for criminal justice debt before a debt hearing can take place to determine one’s ability to pay.19Page 11SECTION 2Barriers to Reentry for Returning CitizensBarriers to employment and public services are increasingly affecting a larger sector of the U.S. population due to increasing numbers of arrests and convictions. Upon release, formerly convicted or arrested people face daunting obstacles to reentry into society. Barriers exist that make employment, access to mental health services, housing, childcare, and even access to food assistance prohibitive. Many formerly incarcerated people are not allowed to vote or to serve on a jury.A minor infraction, such as disorderly conduct, may lead to an arrest but not a conviction. This was the case for Precious Daniels, a Detroit healthcare worker who was arrested for disorderly conduct during a political protest. A college graduate, Daniels was released on $50 bail and the misdemeanor charge was eventually dropped. But her record was not cleared, creating problems when she applied for a new job.21Individuals who are arrested and are not convicted sometimes find out only after a background check that they must go through a series of steps to clear their arrest record, a process that is often costly and time consuming, especially for those in need of immediate employment.Barriers to employment are increasingly affecting a larger sector of the U.S. population due to increasing numbers of arrests and convictions. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation“I have worked hard to turn my life around. I have remained clean for nearly eight years, I am succeeding in college, and I continue to share my story in schools, treatment facilities and correctional institutions, yet I have nothing to show for it. .... I have had numerous interviews and sent out more than 200 resumes for jobs which I am more than qualified. I have had denial after denial because of my felony.”—Excerpt from a letter to the Department of Justice by “Jay,” a 30-year-old man who, at age 21, was sentenced to 38 months in prison after losing control of his car after a night of drinking, killing his close friend.20Page 12(FBI), law enforcement authorities have made an estimated quarter of a billion arrests over the last 20 years.22 Approximately 77.7 million citizens are in the FBI’s master criminal database. Simply put, about 1 out of 3 adult citizens can be located in the database, largely for nonviolent offenses.The combined state and federal prison population reached 1,574,741 in 2013, up 7 percent since 2003.23For those who may have committed more serious criminal acts such as robbery or possession of an illegal substance, the consequences can lead to a lifetime of struggle. In many states, the criminal justice system can bar people who have committed these criminal acts from certain positions of employment. For example, in many states, the criminal justice system can bar people from selling houses or cars. In addition, people who have been arrested or convicted of a crime can be denied positions that require a certification or license, such as in the fields of cosmetology, accounting, healthcare, and plumbing. In most states, people with criminal histories cannot become barbers.24Figure 2.The intersectionality of race and class are prominent in the criminal justice system.According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 2011, 1 in every 15 black men and 1 in every 36 Latino men are incarcerated, compared to only 1 in every 106 white men.25 According to the Center for American Progress, one in three black men will go to prison in their lifetime, black and Latino men are four times as likely to be stopped for traffic violations, and black men are twice as likely to be arrested as white people when confronted by police.26An estimated 70 million U.S. adults have arrests or convictions, creating significant barriers to employment when background checks are required during the application process. Indeed, according to the National Employment Law Project, “The likelihood of a callback for an interview for an entry-level position drops off by 50 percent for those applicants with an arrest or conviction history.”27Source: “Facts about People in Prison,” by The Sentencing Project.More than 50 percent of employers say that they would feel very hesitant to hire an employee with a criminal history. Analysis has reflected that men with arrest records, even without conviction, earn lower salaries upon employment. Of the nearly 70 percent of employers who conduct background checks, barely half give applicants a chance to explain their prior arrests.28 For Latino and black men, the prospects are even worse. In “The Mark of a Criminal Record,” Devah Pager, a Sociology Professor at Harvard University, found that employers are more likely to hire a white male returning citizen than a black or Latino male with a clean record.The High National Cost of Barriers to EmploymentThe Center for American Progress found that the employment rate dropped in 2008 because 1.7 million workers were ineligible for employment due to criminal records.29 If the formerly incarceated population and people with criminal histories had access to employment, they could make substantial economic contributions to their communities. The nation would see increased earnings that would result in a higher tax base coupled with reduced recidivism linked to employment. It costs more than $80 billion annually to maintain the U.S. prison system, and unemployment for those with criminal records reduces GDP by as much as $65 billion per year.30Figure 3.Beyond Unemployment: Barriers to Immediate NeedsAccording to a report issued in 2012, 95 percent of the population in jail or prison will be released back to the community. For many of these ex-offenders or those arrested or not convicted, reentry into the community can be daunting.31 Upon reentry into society, those releasedfrom jail are faced with multiple needs, including housing, employment, and childcare. In addition, many are released with physical and mental health issues and about 75 percent have histories of substance abuse. Those convicted of crimes face a multitude of collateral consequences in which they are barred from housing and other public benefits.32The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) reports that collateral consequences, or an extra set of punishments, are placed on individuals with criminal convictions. According to a study funded by NIJ and conducted by the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Criminal Justice Section, the ABA has documented over 38,000 collateral consequence statutes nationwide. These statutes place an abundance of roadblocks on those convicted of criminal offenses, including barriers to housing, employment, voting, and many public benefits. Interestingly, the ABA noted that of the 38,000 statutes, 80 percent can be used to deny employment.33 Individuals trying to reenter society after arrest or incarceration typically need access to basic health, mental health, housing, and substance abuse and food assistance. Due to criminal records, they find themselves ineligible for the safety net services they need to survive.34Almost 75 percent of returning citizens have histories of drug and alcohol abuse. The wait list for substance abuse programs is usually prohibitively long and returning citizens do not get the substance abuse assistance necessary for successful reentry. Access to income supports such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and nutrition supports such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for people with drug convictions are conditional upon completing substance abuse programs.35Page 14Additionally, we have a crisis in our local jails. Annual admissions have doubled in the past 20 years to almost 12 million people.36 Most alarming is the lesser-known fact that out of the 733,000 people held in local jails at this time, three-fifths of them have not been convicted and many are there simply because they are too poor to post even a small bail while they await processing of their cases.37Finally, returning citizens often have little or no work experience, no more than a high school education, insufficient social and family support, and are denied the right to vote. All of these factors make reintegration into society far more challenging that it needs to be.Policy RecommendationsBan the Box and Fair Chance Policies:38In 2004, a group of formerly incarcerated people in the Bay Area, All of Us or None, began a campaign to dismantle structural discrimination in the job application and hiring process. Dubbed the Ban the Box campaign, it seeks to end the practice of requiring job- seekers to check a box on application forms indicating prior arrests or convictions. Legal advocates at The Southern Coalition for Social Justice and other activist and research organizations such as Jobs with Justice39 and the National Employment Law Project40 have worked nationally to launch this campaign and to institute related Fair Chance Policies, “best practices” models for any state, city, or region under this banner. These best practices suggest ways in which public employers can eliminate barriers to job applicants with criminal histories. It includes “banning the box” and provides appropriate language use, model policies, and provisions for applicants to provide supporting evidence of treatment and rehabilitation. It calls for these Fair Chance Policies to be expanded to private sector employers as well. As of February 2015, 14 states and dozens of municipalities had passed some version of “ban the box” legislation, and some corporations, including Target and Home Depot, have now stopped asking about criminal records in the initial stages of the job application process.41• The Second Chance Reauthorization Act:42 This legislation would reauthorize and improve the Second Chance Act of 2008. The bill outlines some paths for removing barriers to reentry. It calls for programs promoting family-based substance abuse treatment, community supports for reintegration, and career training. It relies on best practices proven effective for more successful reentry and less recidivism.• Expand “Forgive or Forget:” There are two procedural protections which people with convictions may be afforded, known as Forgive or Forget. First, a criminal record may be expunged or sealed. Second, a record can be forgiven with a Certificate of Release which can relieve some of the collateral consequences of convictions. The eligibility requirements for these protections should be expanded to serve more people and to apply to more types of convictions.43• Subsidize Legal Services: There is a strong need for additional legal aid to help people with criminal records overcome barriers to employment and obtain necessary services. According to Attorney Daryl Atkinson at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice,44 access to these services could be mandated or provisions could be made for federal and state grants to provide pro- bono legal assistance.Page 15SECTION 3Probation ProfiteeringPrivate companies are profiting off the expanded number of people in the criminal justice system by charging fees for supervision and other costs related to probation. If the people under probation cannot pay, they often face jail time.45The Good Intentions Behind ProbationThe state of Georgia exemplifies the growing problem of the effects of privatizing probation. An article in the February 2015 edition of The Atlantic describes the practices in Georgia which have changed the justice system in that state into another form of debtor’s prison. The incentivized system makes money by charging as many people as possible to keep them out of jail. Public officials in Georgia don’t protect people too poor to pay the fines and fees from being imprisoned. In 2012, the Georgia private probation giant, Sentinel, is estimated to have relied on the money obtained through this predatory fine and fee practice for at least 40 percent of its revenue.47 This practice is not confined to Georgia, but Georgia is instructional for how many poor people can be swept into this model.48After shoplifting a can of beer in 2012, Tom Barrett was fined $200 and sentenced to 12 months probation. But the price tagfor probation services was so high, Barrett couldn’t pay and wound up in jail. These costs included: $12 per day for an alcohol monitoring device, a $50 set-up fee, and a $39 monthly fee to a private probation company. In addition, Barrett did not have a public defender because he could not afford a $50 fee. After two months, his Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor offered to help him start paying for his probation services and he was released. But as the probation costs mounted, Barrett had trouble paying his bills and he was called back to court. This time an attorney challenged the fees and he was able to avoid jail time. But the debts continued to make it difficult for Barrett to deal with his addiction problem and get back on his feet.46Page 16When adults commit misdemeanors or minor offenses, courts sentence adults to live in the community under supervision49 for a fixed period of time referred to as probation. Under active supervision, probationers report regularly to a probation officer either in person or by mail or phone to ensure they are meeting the court’s predetermined benchmarks for good behavior while continuing to live in the community. Some probationers meet with probation officers solely because they have to pay fines and court ordered fees. If probationers fail to pay these fees or do not follow the court’s rules of conduct, they can face jail time.The number of probationers has ballooned over the past decades: State courts sentenced 816,525 adults to probation in 1977, 3,826,209 in 2000, and more than 4 million in 2010.50 As the number of probationers increased, states started using a lower percentage of their budgets to fund probation programs. State funding for probation services has decreased as well, so state courts have increasingly turned to private corporations to provide probation services.51Figure 4.Shifting Costs of ProbationAccording to Human Rights Watch, state-run probation services are no longer providing the needed supervision over misdemeanor cases, leaving it up to local officials to establish ways to supervise their probationers.52 These local officials are increasingly turning the task over to private probation companies. In fact, local jurisdictions see this shift as a win-win for both parties.There is no cost to the taxpayer, since the private probation companies do not charge the local jurisdictions any fees. The cost of the service is passed onto the probationer in the form of monthly supervisory fees. When the probationer cannot afford the cost to be supervised, he or she can face jail time. It is a vicious cycle. Once a person is released from jail, he is placed on probation, accruing additional supervisory fees imposed by the private probation companies. In fact, probationers usually end up paying more in additional fees than the actual debt they owe for the crime committed.53Source: “Facts about People in Prison,” by The Sentencing Project.What exacerbates this cycle is that the poor people who are most affected by the probation system are not aware of their rights: namely, that it is unconstitutional to be sent to jail for the inability to pay a fee or debt. Without a lawyer present because of the misdemeanor charge, these defendants are not offered an explanation of their options and are not aware of the consequences of choosing probation over jail time.54 Many states fail in oversight of allowing probationers to be sent back to jail simply for being unable to keep up the costs associated with their probation.55Further, the Human Rights Watch report discussed how the fee structures established by these probation companies are discriminatory against offenders who are poor. Inherently, those who are least able to afford the fees are faced with the greatest financial burden. If an offender is financially secure, he or she is able to pay fines and fees associated with the probation and are knowledgeable of rights by virtue of being able to afford a private lawyer. The report noted, “In fact, the business of many private probation companies is built largely on the willingness of courts to discriminate against poor offenders who can only afford to pay their fines in installments over time.”56The rise in private probation companies and offender-funded probation services began to gain traction in the 1970s. Florida opened its first private probation firm in 1975, and in 1976 it passed a law authorizing other state-approved entities to provide probation services. In 1989, Tennessee and Missouri passed state laws that legally allowed private entities to provide probation services.57 Since then, private probation companies have expanded their services to more than 25 states throughout the United States, including Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Colorado, Utah, Washington, Missouri, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, California, New Hampshire, Oregon, Texas, New Mexico, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Delaware, Connecticut, Nevada, Indiana, and Idaho. In addition, at least 44 states offer offender-funded probation services.58Most studies on offender-funded probation services conclude that this practice only extends probationers’ entanglement with the criminal justice system.59“Individuals stay enmeshed in the criminal justice system for longer and face incarceration for longer—not for new crimes, but for technical violations of probation conditions, including payment conditions...Extending probation for a failure to pay off criminal justice debt makes future interaction with the criminal justice system more likely...”60When probationers do not pay their fees on time, they breach their probation contract, which further limits their ability to end their probation time. Federal law disqualifies offenders in breach of their probation contract from a range of social security benefits, including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program (SNAP), and Supplemental Security Income for the elderly and disabled.61 In some states, these offenders may even lose their driving privileges and right to vote. These added stressors only prolong the probation period and often land probationers in jail. Of course, this is especially true for people who live in poverty.Page 18Policy RecommendationsHuman Rights Watch made more than 20 policy prescriptions that, if implemented, would help safeguard the rights of probationers. The following is a summary of the most important recommendations in the HRW report:• State and federal courts should make sure that probation companies uphold probationers’ rights by adhering to the rights upheld in the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1983 ruling in Bearden v. Georgia.• Legislation should ensure that local courts, not probation companies, determine whether an offender has the means to pay their fines and debt.• Local courts should hold private probation companies to high standards by: ensuring that the private probation companies publish information regarding their yearly revenue, including a breakdown of fees collected from each probationer during a fiscal year; and requiring the private probation companies to record the number of arrest warrants they issue each year and the cause for each arrest.62Page 19SECTION 4School-to-Prison PipelineThe vicious cycle of criminalization of poverty often starts very early in poor people’s lives. Poor black and Latino schoolchildren are much more likely to face harsh disciplinary measures that can place them on a track into the criminal justice system.Across the country there is a growing epidemic of armed police officers arresting juveniles at schools for minor infractions and misbehavior. According to one complaint lodged by a resident from Louisiana with the U.S. Department of Justice, police have unlimited authority to detain, frisk, and arrest schoolchildren. A parent sends their child to school to learn. A parent does not send their child to school with the expectation of the child being arrested on or off school grounds for minor misbehavior infractions. A school is supposed to be a safety net to aid in the improvement of the lives of children, not to support the violation of this safety net. In some states, police officers are permanent fixtures on school grounds.63School-to-Prison Pipeline EffectThe ACLU defines the school-to-prison pipeline as “... policies and practices that push our nation’s schoolchildren, especially our most at-risk children, out of classrooms and into the juvenile and criminal justice system. This pipeline reflects the prioritization of incarceration over education.” This policy continues to place priority on excessive penalization of student behavior over education, especially for certain sectors of society.64“One of the first things I saw was a huge differential in minority students, black male students in particular, in terms of suspensions and arrests,” says [Robert Runcie, the Superintendent of Florida’s Broward County Public Schools.] Black students made up two-thirds of all suspensions during the 2011- 2012 school year despite comprising only 40 percent of the student body. And while there were 15,000 serious incidents like assaults and drug possession reported that year, 85 percent of all 82,000 suspensions were for minor incidents—use of profanity, disruptions of class—and 71 percent of all 1,000-plus arrests were for misdemeanors. The last statistic, says Runcie, “was a huge red flag.” -Excerpted from “Reversing Broward County’s School-to-Prison Pipeline,” by Bryce Wilson Stucki in The American Prospect, December 4, 2013 issue.Page 20The ACLU identified five factors that influence whether a student has a greater chance of being incarcerated: failing public schools, zero-tolerance and other school discipline concerns, policing school hallways, court involvement and juvenile detention, and disciplinary alternative schools. This approach to education produces adverse effects on students that may last a lifetime.65 Although students and teachers are affected in unsafe schools, actions such as expulsion and arrest do not make schools any safer. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), the above practices do more harm to academic achievement for all students. In addition, the APA stressed that those excluded will be “... held back, drop out, and become involved with the juvenile and criminal justice systems.” The APA noted that the school discipline rate has doubled since the 1970s.66The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s 2014 Kids Count Data Book reports that not only was there an uptick in child poverty since the recession,67 but also that evidence suggests school districts and individual schools are becoming increasingly segregated as poverty and wealth become more residentially concentrated.68 This reality may decrease the likelihood that low-income and poor children will encounter educational opportunities in schools where the pipeline is absent.A nationwide study by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights found that students from two groups are disproportionately represented in the pipeline: racial minorities and children with disabilities. According to the report, black students are 3.5 times more likely to be suspended or expelled over their white peers. Whereas black students represent only 16 percent of the student population nationwide, they make up approximately 32-42 percent of students who are suspended or expelled.69Page 21The infographic below, reprinted from The Advancement Project,70 tells the story of many of the ways the school-to-prison pipeline acts to criminalize poor youth and youth of color.Figure 5.Page 22Policy RecommendationsVarious governmental agencies and nongovernmental organizations are working to reform K-12 education and reverse the effects of the school-to- prison pipeline. The U.S. Department of Justice and Education’s Supportive School Discipline Initiative targets the detrimental disciplinary policies that drive at-risk youth toward the criminal justice system. The initiative consists of four components:• Building consensus for action among federal, state, and local education and justice stakeholders • Collaborating on research and data collection needed to shape policy, such as evaluations of alternative disciplinary policies and interventions• Developing guidance to ensure school discipline policies and practices are in line with the federal civil rights laws• Promoting awareness and knowledge about evidence-based and promising policies and practices71SECTION 5The Criminalization of HomelessnessWith high poverty rates and the increase in targeting poor people with fines, fees, and arrests, there has also been a rise in homelessness in some states. On any given night, an estimated 600,000 people in this country are homeless. Arguably the worst economic hardship, homelessness is also increasingly treated as criminal behavior. Homeless people — and even those assisting homeless people — are being targeted by the criminal justice system.72The Hardships of Being HomelessWhat if you could not sit down, eat, sleep, stand, place a few possessions, or perform necessary human functions without fear of being locked up? This is the harsh reality facing a growing number of homeless people in the United States. People without homes are increasingly targeted, criminalized, and arrested for nothing other than being people with unavoidable human behaviors and nowhere to perform them privately.The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty (NLCHP) recently published a comprehensive report on the national homelessness crisis. The report focused on the growing ways in which the mere act of being without a home is considered a criminal act in a number of cities nationwide. No Safe Place examined policies pertaining to the criminalization of homeless in nearly 200 cities across the nation. Researchers at the center found that the criminalization of life-sustaining activities is increasing at alarming rates. Furthermore, these punitive policies are not only ineffective, but costly to taxpayers.“I’m 53 years old and I’m half-crippled, so no one wants to give you a job.”Franklin, a homeless veteran, is unsuccessfully looking for work every morning. Franklin lives in the woods off a highway in South Florida. Choking up, tells the reporter: “Sleeping out here with the sand and the bugs, man, it’s real tough.” To survive, he resorts to asking for money. He has received four tickets so far for standing on an exit ramp asking for money. Franklin says he managed to pay the other three citations from money he asked for on the street, but he didn’t think he could get the $64.50 required by this citation. He pulls in an average of $10 per day. He said he’s got to pay it. “It’s either that or jail, which, I’m probably going to wind up in jail.”73Page 23Why are people homeless?• 76 percent ban begging in defined public spaces74• A majority of cities — 53 percent — prohibit sitting or lying down in defined public spaces75• 43 percent of cities have made it illegal to sleep in vehicles76Just as poverty is caused by a lack of money, homelessness is caused by the lack of affordable housing. Since the 1970s, federal funding for affordable housing has been on the decline. Almost 13 percent of our nation’s affordable housing has been permanently lost since 2001, according to NLCHP’s report. In the wake of the recession and the foreclosure crisis of 2009, there are more low-income renters without homes as well as a decreasing number of beds in emergency shelters in major cities.The National Low-Income Housing Coalition (NLICH) has calculated a housing wage, defined as “... The hourly wage a full-time worker must earn to afford a decent two-bedroom rental home at HUD- estimated Fair Market Rent while spending no more than 30 percent of income on housing costs.”77The NLICH’s recent report Out of Reach finds that, “In the United States, the 2014 two-bedroom Housing Wage is $18.92. This national average is more than two-and-a-half times the federal minimum wage and 52 percent higher than it was in 2000. In no state can a full-time minimum wage worker afford a one-bedroom or a two-bedroom rental unit at Fair Market Rent.”78Criminalization of Necessary Human ActivitiesDespite the lack of affordable housing, many U.S. cities have criminalized life-sustaining activities, such as sleeping, sheltering, sitting, asking for help, sharing food, and even resting. According to NLCHP:• 34 percent of cities prohibit public camping (i.e., creating some type of shelter from the elements) and 57 percent apply this ban in defined public spaces.• 18 percent prohibit public sleeping citywide and a third prohibit it in defined public spaces.• 24 percent ban begging citywide and 76 illegal to share food with a homeless person.To enforce these draconian rules, police conduct sweeps of areas where homeless people live, confiscating shelter, clothing, and even medication.79Homeless Children and Unaccompanied YouthAmong our nation’s homeless population are an increasing number of children. From 2012 to 2013, the Unites States experienced an eight percent increase nationwide in the number of homeless children, according to a National Center on Family Homelessness report America’s Youngest Outcasts. The report found that homelessness among children in the United States is at a historic high. Two and a half million children are now homeless each year: one in every 30 children in the US.80 Figure 6.Unaccompanied youth ages 12 to 17 who are living alone on the streets are criminalized even further than homeless adults and accompanied children. Approaches used to address the needs of unaccompanied youth without homes tend to be punitive rather than service-based.In addition, some cities have curfew laws that particularly impact unaccompanied homeless youth.81Policy Recommendations (drawn from the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty and the National Center on Family Homelessness at American Institutes for Research):82• The federal government should invest in affordable housing at the scale necessary to end and prevent homelessness.• State governments should enact and enforce the Homeless Bill of Rights legislation that explicitly prohibits the criminalization of homelessness.• Local governments should stop criminalizing homelessness and focus on creating education and employment opportunities.• All homeless families should receive a comprehensive needs assessments and access to family- oriented services that incorporate trauma-informed care, mental health care, and parenting support.Page 25To improve the lives and opportunities of unaccompanied youth, officials should:• Eliminate curfew laws.• Exempt runaway youth from “Child in Need of Services” statutes that do not provideappropriate services.• Limit the circumstances under which runaway youth can be taken into custody, set very brieftime limits for such custody, and prohibit housing of runaway youth with delinquent youth or adults.Provide opportunities for young people to avoid court involvement, through diversion programs, counseling, treatment, family mediation, housing assistance, and other services, as well as adequate time to meet treatment goals.• De-classify running away and truancy as status offenses. Assign responsibility for the care and support of runaway youth to the social service system rather than the juvenile justice system and prohibit housing runaway youth in secure detention facilities.Page 26SECTION 6Confiscating Poor People's Property through Civil Asset ForfeitureEven if people who lack sufficient resources for a decent standard of living are able to find employment, pay parking tickets, keep a roof over their heads, and find a safe school for their kids, a little-known but widespread practice called Civil Asset Forfeiture can wreak havoc on their lives. Law enforcement officials use this legal tool to confiscate property that they assert has been involved in certain criminal activity — even if the owner of the property is innocent.According to a study by the Institute for Justice, under current “civil asset forfeiture” laws, police officers and prosecutors can seize someone’s private property, like a car or a home, without a warrant, conviction, or charges of committing a crime. In most states, law enforcement relies solely on reasonable suspicion that the property was used during the commission of a crime. Federal, state, and local police departments liquidate the assets they have seized and can use the proceeds to fund their departmental budgets and operations.• Under current Civil Asset Forfeiture laws, your property is guilty until you prove it innocent; the owner’s innocence does not prove the property’s innocence.• The burden to prove the property’s innocence, including legal fees and time, falls on the owner, regardless of if they are innocent or guilty.Page 27Nelly Moreira from Washington, DC used her 2005 Honda Accord to get to her three jobs. In March 2012, Moreira’s son was pulled over for a minor traffic stop while driving her car. The stop turned into a pat down, which resulted in authorities finding a handgun on him. He was arrested, and the police seized the car. After she borrowed enough money to pay the $1,020 bond fee, Moreira was still denied access to her car. The bond fee was only the cost of starting the process of recovering her property from the state government. Moreira spent a year in a legal battle to free her impounded vehicle, while struggling to make car payments.83• A piece of property does not share the constitutional rights of a person. There is no right to due process and, in most states, no presumption of guilty until proven innocent.The ACLU reports that civil asset forfeiture practices are riddled with racial profiling and disproportionately impact low-income black or Latino groups. In general, law enforcement practices fuel racial inequalities in the criminal justice system by systematically targeting people of color.84Over the years, the Drug Enforcement Administration has helped train police to profile highway travelers for potential drug couriers. “This profile is based on associating people of color with crime, creating a phenomenon known as “driving while black or brown,” reports the ACLU. Similarly, in urban areas, young minorities are routinely stopped and frisked — which is perfectly legal after a Supreme Court ruling stated that police only need a reasonable cause for suspicion to stop and search individuals. A very clear incentive exists for police departments to engage in racial profiling.• Police departments are increasingly dependent on revenue from civil asset forfeitures for regular operational costs. “By targeting minority communities whose voices and political power are marginalized, law enforcement agencies can exploit the power of forfeiture without many Americans ever learning of the practice.”85• As reported by Sarah Stillman in the New Yorker, civil asset forfeitures are overwhelmingly targeted to low-income people. She reports that most asset and cash seizures are usually small amounts from people who may not be entitled to a public defender and have trouble affording a lawyer. This makes getting their property back almost infeasible given the high financial burden of seeking legal council, which is often more expensive than the value of the property seized.86• The Justice Department explicitly bans racial profiling in civil asset forfeitures, but in 400 federal court cases examined by The Washington Post where people who challenged their asset seizures won money back, the majority were either black, Hispanic or another minority.87By allowing law enforcement to use seized property to cushion their department’s budgets, law enforcement has a dangerous incentive to take property. According to the Institute for Justice, “The report finds that by giving law enforcement a direct financial stake in forfeiture efforts, most state and federal laws encourage policing for-profit, not justice.” In addition, the Department of Justice has shared over $4.5 billion88 in forfeited assets with more than 8,000 state and local law enforcement agencies.89U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. ended the U.S. Department of Justice’s Equitable Sharing program, which provided a loophole to circumvent state law and make civil asset seizures easier for local and state police departments. Equitable Sharing enabled local and state police to make civil asset seizures and then have them “adopted” by Federal agencies, which share in the proceeds of asset seizures.90Page 28Holder’s move won’t end abuses entirely because civil asset forfeiture is currently legal to varying degrees in all 50 states, but it will prohibit local police agencies from circumventing state laws. Holder’s reforms only curb the Federal government’s role in civil asset forfeitures.91Policy Recommendation:• Civil asset forfeiture should be ended in all 50 states. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, civil asset forfeiture is a threat to civil liberties and property rights, and state and federal civil asset forfeiture laws should be reformed.92Page 29CONCLUSIONWith the explosion in protests ignited by the police killing of an unarmed young black man in Ferguson, Missouri, some aspects of the criminalization of poverty are getting increased attention. More people’s eyes were opened to the reality that if you are poor, you are more likely to be arrested, jailed, and even killed.The Ferguson and St. Louis stories and the 2014/2015 Department of Justice investigation of the Ferguson Police Department and municipal court94 also helped expose the increase in court fines and fees targeting the poor. According to an NPR investigation, the city of Ferguson collected $2.6 million in such fines and fees in 2013, most of them for traffic violations and other low-level offenses. This collection of fines and fees was Ferguson’s second-largest source of income.95We need to build on the momentum of the Ferguson protests to tackle the intersections of poverty, race, and gender bias that collude to make life exceptionally difficult for the 15 percent of our population living in poverty, the additional 2.3 million incarcerated, and the tens of millions more living close to the edge of poverty.The U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the Ferguson Police Department revealed deeply flawed criminal justice system that disproportionately affects people of color and low-income people. Ferguson is but a microcosm of a broken criminal justice system nationwide. At the federal, state, and municipal levels, we must address and find ways to correct the findings of significant injustices found in the investigation.We are a nation that has turned its welfare system into a criminal system. We criminalize life-sustaining activities of people too poor to afford shelter. We incarcerate more people than any other nation in the world.96 And we institute policies that virtually bar them for life from participating in society once they have done their time. We have allowed the resurgence of debtors’ prisons. We’ve created a second- tier public education system for poor children and black and Latino children that disproportionally criminalizes their behavior and sets them early onto the path of incarceration and lack of access to assistance and opportunity.“Just over a year ago, Tonya DeBerry was driving her 4-year-old grandson in her daughter-in-law's car. A St. Louis County police officer saw that the license plates were expired and pulled her over. He ran a background check and saw an arrest warrant for multiple unpaid traffic tickets in Ferguson. Among those old violations were tickets for driving with a suspended license — lost for earlier unpaid tickets — and driving with no registration, insurance or proof of inspection.DeBerry was arrested and handcuffed in front of her grandson. After someone came to pick up the boy, she was taken to jail. ‘Just traffic tickets. No criminal act. Nothing," says DeBerry, 52, who doesn't work and depends on a disability check and food stamps. "If you have the money, you would never go through that type of situation. If you don't have the money, it's jail, jail.’”

Do you realize how many deaths there could have been?Also, do you even know what and when Trump acted? Here's a little refresher for you.Here's the Timeline of the Trump Administration's Response to the Wuhan CoronavirusBeth Baumann | Apr 13, 2020 8:00 PMSource: AP Photo/Alex BrandonThe Trump campaign on Monday released a timeline of the Trump administration's response to the Wuhan coronavirus. Below is the timeline of events around the world and throughout the United States. Prominent decisions and actions are bolded.DECEMBER:December 31: China reports the discovery of the coronavirus to the World Health Organization.JANUARY:January 3: CDC Director Robert Redfield sent an email to the director of the Chinese CDC, George Gao, formally offering to send U.S. experts to China to investigate the coronavirus.January 5: CDC Director Redfield sent another email to the Chinese CDC Director, George Gao, formally offering to send U.S. experts to China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak,January 6: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a travel notice for Wuhan, China due to the spreading coronavirus.January 7: The CDC established a coronavirus incident management system to better share and respond to information about the virus.January 11: The CDC issued a Level I travel health notice for Wuhan, China.January 17: The CDC began implementing public health entry screening at the 3 U.S. airports that received the most travelers from Wuhan – San Francisco, New York JFK, and Los Angeles.January 20: Dr. Fauci announces the National Institutes of Health is already working on the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus.January 21: The CDC activated its emergency operations center to provide ongoing support to the coronavirus response.January 23: The CDC sought a “special emergency authorization” from the FDA to allow states to use its newly developed coronavirus test.January 27: President Trump tweeted that he made an offer to President Xi Jinping to send experts to China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak.January 27: The CDC issued a level III travel health notice urging Americans to avoid all nonessential travel to China due to the coronavirus.January 27: The White House Coronavirus Task Force started meeting to help monitor and contain the spread of the virus and provide updates to the President.January 29: The White House announced the formation of the Coronavirus Task Force to help monitor and contain the spread of the virus and provide updates to the President.January 31: The Trump Administration:Declared the coronavirus a public health emergency.Announced Chinese travel restrictions.Suspended entry into the United States for foreign nationals who pose a risk of transmitting the coronavirus.January 31: The Department of Homeland Security took critical steps to funnel all flights from China into just 7 domestic U.S. airports.FEBRUARY:February 3: The CDC had a team ready to travel to China to obtain critical information on the novel coronavirus, but were in the U.S. awaiting permission to enter by the Chinese government.February 4: President Trump vowed in his State of the Union Address to “take all necessary steps” to protect Americans from the coronavirus.February 6: The CDC began shipping CDC-Developed test kits for the 2019 Novel Coronavirus to U.S. and international labs.February 7: President Trump told reporters that the CDC is working with China on the coronavirus.February 9: The White House Coronavirus Task Force briefed governors from across the nation at the National Governors’ Association Meeting in Washington.February 11: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) expanded a partnership with Janssen Research & Development to “expedite the development” of a coronavirus vaccine.February 12: The U.S. shipped test kits for the 2019 novel coronavirus to approximately 30 countries who lacked the necessary reagents and other materials.February 12: The CDC was prepared to travel to China but had yet to receive permission from the Chinese government.February 14: The CDC began working with five labs to conduct “community-based influenza surveillance” to study and detect the spread of coronavirus.February 18: HHS announced it would engage with Sanofi Pasteur in an effort to quickly develop a coronavirus vaccine and to develop treatment for coronavirus infections.February 22: A WHO team of international experts arrives in Wuhan, China.February 24: The Trump Administration sent a letter to Congress requesting at least $2.5 billion to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.February 26: President Trump discussed coronavirus containment efforts with Indian PM Modi and updated the press on his Administration’s containment efforts in the U.S. during his state visit to India.February 29: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowed certified labs to develop and begin testing coronavirus testing kits while reviewing pending applications.February 29: The Trump Administration:Announced a level 4 travel advisory to areas of Italy and South Korea.Barred all travel to Iran.Barred the entry of foreign citizens who visited Iran in the last 14 days.MARCH:March 3: The CDC lifted federal restrictions on coronavirus testing to allow any American to be tested for coronavirus, “subject to doctor’s orders.”March 3: The White House announced President Trump donated his fourth-quarter salary to fight the coronavirus.March 4: The Trump Administration announced the purchase of approximately 500 million N95 respirators over the next 18 months to respond to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.March 4: Secretary Azar announced that HHS was transferring $35 million to the CDC to help state and local communities that have been impacted most by the coronavirus.March 6: President Trump signed an $8.3 billion bill to fight the coronavirus outbreak.The bill provides $7.76 billion to federal, state, & local agencies to combat the coronavirus and authorizes an additional $500 million in waivers for Medicare telehealth restrictions.March 9: President Trump called on Congress to pass a payroll tax cut over coronavirus.March 10: President Trump and VP Pence met with top health insurance companies and secured a commitment to waive co-pays for coronavirus testing.March 11: President Trump:Announced travel restrictions on foreigners who had visited Europe in the last 14 days.Directed the Small Business Administration to issue low-interest loans to affected small businesses and called on Congress to increase this fund by $50 billion.Directed the Treasury Department to defer tax payments for affected individuals & businesses, & provide $200 billion in “additional liquidity.”Met with American bankers at the White House to discuss coronavirus.March 13: President Trump declared a national emergency in order to access $42 billion in existing funds to combat the coronavirus.March 13: President Trump announced:Public-private partnerships to open up drive-through testing collection sites.A pause on interest payments on federal student loans.An order to the Department of Energy to purchase oil for the strategic petroleum reserve.March 13: The Food & Drug Administration:Granted Roche AG an emergency approval for automated coronavirus testing kits.Issued an emergency approval to Thermo Fisher for a coronavirus test within 24 hours of receiving the request.March 13: HHS announced funding for the development of two new rapid diagnostic tests, which would be able to detect coronavirus in approximately 1 hour.March 14: The Coronavirus Relief Bill passed the House of Representatives.March 14: The Trump Administration announced the European travel ban will extend to the UK and Ireland.March 15: President Trump held a phone call with over two dozen grocery store executives to discuss on-going demand for food and other supplies.March 15: HHS announced it is projected to have 1.9 million COVID-19 tests available in 2,000 labs this week.March 15: Google announced a partnership with the Trump Administration to develop a website dedicated to coronavirus education, prevention, & local resources.March 15: All 50 states were contacted through FEMA to coordinate “federally-supported, state-led efforts” to end coronavirus.March 16: President Trump:Held a teleconference with governors to discuss coronavirus preparedness and response.Participated in a call with G7 leaders who committed to increasing coordination in response to the coronavirus and restoring global economic confidence.Announced that the first potential vaccine for coronavirus has entered a phase one trial in a record amount of time.Announced “15 days to slow the spread” coronavirus guidance.March 16: The FDA announced it was empowering states to authorize tests developed and used by labs in their states.March 16: Asst. Secretary for Health confirmed the availability of 1 million coronavirus tests, and projected 2 million tests available the next week and 5 million the following.March 17: President Trump announced:CMS will expand telehealth benefits for Medicare beneficiaries.Relevant Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act penalties will not be enforced.The Army Corps of Engineers is on ”standby” to assist federal & state governments.March 17: President Trump spoke to fast food executives from Wendy’s, McDonald’s and Burger King to discuss drive-thru services recommended by CDCMarch 17: President Trump met with tourism industry representatives along with industrial supply, retail, and wholesale representatives.March 17: Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin met with lawmakers to discuss stimulus measures to relieve the economic burden of coronavirus on certain industries, businesses, and American workers.March 17: Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced a partnership between USDA, Baylor University, McLane Global, and Pepsi Co. to provide one million meals per weak to rural children in response to widespread school closures.March 17: The Treasury Department:Contributed $10 billion through the economic stabilization fund to the Federal Reserve’s commercial paper funding facility.Deferred $300 billion in tax payments for 90 days without penalty, up to $1 million for individuals & $10 million for business.March 17: The Department of Defense announced it will make available to HHS up to five million respirator masks and 2,000 ventilators.March 18: President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which provides free testing and paid sick leave for workers impacted by the coronavirus.March 18: President Trump announced:Temporary closure of the U.S.-Canada border to non-essential traffic.Plans to invoke the Defense Production Act in order to increase the number of necessary supplies needed to combat coronavirus.FEMA has been activated in every region at its highest level of response.The U.S. Navy will deploy USNS Comfort and USNS Mercy hospital ships.All foreclosures and evictions will be suspended for a period of time.March 18: Secretary of Defense Mark Esper confirmed:1 million masks are now immediately available.The Army Corps of Engineers is in NY consulting on how to best assist state officials.March 18: HHS temporarily suspended a regulation that prevents doctors from practicing across state lines.March 18: President Trump spoke to:Doctors, physicians, and nurses on the front lines containing the spread of coronavirus.130 CEOs of the Business Roundtable to discuss on-going public-private partnerships in response to the coronavirus pandemic.March 19: President Trump announced:Very encouraging progress shown by anti-malaria drug Hydroxychloroquine for fighting coronavirus.Carnival Cruise Lines will make ships available for use as hospitals in impacted areas to use for non-coronavirus patients.March 19: Vice President Pence announced tens of thousands of ventilators have been identified that can be converted to treat patients.March 19: The State Department issued a global level 4 health advisory, telling Americans to avoid all international travel due to coronavirus.March 19: President Trump directed FEMA to take the lead on the Federal Government’s coronavirus response & visited FEMA HQ with Vice President Pence for a video call with Governors.March 20: The U.S. and Mexico agree to mutually restrict nonessential cross-border traffic.March 20: Secretary Mnuchin announced at the direction of President Trump that tax day will be moved from April 15 to July 15 for all taxpayers and businesses.March 20: President Trump:Spoke with Sen. Schumer about coronavirus response & stimulus measuresHeld a call with over 12,000 small business owners to discuss relief effortsAnnounced the CDC will invoke Title 42 to provide border patrol with tools to secure the bordersMarch 20: The Department of Education announced it will:Not enforce standardized testing requirements for the remainder of the school yearAllow federal student loan borrowers to stop payments without penalty for 60 daysMarch 20: Secretary Azar announced:FEMA is coordinating and assisting coronavirus testing at labs across the countryThe CDC is suspending all illegal entries to the country based on the public health threat, via Section 362 of the Public Health & Security ActMarch 20: Secretary Azar sent a letter to all 50 Governors that the federal government is buying and making available 200,000 testing swabsMarch 21: Vice President Pence announced to date over 195,000 Americans tested for coronavirus and have received their resultsMarch 21: The Trump Administration announced HHS placed an order for hundreds of millions of N95 masks through FEMAMarch 21: The FDA announced it had given emergency approval to a new coronavirus test that delivers results in hours, with an intended rollout of March 30March 21: Adm. Giroir confirmed 10 million testing kits had been put into the commercial market from March 2 through March 14March 22: President Trump approved major disaster declarations for:Washington StateCaliforniaMarch 22: President Trump announced:Governors will remain in command of National Guard forces & the federal govt will fund 100% of operations costHe directed the federal govt to provide 4 large federal medical stations with 2,000 beds for CA & 1,000 beds for NY & WA.March 22: President Trump confirmed his administration was working with Peru & Honduras to return Americans stranded in both countries as a result of travel restrictions.March 22: Vice President Pence announced:The testing backlog will be resolved by midweek.To date, over 254,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 22: President Trump announced that the USNS Mercy will be deployed to Los Angeles.March 22: FEMA issued guidance for tribal governments to seek federal assistance under the President’s emergency declaration.March 23: President Trump signed an executive order invoking section 4512 of the Defense Production Act to prohibit the hoarding of vital medical supplies.March 23: VP Pence announced:313,000 Americans were tested for the coronavirus & received results.FEMA established a supply chain stabilization task force so Americans get supplies they need.HHS will have commercial labs prioritize testing for hospitalized patients.March 23: The White House Office of Science & Technology Policy announced a public-private consortium to:Advance coronavirus research.Provide access to computing technology and resources for researchers.March 23: Attorney General Barr announced:The Justice Department held a National Task Force meeting on hoarding and price gouging.Each of the 93 U.S. Attorney General offices is designating a lead prosecutor to prevent hoarding.March 23: President Trump announced HHS is working to designate essential medical supplies as “scarce” to prohibit hoarding of these items.March 23: The Treasury Department announced it is working with the Federal Reserve to lend up to $300 billion to businesses and local governments.March 24: President Trump announced the Army Corps of Engineers & the National Guard are constructing four hospitals and four medical centers in New York.March 24: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for the state of Iowa related to the coronavirus outbreak.March 24: Vice President Pence:Confirmed FEMA sent New York 2,000 ventilators.Announced individuals who have recently been in New York should self-quarantine for 14 days.March 24: Dr. Deborah Birx announced the U.S. has conducted more coronavirus tests in the last week than South Korea has over the prior eight weeks.March 24: The U.S. Army issued orders for three army hospitals to deploy their health care professionals to New York and Washington state, at the direction of Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy.March 25: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the #coronavirus outbreak for:TexasFloridaNorth CarolinaMarch 25: President Trump & Vice President Pence held a conference call with 140 non-profit organization leaders, including The Salvation Army & The Red Cross, to discuss coronavirus response efforts.March 25: President Trump signed a bill reauthorizing The Older Americans Act, which supports senior citizens by providing meals, transportation, and other crucial services.March 25: Vice President PenceHeld a conference call with equipment manufacturers to discuss on-going coronavirus response efforts.Announced 432,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received results.Confirmed 4,000 ventilators were delivered to New York.March 25: Vice President Pence held discussions with multiple governors, including the Governor of Indiana & the Governor of MichiganMarch 26: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:IllinoisNew JerseyMarylandMissouriMarch 26: President Trump announced the USNS Comfort will depart for NYC on Saturday to assist in the coronavirus response – 3 weeks ahead of schedule!March 26: President Trump participated in a video conference with the leaders of the G20 to discuss the global coronavirus response & the need for countries to share information and data on the spread of the virus.March 26: President Trump held a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss the coronavirus.March 26: Vice President Pence announced 552,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 26: Dr. Fauci announced the Federal Government is working with companies to speed up production of potential coronavirus vaccines while those drugs are still in the trial phase.March 27: President Trump signed The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act into law.March 27: President Trump signed a Defense Production Act memorandum ordering General Motors (GM) "to accept, perform, and prioritize federal contractors for ventilators.March 27: President Trump signed an executive order allowing the military to activate members of the Selected Reserve and Ready Reserve to active duty to assist with the Federal response to the coronavirus.March 27: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:South CarolinaPuerto RicoMarch 27: President Trump appointed Office of Trade and Manufacturing policy director Peter Navarro to serve as the Defense Production Act Policy Coordinator.March 27: President Trump announced that 100,000 ventilators are projected to be manufactured in the next 100 days, three times the amount typically manufactured in one year.March 27: President Trump announced that Boeing offered the use of three "Dreamlifter" cargo air crafts to transport medical supplies across the country.March 27: Partnering with FEMA, the CDC, and the Coronavirus Task Force, Apple released a coronavirus app which allows users to screen for their symptoms.March 27: President Trump spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson about the global coronavirus response and committed to helping provide ventilators to the U.K. where possible.March 27: Vice President Pence announced that 685,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their test results.March 27: Emory University began enrolling participants for a phase one clinical trial, sponsored by the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), of a new, potential coronavirus vaccine.March 27: FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor spoke to the director of each of the state's emergency operations about the state-led, federally-supported coronavirus response effort.March 27: The USNS Mercy arrived in the port of Los Angelse to help relieve the strain on hospital facilities in Southern California.March 28: President Trump visited Norfolk, VA to send off the USNS Comfort to New York City where it will help relieve the strain on local hospitals.March 28: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:GuamMichiganMassachusettsKentuckyColoradoMarch 28: President Trump spoke with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis regarding the coronavirus response effort.March 28: The CDC issued new guidance for residents of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to avoid non-essential domestic travel for 14 days to #StopTheSpread of the coronavirus within the U.S.March 29: President Trump announced that CDC guidelines will be extended through April 30 to promote #socialdistancing and other measures to stop the spread of the #coronavirus.March 29: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:ConnecticutOregonGeorgiaWashington DCMarch 29: President Trump met with supply chain distributors including FedEx, Cardinal Health, and UPS to discuss ways to get state and local governments necessary medical supplies to combat the coronavirus.March 29: President Trump congratulated the Army Corps of Engineers for having completed construction on a 2,900 bedroom temporary hospital at the Javits Center in New York.March 29: President Trump tweeted his support for the FDA to expedite the approval process to approve mask sterilization equipment produced by Battelle.March 29: President Trump announced the on-going study of 1,100 patients in New York being treated with Hydroxychloroquine for coronavirus.March 29: President Trump directed the Treasury & Labor Departments to look at reinstating deductions of business expenses at restaurants, bars, and entertainment businesses to help the hospitality industry.March 29: The first "Project Airbridge" shipment of medical supplies from abroad, organized by FEMA, landed at JFK airport, carrying 80 tons of masks, face shields, and other vital medical supplies.March 29: President Trump announced that Cigna and Humana are waving co-pays for coronavirus treatment.March 29: Vice President Pence sent a letter to hospital administrators requesting that hospitals across the country report their coronavirus data to the Federal Government in addition to state authorities.March 29: Adm. Giroir announced that 894,000 Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 29: HHS accepted 30 million doses of Hydroxychloroquine, donated by Sandoz, and one million doses of Chloroquine, donated by Bayer Pharmaceuticals, for clinical trials and possible treatment of coronavirus patients.March 30: President Trump announced that one million Americans have been tested for coronavirus and received their results.March 30: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:AlabamaKansasPennsylvaniaRhode IslandMarch 30: Secretary Azar announced that the FDA has approved Battelle’s N95 mask sanitization process for use to decontaminate tens of thousands of masks per day.March 30: President Trump announced further private sector commitments to manufacture personal protective equipment by MyPillow, Honeywell, Jockey, Procter & Gamble, and United Technologies.March 30: President Trump announced, to date, FEMA has dedicated $1.3 billion to assist New York State’s coronavirus response.March 30: President Trump announced “more than 14,000” National Guard service members have been activated to respond to the coronavirus outbreak.March 30: President Trump spoke with the nation’s governors about their need for medical supplies.March 30: President Trump announced that in the coming days the Federal Government will be delivering:400 ventilators to Michigan300 ventilators to New Jersey150 ventilators to Louisiana150 ventilators to Illinois50 ventilators to ConnecticutMarch 30: President Trump spoke to Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of Italy and pledged to send $100 million of medical supplies to aid Italy’s battle against coronavirus.March 30: Answering President Trump’s call for the private sector to join the fight against the #coronavirus, Ford Motor Company committed to producing 50,000 ventilators in the next 100 days.March 30: On coronavirus testing, Secretary Azar announced that the U.S. is currently testing nearly 100,000 samples per day.March 30: HHS took steps to accelerate a clinical trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine developed by Janssen Research & Development.March 30: CMS announced new regulatory changes to cut red tape and give flexibility to America’s health care workers by relaxing hospital workforce regulations, expanding child care, meal, and laundry services for health care workers, expanding tele-health reimbursement, and more.March 30: The USNS Comfort arrived in New York Harbor, providing more than 1,000 more hospital beds for patients without coronavirus, to relieve pressure on local hospitals.March 30: The USNS Mercy began treating patients in Los Angeles.March 31: President Trump officially issued “30 Days To Slow The Spread” guidance to mitigate the outbreak of coronavirus.March 31: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:OhioMontanaMarch 31: President Trump participated in a conference call with executives of American Network Service Providers to promote connectivity amid social distancing.March 31: President Trump announced that the federal government is stockpiling 10,000 ventilators to be urgently distributed as needed once the coronavirus pandemic hits its peak in the U.S.March 31: President Trump announced that the Treasury Department and SBA are rapidly mobilizing money from the CARES Act’s $349 billion paycheck protection program, with the program set to be “up and running” by April 3.March 31: President Trump spoke to Michigan Governor Whitmer about the state’s need for ventilators.March 31: President Trump announced the Army Corps of Engineers & FEMA will construct:8 facilities with 50,000 bed capacity in CaliforniaA field hospital with 250 bed capacity in Michigan2 field hospitals in Louisiana with 500 bed capacityAn alternative care sight in New Orleans with a 3,000 bed capacityMarch 31: President Trump spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan about the international effort to defeat the coronavirus and support the global economy.March 31: President Trump and the First Lady spoke with their Majesties King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain about efforts to combat the coronavirus.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 10 states now have access to federal funding for The National Guard to respond to the coronavirus outbreak.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 17,000 National Guard Servicemen have been activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus response.March 31: Vice President Pence announced that 1.1 million coronavirus tests have been completed.March 31: Adm. Giroir & Surgeon General Adams issued an open letter to the U.S. health care community about how to optimize the use of ventilators.March 31: The FDA issued an emergency use authorization for a two-minute coronavirus antibody test developed by Bodysphere Inc.March 31: The Treasury Department and IRS launched the employee retention credit, created by the CARES Act to incentivize businesses to keep their employees on payroll, and said businesses can begin using it.March 31: The VA announced that it had expanded virtual services to veterans, continuing to provide care while limiting in-person interactions that could potentially harm vulnerable populations at VA facilities.APRIL:April 1: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration related to the coronavirus outbreak for:North DakotaHawaiiThe Northern Mariana IslandsApril 1: President Trump spoke to Walmart CEO Doug McMillon about the need to procure gowns for hospitalsApril 1: President Trump spoke to military families whose relocation or reunion with loved ones was impacted by the coronavirus.April 1: President Trump announced that the construction & refurbishing of two additional hospital ships like the USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort are being considered.April 1: Vice President Pence announced that 1.2 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 1: The White House, HHS, and the FDA worked with Senator Rob Portman to acquire and authorize for use over two million gowns donated to the Strategic National Stockpile by Cardinal Health.April 1: Dr. Birx announced that the White House issued a challenge to universities and states to develop ELISA, or Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays, tests to detect coronavirus antibodies in larger communities more quickly.April 1: The Treasury Department released FAQs to help small and medium businesses understand the paid sick and family leave tax credits now offered under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.April 1: The Department of Labor posted a temporary rule to implement the Families First Coronavirus Response Act in order to provide paid sick and family leave.April 1: In New York City, the USNS Comfort began treating its first patients.April 1: The VA opened its East Orange, NJ medical center to serve non-veteran coronavirus patients to assist the state and FEMA in their response to coronavirus.April 1: The Treasury Department announced that Social Security recipients, including senior citizens, disabled Americans, and low-income Americans who do not file tax returns will have their coronavirus relief payments directly deposited into their bank accounts.April 2: President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to direct 3M to produce more N95 respirator masks.April 2: President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to help 6 companies (General Electric, Hill-Rom Holdings, Medtronic, ResMed, eRoyal Philips, and Vyaire Medical) get the supplies they need to make ventilators.April 2: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the #coronavirus outbreak for:VirginiaTennesseeThe U.S. Virgin IslandsApril 2: President Trump discussed the production of ventilators with GM CEO Mary Barra.April 2: President Trump announced that The Javits Center temporary hospital will be converted into a coronavirus hospital.April 2: President Trump announced that the Department of Defense will be establishing 48 more ICU beds in New York.April 2: President Trump announced that the Federal Government will be establishing a coronavirus hospital in Louisiana and Texas.April 2: President Trump took an additional coronavirus test and tested negative.April 2: President Trump ordered the Federal Government to cover the costs of all National Guard operations in states with recently approved disaster declarations.April 2: President Trump sent Senator Chuck Schumer a letter debunking false claims made against the Trump Administration’s coronavirus response.April 2: Secretary Mnuchin and Small Business Administrator Jovita Carranza announced that the Paycheck Protection Program, created by the CARES Act to provide $350 billion in loans to small businesses, will be launched tomorrow.April 2: Secretary Mnuchin announced that the first relief payments will be dispersed within two weeks.April 2: Vice President Pence announced that 1.3 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 2: Vice President Pence announced that all Blue Cross Blue Shield Members will be waiving out of pocket costs for coronavirus treatment.April 2: Rear Adm. Polowczyk announced FEMA’s Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force has delivered:27.1 million surgical masks19.5 N95 million respirator masks22.4 million surgical gloves5.2 million face shieldsOver 7,600 ventilatorsApril 2: First Lady Melania Trump had a phone call with Mrs. Sophie Grégoire Trudeau of Canada, who is recovering from the coronavirus.April 2: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced $25 billion in federal funding to support public transportation systems in response to the coronavirus.April 2: The Department of Justice and HHS distributed 192,000 N95 respirator masks confiscated from price gougers to health care workers in New York and New Jersey.April 2: The FDA approved the first coronavirus antibody test, developed by Cellex.April 2: The FDA issued new guidance to increase the supply of blood donations, reducing the deferral period for gay men from 12 months to 3 months.April 2: The Department of Education donated 5,760 N95 respirator masks discovered in storage to aid the fight against the coronavirus.April 2: Secretary Pompeo announced that the State Department has now brought home 30,000 Americans stranded overseas as a result of coronavirus-related travel restrictions.April 2: April 2: HHS announced it was relaxing enforcement of HIPAA violations to encourage health care providers to share coronavirus data and information with federal and state health care officials.April 2: The Trump Administration issued recommendations to nursing homes to help mitigate the spread of coronavirus.April 2: HUD announced it was immediately making $3 billion of CARES Act funding available to help America’s low-income families and most vulnerable citizens across the nation.April 2: The Energy Department announced it would immediately make 30 million barrels of the strategic petroleum reserve’s (SPR’s) oil storage capacity available to struggling U.S. oil producers.April 3: President Trump announced new voluntary CDC guidelines that all Americans wear non-medical, fabric or cloth face masks to prevent asymptomatic spread of coronavirus.April 3: The President met with energy execs from Phillips 66, Devon Energy, Continental Resources, Hilcorp Energy, Occidental Petroleum, The American Petroleum Institute, The Energy Transfer Partners, Chevron, & Exxon Mobil to discuss coronavirus’ impact on the energy industry.April 3: President Trump spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss convening the five permanent members of the UN Security Council in an effort to defeat the coronavirus and discuss its impact on the world.April 3: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:New HampshireWest VirginiaIndianaArkansasOregonApril 3: President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum blocking the export of N95 and other respirator masks, surgical masks, PPE gloves, and surgical gloves to ensure they are available in the U.S. – designating them as “scarce” under the Defense Production Act.April 3: President Trump announced that Anthem will waive co-pays for coronavirus treatment for 60 days.April 3: President Trump announced that uninsured Americans will have their coronavirus treatment covered, using funding from the CARES Act.April 3: Trump Administration officials spoke to the directors of the two largest health care providers in Louisiana, Ochsner and LCMC Health, to discuss their need for medical supplies.April 3: President Trump directed FEMA to send Ochsner Surgical Gowns.April 3: President Trump announced that 9,000 retired Army medical personnel have volunteered and are assisting the federal response to the coronavirus.April 3: President Trump announced that the DOJ and HHS have together secured:200,000 N95 masks130,000 surgical masks600,000 glovesfrom hoarders and have distributed the supplies to health care workers.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that 1.4 million coronavirus tests have been completed to date.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that 18,000 machines are already available across the country to administer Abbott 15 Minute Coronavirus Tests, with another 1,200 soon to be distributed to states.April 3: Vice President Pence announced that a Project Airbridge flight landed in Columbus, Ohio with medical supplies.April 3: Secretary Azar announced a public-private partnership with Oracle to collect crowd-sourced data on coronavirus therapeutic treatments.April 3: The SBA launched the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, issuing more than 17,500 loans valued at $5.4 billion.April 3: The Army Corps of Engineers is working with states to assess 750 requests for temporary hospital facilities, having completed 673 already.April 3: The FDA announced it would coordinate the national effort to develop blood-related therapies for COVID-19.April 3: The Defense Department’s Joint Acquisition Task Force launched a new portal giving the private sector the ability to submit information and solutions to the DoD.April 3: The State Department announced that they have awarded contracts for 8 new medical facilities, totaling 9,693 new beds.April 3: The Department of Labor issued guidance to help employers reduce their use of N95 respirators, freeing up supply for the coronavirus response.April 3: HUD announced it is making $200 million in Indian housing block grants for Indian Tribes under the CARES Act.April 3: EPA Administrator Wheeler held a call with retailers and marketplace platforms to discuss ways to protect consumers from fake disinfectants.April 3: First Lady Melania Trump held a phone call with Mrs. Brigitte Macron of France to discuss the coronavirus response.April 4: President Trump announced that 1,000 members of the Defense Department’s Medical Corps will be deployed to New York to assist in the fight against coronavirus.April 4: President Trump spoke to commissioners of major league sports organizations including the MLB, NFL, & NBA, recognizing what the leagues, teams, and players are doing in their communities to combat coronavirus.April 4: President Trump tweeted encouragement to American children unable to start their Little League baseball season on time due to coronavirus.April 4: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:NebraskaWisconsinMaineNevadaApril 4: President Trump announced that he was considering a second coronavirus task force focused on the economy.April 4: President Trump urged PM Modi of India to allow Hydroxychloroquine to be shipped to the United States.April 4: President Trump announced that the U.S. government has repatriated over 40,000 Americans from 75 countries.April 4: Vice President Pence spoke to Governors of New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Maryland.April 4: FEMA obligated $44 million to Iowa under the state’s major disaster declaration to combat the coronavirus.April 5: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:South DakotaNew MexicoOklahomaMississippiApril 5: April 5: President Trump announced that by Tuesday, 3,000 military and medical personnel will have deployed to New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to assist in the coronavirus response effort.April 5: President Trump announced that the Trump Administration will be sending New York 600,000 N95 masks tomorrow, including 200,000 to Suffolk County alone.April 5: President Trump announced that the Administration will soon send:300 ventilators to Michigan200 ventilators to Louisiana600 ventilators to Illinois100 ventilators to Massachusetts500 ventilators to New JerseyApril 5: President Trump announced the establishment of a federal coronavirus medical station in Washington D.C.April 5: President Trump announced that Washington has returned 400 ventilators to the strategic national stockpile.April 5: President Trump announced that 1.67 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 5: President Trump announced that the government has stockpiled 29 million doses of HydroxychloroquineApril 5: Dr. Birx announced that testing in the New York metro area, New Jersey, Louisiana, and Washington has exceeded the testing rate of Spain and ItalyApril 5: Adm. Polowczyk announced that three Project Airbridge flights of medical supplies landed across the US today carrying:1 million gowns2.8 million surgical masks11.8 million glovesApril 5: Adm. Polowczyk spoke to top health officials from states severely impacted by the coronavirus to discuss the supply chain.April 5: Secretary Wilkie announced that the VA is making 1,500 beds available at VA hospitals to help states and localities across the country.April 5: Vice President Pence spoke to governors from states severely impacted by the coronavirus, including Michigan, Louisiana, and Illinois.April 5: FEMA and The Army Corps of Engineers completed renovations at the McCormick Place Pavilion in Chicago, providing an additional 500 hospital beds for the cityApril 6: President Trump announced an agreement with 3M to produce and import 55.5 million N95 masks each month for the next three months.April 6: President Trump held a call with CEOs from pharmaceutical and bio-tech companies to discuss potential coronavirus therapeutics.April 6: President Trump had a “very friendly” phone call with former Vice President Joe Biden to discuss the coronavirus.April 6: President Trump announced that 1.79 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 6: President Trump approved Governor Murphy’s request to allow New Jersey patients aboard the USNS Comfort.April 6: President Trump approved Governor Cuomo’s request to allow the treatment of coronavirus patients on the USNS Comfort.April 6: President Trump announced that CVS will open two new drive-thru coronavirus testing sites in Georgia and Rhode Island. Both will use Abbott’s rapid coronavirus test.April 6: President Trump announced that the FDA authorized Inovio’s potential coronavirus vaccine for a clinical trial, wile 10 potential coronavirus therapeutic agents are in “active trials” with another 15 potential therapeutics in plans for clinical trials.April 6: President Trump praised the work of the private sector, including Apple and Salesforce, who have agreed to donate personal protective equipment to help defeat the coronavirus.April 6: President Trump announced that The Army Corps of Engineers is building 22 field hospitals and alternative care sites in 18 states.April 6: President Trump announced that 8,450 hospital beds and 8,000 ventilators have been deployed across the country from federal stockpiles.April 6: Vice President Pence announced that to date $4.1 billion has been allocated to states under federal disaster declarations.April 6: Vice President Pence announced that 21,000 National Guard Servicemen have been activated across the country to assist in the fight against coronavirus.April 6: VP Pence announced that thanks to California’s donation of 500 ventilators, the federal government will send:200 ventilators to MD100 ventilators to DE100 ventilators to NV50 ventilators to DC50 ventilators to Guam & the Northern Mariana IslandsApil 6: The CDC began publishing a new, data-centered coronavirus surveillance report on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).April 6: HHS announced an additional $186 million in CDC funding for state and local jurisdictions combatting the coronavirus.April 6: HHS announced it will be purchasing 15-minute coronavirus tests from Abbott for state, territorial, and tribal labs and for the Strategic National Stockpile.April 6: The Department of Education announced a streamlined process making it easier for states to use federal education funding for distance learning during the coronavirus outbreak.April 7: President Trump participated in a conference call with banking executives to discuss how to best deliver financial aid and technical assistance to small businesses.April 7: President Trump announced the SBA has processed “more than $70 billion” in loans to help small businesses as part of the Paycheck Protection Program.April 7: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Minnesota related to the coronavirus outbreak.April 7: President Trump announced that in addition to the 8,675 ventilators in the strategic national stockpile, the federal government will be acquiring 110,000 ventilators in the next three months to be distributed to states in need.April 7: President Trump announced that 1.87 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 7: President Trump announced his intent to ask Congress for an additional $250 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program to loan to small businesses.April 7: Vice President Pence participated in a conference call with over 500 business owners to discuss their needs amid the coronavirus response effort.April 7: CMS Administrator Verma announced that CMS will make available an additional $30 billion in grants this week for health care organizations with increased operating costs due to the coronavirus.April 7: The State Department announced an additional $225 million in health, humanitarian, and economic assistance to reduce the transmission of the coronavirus around the world.April 7: As part of Project Airbridge, UPS and FEMA began shipments of 25 flights with more than three million pounds of medical supplies.April 7: The Department of Transportation finalized a requirement that airlines who receive assistance under the CARES Act continue flights to destinations they were serving before the outbreak, ensuring commercial flights are available.April 7: The EPA distributed over 1,100 N95 masks to the California Office of Emergency Services.April 8: President Trump spoke to over 10,000 faith leaders & more than 3,000 state, local, and tribal officials to discuss the coronavirus response effort.April 8: Secretary Pompeo announced that since January, over 50,000 Americans have been repatriated by 90 countries in over 480 flights.April 8: Under the DPA, HHS announced a $646.7M contract with Philips to produce 2,500 ventilators for the Strategic National Stockpile by the end of May, and a total of 43,000 by December.April 8: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Vermont related to the coronavirus outbreak.April 8: President Trump announced that a Project Airbridge shipment of protective gowns landed in Dallas, Texas.April 8: President Trump announced that 10 drugs to potentially be used against the coronavirus are currently in clinical trial.April 8: President Trump thanked Indian PM Modi for allowing a shipment of the life-saving drug hydroxychloroquine to be released to the U.S.April 8: Vice President Pence announced:$98B in forgivable loans were disbursed through the Paycheck Protection Program27,000 National Guard service members were activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus responseApril 8: The CDC issued new guidance for how essential and critical workers who have been exposed to the coronavirus can return to work, with precautions.April 8: Four additional flights as part of Project Airbridge landed across the country, delivering PPE and other medical supplies.April 8: Customs and Borders Protection announced with FEMA that it will detain shipments of PPE in order to keep critical medical supplies within the U.S. for domestic use.April 8: HHS announced an agreement with DuPont and FedEx to rapidly manufacture and deliver 2.25M new Tyvek Protective Suits to the Strategic National Stockpile over the next five weeks.April 8: HHS expanded telehealth services for Native Americans through The Indian Health Service.April 8: HHS authorized pharmacists to order and administer coronavirus tests, further expanding the availability of testing.April 8: HHS awarded $1.3B from the CARES Act to 1,387 health centers in all 50 states, 8 territories, and the District of Columbia to fight coronavirus.April 8: CMS issued updated guidance based on CDC guidelines to protect patients and health care workers in hospitals from the coronavirus.April 8: The USDA announced its approval of Arizona's & California’s request for food stamp recipients to purchase food online, allowing these recipients to purchase groceries for delivery.April 8: The VA announced that it has begun using funding from the CARES Act to pay overtime, hire new staff, and purchase supplies including PPE, beds, and pharmaceuticals.April 9: President Trump spoke with mental health advocates from across the country to discuss their work amid the coronavirus outbreak.April 9: President Trump approved major disaster declarations related to the coronavirus outbreak for:AlaskaIdahoApril 9: President Trump announced that 24 Project Airbridge flights have been completed to date, with an additional 49 flights scheduled.April 9: President Trump announced that there are currently 19 potential coronavirus therapies being tested and another 26 potential therapies in active planning for clinical trials.April 9: President Trump announced that, to date, over 2 million coronavirus tests have been completed.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that $125B in Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans has been approved to date.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that a total of 29,000 National Guard service members have been activated across the country to assist in the coronavirus response.April 9: Vice President Pence announced that to date 4,100 military medical personnel have been deployed to New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.April 9: The Treasury Department announced that it extended over 300 tax filing, payment, and administrative deadlines to give relief to taxpayers.April 9: Working with the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve announced new lending programs providing up to $2.3T in loans to businesses and state & local governments.April 9: HHS announced it would relax enforcement of HIPPAA for pharmacies and other organizations that are working at coronavirus testing sites, helping these groups focus on testing.April 9: Secretary of Education DeVos announced that $6.3B in CARES Act funding will be immediately distributed to colleges and universities to provide cash grants to students affected by the coronavirusApril 9: The EPA announced that more than 11,500 pieces of PPE have been transferred to FEMA, which will be later transferred to state and local agencies across New England combating the coronavirus.April 9: The USDA launched the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Program in Michigan, which will help feed children eligible for USDA school lunch programs who are now home during the coronavirus outbreak.April 9: The USDA announced relief for farmers across the country by giving borrowers 12 months to repay marketing assistance loans (MAL), helping protect farmers from being forced to sell crops to make loan payments.April 9: CMS temporarily suspended a number of regulations so that hospitals, clinics, and other health care providers can book the number of staff to confront the coronavirusApril 10: President Trump announced that 60 mask sterilization systems, with the ability to clean over 80,000 masks approximately 20 times, will be sent to 10 cities.April 10: President Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the global coronavirus response and the global energy market.April 10: President Trump announced that a field hospital in Seattle will be leaving, as Washington State’s coronavirus outbreak becomes more manageable.April 10: President Trump announced that his administration is working to bring blood-based serology tests to market “as quickly as possible” so Americans can determine if they have had the coronavirus.April 10: President Trump announced that he will be establishing an “Opening Our Country Council” with more details coming early next week.April 10: President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum to facilitate the supply of medical equipment and other humanitarian relief to Italy.April 10: Dr. Fauci spoke to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon to discuss coronavirus mitigation in those states.April 10: Vice President Pence, CDC Director Redfield, & Surgeon General Adams spoke to over 400 leaders of the African American community, including Jesse Jackson, NAACP representatives, & the National Black Nurses Association to discuss the impact of the coronavirus.April 10: Vice President Pence spoke to Colorado Governor Jared Polis about the specific needs of his state’s battle against the coronavirus.April 10: Vice President Pence announced that more than 2.1M coronavirus tests have been completed to date.April 10: Vice President Pence announced that:29,600 National Guard Troops have been activated4,700 active duty medical personnel have been deployed to nine statesApril 10: Vice President Pence announced that to date, 26 Project Airbridge flights have landed in the U.S. with PPE, with four flights scheduled to land today with 250,000 gowns and 25M pairs of gloves.April 10: HHS began delivering $30B in relief funding to health care providers, part of the $100B allocated to health care providers by the CARES Act.April 10: The FDA approved an emergency authorization for a blood purification device to treat coronavirus patients.April 10: Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced $1B for Amtrak to continue rail service and respond to the spread of the coronavirus.April 10: The Treasury Department launched a web portal to help Americans who did not file tax returns receive their coronavirus relief payments under the CARES Act.April 10: The Treasury Department announced it will launch a new “get my payment” app where Americans can enter their direct deposit information to get coronavirus relief payments quicker.April 10: The VA deployed medical staffers to New Orleans to help “surge” personnel in the area, which is currently being heavily impacted by the coronavirus.April 11: President Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Wyoming related to the coronavirus outbreak, marking the first time in U.S. history a President has declared that a major disaster exists in all 50 states.April 11: The DoD announced it is using The Defense Production Act to get the private sector to produce 39 million N95 masks within 90 days, a $133M investment.April 11: Three Project Airbridge flights landed in Chicago, Illinois, delivering over 62 million gloves.April 11: The Department of Justice announced it is monitoring state and local social distancing regulations to ensure religious organizations are not unfairly targeted.April 11: The USDA added Florida & Idaho to the food stamp online pilot program, allowing food stamp recipients to purchase food online.April 11: CMS expanded the requirements that private health insurers provide free coronavirus testing, saying that this includes anti-body testing and costs related to coronavirus testing, like emergency room or urgent care visits.April 12: A deal brokered by President Trump was announced between The OPEC countries, Russia, and the U.S. to cut production and stabilize the oil market amid dual disruptions from coronavirus and the price war between Saudi Arabia & Russia.April 12: The FDA issued an emergency authorization to devices from Advanced Sterilization Products, which can decontaminate approximately 4 million N95 respirators each day.April 12: The FBI uncovered an international fraud scheme related to the attempted purchase of 39 million N95 masks by a Service Employees International Union Affiliate.Editor's Note: Want to support Townhall so we can keep telling the truth about China and the virus they unleashed on the world? 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