LOCAL IMPACT OF COVID EMERGENCY’S END
After three years, state and San Diego County COVID-19 emergencies ended Tuesday, a sign that the state is moving toward managing the virus instead of actively fighting it.
With those emergency orders now over, here’s what you need to know.
Can I still get vaccinated, tested and treated for free?
Vaccinations and boosters: San Diegans will still be able to get COVID-19 vaccines at no cost, regardless of whether you have insurance, including at eight health centers and clinics and several other pharmacies and community organizations across the county.
You can also make a vaccine appointment through California MyTurn.
Tests: Due to a drop in demand, all six of the county’s state testing centers have closed, but free rapid at-home tests are still available at six public health centers in San Diego County.
You can also make an appointment for a free in-person test at one of five sites, including at the California State University San Marcos campus, Lemon Grove Senior Center, Central Region Public Health Center, Chula Vista City Hall and the Border View YMCA.
At-home antigen tests will be available at 15 libraries in the county, and you can also sign up to receive four test kits in the mail from the federal government.
Treatment: The county has already closed all but one of its 10 Monoclonal Antibody Regional Centers to administer COVID-19 treatment. The remaining location, the Hillcrest Family Health Center, is specializing in treatments for low-income and uninsured community members.
San Diegans with insurance should ask their primary care provider about treatment if they test positive for COVID-19 and are interested in antiviral or monoclonal treatments.
Where will I still have to wear a mask?
While mask mandates were lifted across the state a year ago, masks will still be required in high-risk locations, such as hospitals and nursing homes.
I got Medi-Cal during the pandemic. Do I have to do anything differently now?
Californians who receive Medi-Cal benefits, including 1 million people in San Diego, have not had to re-certify that they qualify for the health insurance program since the start of the pandemic. Beginning in April, these financial checks will resume.
This means that people who have gotten coverage since then will now need to fill out paperwork on their household income to prove that they still qualify.
Is any other assistance ending or changing?
San Diegans who use CalFresh, the state’s food-assistance program, got a benefits boost during COVID-19, receiving at least $95 extra every month on top of their usual benefits. Those emergency allotments are ending at the end of February.
Many other programs already ended last year, including rental and housing stability assistance from the county, as well as the nofault eviction moratorium.
And Gov. Gavin Newsom has just begun winding down state funding for COVID-19 testing and vaccinations for migrants and asylum seekers at health centers in San Diego and Imperial counties. The program, which California has been helping to fund for two years, also provides food, shelter and transportation to connect migrants with sponsors or family in the U.S.
What will happen when the federal emergency ends on May 11?
When the federal emergency order ends, San Diegans with insurance should ask their provider about how COVID-19 testing and antiviral treatments will be covered under their plan. For example, insurance companies will no longer be required to cover the cost of at-home testing kits.
Hospitals across the country could suffer a financial setback in May when they will stop getting paid an extra 20 percent for treating Medicare patients for COVID-19.
Aside from the impacts to health care, federal student loan payments were paused in March 2020 and have remained so for the duration of the pandemic. That pause is expected to continue as the public awaits a Supreme Court decision on the legality of a Biden administration plan to forgive some student loans.
The decision is expected in June, with repayments starting back up 60 days after it is made, or no later than 60 days after June 30, 2023, if the plan isn’t implemented or the litigation has not been resolved.
In general, it’s important to note that COVID-19 is still present in San Diego and contagious.
Last week, 1,774 cases were reported in the county — though this number is likely far higher in reality, considering that many people don’t report their positive at-home test results to the county.