< PreviousBUSINESS NEWS BAKERIES & SWEETS Cakery Square: Former Pitts- burgh Steeler Wes Lyons partnered up with Amber Greene to open a bakery that empowers local youth by employing students who are involved in The Pursuit Program at schools in Pittsburgh. The menu includes treats like cake pops, cookies, donuts, custom cakes and more. 142 W. Bridge St., Pitts- burgh; (412) 514-9443 Cobbler World: Owner Terina J. Hicks founded Cobbler World in 2014 after a job layoff. Cheese- cakes, pudding cakes and pound cakes are all on the menu, but clearly Hicks’ now-famous cobblers are the stars of the show, with dozens of flavors on offer. Order on UberEats for delivery. 1059 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh; (412) 403-2158 Dana’s Bakery: With over 30 years of experience, Dana’s makes custom decorated cakes, donuts, cookies, bars, cupcakes, pies and many other sweet delights. To or- der, call ahead. 720 N Homewood Ave. Pittsburgh; (412) 731-0929 CAFES & COFFEE SHOPS Arnold’s Tea: Chef Claudy Pierre took over this charming tea shop in 2018. Arnold’s Tea is known for its amazing tea pro- gram, ethically sourced coffee, and great food. The tea selection goes far beyond English Breakfast and green tea, with white, green and black tea blends, herbal tisanes, oolong and more. Order tea online or visit the cafe for takeout food and beverages. 502 E Ohio St., Pittsburgh; (412) 322-2494 Everyday Cafe: This com- fortable modern cafe is a social enterprise owned and operated by Bible Center Church. It offers a variety of hot and cold coffee and cafe drinks, breakfast sandwiches and wraps, lunch items, like panini soup and salad, and tarts, muffins and other coffee-friendly pastries. 532 N. Homewood Ave., Pitts- burgh; (412) 727-2169 CATERING & FOOD TRUCKS Culinary Services by Chef Oliver: With decades of expe- rience, Liberian-born, Lancast- er-based Chef Oliver Saye offers catering, cooking demonstrations and private dinners with a focus on the ingredients and food traditions of the West African Diaspora. Con- tact him through his website to discuss ordering. no listed address, Lancaster; (717) 615-6255 Soulcialize Catering: Chef and owner Corey Woods offers quality, fresh and local southern style soul food with the aim of bringing people together with every bite. Soulcialize’s hearty dishes include specialties like Michael’s Mamma’s Meatloaf, Southern-style chicken fried steak and Shrimp n Chedda Bacon Grits. 31 S. Duke St., Lan- caster; (717) 826-1119 Veggies N’At: Every week, a different menu is posted to Veggies N’At’s Instagram page, with the prepared vegan meals available for pick-up. These plant-based dishes go way beyond stir-fries and veggie burgers, with inventive options like baked General Tso’s cauliflower, deconstructed lasagna and Cajun red skin potato hash. DM to order. RESTAURANTS & BARS Back to the Foodture: File this under A+ restaurant concepts: A burger joint is also a museum ded- icated to the retro American pop culture! (Read more about them in this Pittsburgh Magazine article). Co-owners Angel Randolph and Eddie Barnz serve up over 100 chicken wing variations and 30 types of burgers with a side of vintage video games, action figures and photographs. 378 Broadway Blvd., Pitcairn; (412) 372-3100 Beckett’s Rib Joint: For over 30 years, this soul food and Southern food restaurant has been serving the community quality, delicious food. Fried chicken sandwiches and seafood dishes are the house specialties. Order online through UberEats. 324 Walnut St., Readi- “You come to a shop, sit down and have an ice cream cone and hang out with friends — that wasn’t possible during Covid,” Marshall said. “Customers had asked about us doing delivery, so we decided to offer it across Brooklyn and realized it was very popular.” The goal was to make last year’s numbers for the seasonal business, she said. Instead the shop surpassed its goal with a 20% bump in May just from delivery over last year, at a time when restaurants in particular were experiencing historic losses. As Marshall began to slowly reopen the store in recent weeks, protests swept not only New York City but the world over the police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man in Minneapolis. The tragic event and subsequent outcry had a surprising effect on Island Pops. The small business saw a boost in exposure as consumers moved to learn more about and support Black-owned businesses around the country. “I hope that it lasts, because we’re truly great businesses, and we want people to know that. We hope it’s not a fad,” Marshall said. “We hope that they can come in and see us for who we are.” Shelly Marshall co-owns Island Pops in Brooklyn, New York. Delivery during the pandemic, helped to boost business. Source: Anne Saint-Pierre by Kate Rogers & Betsy Spring Black-owned Businesses on Working Through Coronavirus and Unrest The coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately affected people of color in the U.S., who have experienced both higher illness and death rates from the disease and more severe economic ramifications. Minority business owners have experienced steeper declines in the number of working businesses in recent months and were also hardest hit by the limitations built into government pandemic aid programs such as the Paycheck Protection Program, studies found. Amid the recent anti-racism protests, some owners saw a boost in exposure as consumers moved to learn more about and support Black-owned businesses around the country. During the pandemic, Shelly Marshall knew she’d have to pivot quickly to stay afloat. Marshall co-owns Brooklyn-based Island Pops with her husband, Khalid Hamid, selling Caribbean-inspired ice cream. 53 Black-Owned Food Businesses in Central & Western Pennsylvania Supporting independent, black-owned businesses has always been important. Due to systemic racist structures, securing capital investments, loans and property have long been disproportionately difficult for people of color. Add to that the razor-thin margins of food-related businesses, and you’ve got an extra-steep uphill climb for black entrepreneurs in the culinary industry. And now, in this intense moment of awakening for white Americans about the deeply rooted injustices facing our country’s communities of color, on top of the economic strain of COVID-19, it is even more essential to support black-owned food businesses. There is no shortage of black-owned food businesses in Pennsylvania! We’ve divided our list up into the eastern and western parts of the state and will be adding to the list frequently as we learn of more places that should be included! By Emily Kovach 8 | TALK MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2020 continued on page 28BUSINESS NEWS WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 9 If you think you qualify, call 412-350-4309. Allegheny County Department of Equity and Inclusion 542 Forbes Ave • 204 County Office Building • Pittsburgh, PA 15219 DEICertification@alleghenycounty.us YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS CERTIFICATION IF YOU ANSWER YES TO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING: •Are you a U.S. citizen or lawfully admitted permanent resident? •Is your firm 51% owned by a socially and economically disadvantaged individual who controls and manages the firm’s daily business operations? •Does your personal net worth not exceed $1.32 million? Saleemah McNeil, founder of Oshun Family Center, is offering free racial trauma counseling to Black folks in and around Philadelphia. Amid a pandemic that’s disproportionately impacting the Black commu- nity, the continued killings of Black people at the hands of police officers, and global anti-racism protests, a Philly-area therapist is using her platform to help the local Black community take care of their mental health right now. Saleemah McNeil, psychotherapist and founder of Oshun Family Center in Jenkintown, is now offering free therapy to Black residents of Pennsyl- vania, New Jersey, and Maryland. Through a fundraising campaign with Valerie Braunstein of Philly Psychology, McNeil has raised over $81,000 to provide series of eight, 60-minute complimentary sessions to clients experi- encing acute racial trauma. And after participants have finished their eight free sessions, McNeil says her team will offer them therapy on a sliding scale or at a reduced rate. McNeil, who opened Oshun Family Center in 2018 and focuses on the intersection of racism and maternal health, began the campaign on June 3rd. “Seeing Black people in my community impacted by the pandemic and the racial epidemic, I knew I wanted to support their mental health through all the recent devastation,” McNeil says. Originally, her goal was to raise $5,000, but ended up raising $7,000 in just one day. Soon after, she worked with Braunstein to extend the fundraiser’s reach, and has continued to receive an outpouring of donations. Since the initiative began, over 100 new clients have applied for the free counseling services. In addition to making therapy more accessible, McNeil has onboarded several culturally-com- petent therapists — in- cluding Philly clinicians Jabina Coleman and Shanna Williams — so that clients can feel better understood and served. “Racially-concordant care is very important for the Black community,” McNeil says, noting the racial injustice that pervades the American healthcare system. “[As a Black woman and mother,] I am able to emotionally understand and empathize with the plight of Black women and mothers specifically. While the sessions do get heavy sometimes, I believe there is power in getting to know the therapist sitting across from you, especially a therapist who understands [or has lived through] your experience.” McNeil hopes to raise $100,000 so that Oshun can continue offering these free services and remain a fully-functioning, economically-sustainable therapy center in a post-COVID era. In addition to donating to the fund- raiser, McNeil encourages community members, especially white people, “to remember that Black lives have and will always matter and continue supporting Black folks after the protests end.” Saleemah McNeil, psychotherapist and owner of Oshun Family Center in Jenkintown. Photograph courtesy of Saleemah McNeil by Laura Brzyski $81K This Philly Therapist Has Raised More Than to Provide Free Therapy to the Black CommunityLATINO NEWS The Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is offering help for Latino businesses affected by COVID-19. "With no end in sight my biggest concern is how are we going to pay all the bills," said Sophia Deleon. She now spends most of her workday hoping and waiting for pick up or delivery orders. It’s the new normal for Deleon since the coronavirus hit. She owns El Merkury at 21st and Chestnut in Center City. "50% percent of our business came from catering before. Once this started our catering virtually disappeared." And her biggest clients on pause for now. "Everything from like $200 orders from University of Pennsylvania to like $10,000 orders from like a big company in Conshohocken," said Deleon. Jennifer Rodriguez is the President and CEO of the Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. "We talked to a lot of business owners that are really concerned about cash flow issues and the uncertainty of how long they will have to remain closed." The chamber and other organizations have partnered on a website that makes finding information easier. "We thought it would be very important particularly for the Latino community to have a single location where they could access streamlined information that affects small busi- nesses," said Rodriguez. The website phila- hispanicchamber.org is also accessible in English and Spanish. "It's very stressful to know what steps to take because tomorrow something else may change right so we are there to help them navigate and guide them," said Rodriguez. Sophia who is experimenting with providing freezable meal kits to mar- ket to quarantined families and doing some delivery on her own says the website is a huge help in this time of uncertainty. "At this point, there's no real stimulus package or any comfort coming from the landlord or government that we're going to get through this," she said. The website is a partnership between the GPHCC, Finanta, Community First Fund and Widener University SBDC. 10 | TALK MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2020 Jennifer Rodriquez – President Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce offers help for Latino businesses Wins Environmental Grant Norristown's largest Latino community center has won a significant environmental grant to make the the designs of some local students a reality. The Centro de Cultura Arte Trabajo y Educacion (CCATE) received $2,500 in funding from Pennsylvania American Water, which selected just 11 local watershed projects to support statewide. "This grant program is a fantastic opportunity to recognize and support the organizations that work alongside us every day in our communities to protect our drinking water sources," Mike Doran, president of Pennsylvania American Water, said in a statement. "Our 2020 grant recipients are thinking creatively to exhibit environmental stewardship at the most local level." CCATE will work with the nearby Audubon Center to help students design and install an urban stormwater management project at their location on 208 DeKalb Street. The funding will be used to purchase native trees, plants, and shrubs. They'll also install rain barrels and signage. The CCATE was the only Montgomery County project to be awarded. by Justin Heinze Norristown Latino Community Center by Shawnette WilsonLATINO NEWS WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 11 & ffice of workforce planningbusiness & supplier diversity Myneca Y. Ojo, Director • 717.831.7333 • mojo@paturnpike.com FOR JOB OPPORTUNITIES & INTERNSHIPS: www.paturnpike.com/yourTurnpike/employment.aspx FOR BUSINESS & CONTRACTING OPPORTUNITIES: www.paturnpike.com/business/business_supplier_diversity.aspx Driving Diversity & Inclusion through Commitment & Opportunity ceo intern fellows program for diverse groupscommunity participation & cultural awareness A national organization is announcing a $10 million campaign to turn out Hispanic voters in several of this year's battleground states. Mi Familia Vota, based in Phoenix, said it will spend $7 million on get-out-the-vote measures and an additional $3 million on digital and television ads, starting in Arizona and Florida. Arizona in particular is seen as a battleground because of shifting demo- graphics in the traditionally Republican state. Hispanics are a growing proportion of the electorate. The campaign comes amid rising concerns about Latino turnout in a year when that community has been hit partic- ularly hard by the coronavirus. Latinos account for higher rates of infection from COVID-19 when compared to their share of the population in a number of states, and many are struggling financially from lost jobs and lower wages. "Basically, what we're saying is we're not going to wait for political parties to do it themselves. They don't invest in our communities," said the group's executive director and CEO, Hector Sanchez Barba. According to the Pew Research Center, 13.3% of eligible voters in the U.S. this year are Latino, a record high. Pew projects that in Arizona, 24% of eligible voters this year are Latino, up 2 percentage points from 2016. In Florida, Lati- nos are projected to be 20% of eligible voters. That doesn't mean they will all register or cast ballots on Election Day. U.S. Census data shows that 47% of eligible Hispanic voters in Arizona cast a ballot in 2016, compared to nearly 63% of eligible white voters. Mi Familia Vota aims to get 3.3 million more Latinos in its targeted states to vote. Latino turnout in states such as Arizona could help decide the presidential election, said Matt A. Barreto, co-founder and managing partner of Latino Decisions, a polling and research firm based in Los Angeles. "We already saw this in 2018, where record Latino vote in a midterm provided the margin of victory for (Democratic U.S. Sen. Kyrsten) Sinema," he said. Sanchez Barba says Mi Familia Vota will use text messages, phone calls, and digital and TV ads to reach potential voters in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin. The campaign comes as both Democrats and Republicans vie for the Hispanic vote. The Trump campaign, for example, also is targeting Hispanic voters through messaging about the economy, public safety and family values. Andres Malave, re- gional communications director of Hispanic outreach for the Republican National Committee, said the Trump campaign has had a permanent presence in Arizona since 2016. He participated in a town hall with Biden in which the former vice president made a series of commitments to the Hispanic community, such as placing Latinos at the highest level of his administration. "After the election, hopefully with a new president, we will immediately launch an accountability campaign," Sanchez Barba said. Latino group launches $10M campaign to boost voter turnout by Astrid GalvanHEALTH NEWS by Andrew Jacobs More than half the members of a panel considering changes to the nation’s blueprint for healthy eating have ties to the food industry. Are children who consume prodigious amounts of sugary drinks at higher risk for cardiovascular disease? Can a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and legumes reduce the risk of hip fractures in older adults? Should sweetened yogurts be a part of a healthy diet for toddlers making their first foray into solid food? These and other nutrition-related questions will be addressed on Wednesday when a panel of 20 nutrition scientists, meeting publicly by videoconference, discusses suggested changes to the federal government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans, recommendations that directly impact the eating habits of millions of people through food stamp policies, school lunch menus and the product formulations embraced by food manufacturers. The guidelines, updated every five years by the Department of Agriculture and Depart- ment of Health and Human Services, have long prompted jousting among nutrition advocates and food industry interests, like pork producers and soda companies, seeking to influence the final document. But the process this year is espe- cially fraught, given the Trump administration’s skepticism of science and its well-established deference to corporate interests. More than half of this year’s panel has ties to the food industry, and the scientists leading newly created subcommittees on pregnant women, lactating mothers and toddlers have ties to the baby food industry. Some groups have criticized federal officials for omitting questions about red meat and salt consumption from the 80 diet-related questions that panel members were charged with answer- ing. And government watchdog groups have questioned the panel’s objectivity. “Amid a pandemic made worse by diet-re- lated disease that’s hitting black and Indigenous communities hardest, junk food corporations should be paying for their abuses, not stacking scientific panels and official drafting committees,” said Ash- ka Naik, the research director at the advocacy group Corporate Accountability. In a statement, the Department of Agricul- ture said panel members were nominated by the public and that those chosen were required to submit financial disclosure forms that were reviewed by agency staff members for possible conflicts of interest. The entire process, it noted, has garnered 62,000 public comments. “Throughout the entire 2020-2025 dietary guidelines process, we have relied on the nation’s leading scientists and dietary experts to inform our development of science-based guidelines and have taken numerous steps to promote transparency, integrity, and public involvement,” Pam Miller, the agency’s Food and Nutrition Service Admin- istrator, said in the statement. The final guidelines, scheduled for release later this year, shape federal food programs in schools, prisons and military bases that sustain one in four Americans. The coronavirus pandemic has fueled a greater sense of urgency over the guidelines, given emerging research suggesting that people with diet-related illnesses like Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease have a significantly higher risk of developing serious complications from Covid-19. Such diseases, like Covid-19 itself, have struck African-American and Hispanic com- munities particularly hard. The members of the nutrition panel, however, are almost all white. “People of color are already disproportionately impacted by chronic diseases but Covid-19 has really placed a magnifying glass on the health disparities that make us more vulnerable to the pandemic,” said Dr. Yolandra Hancock, a pedia- trician and obesity expert at George Washington University’s Milken Institute of Public Health. “My concern is that these guidelines, heavily influenced by the food and beverage industry, will dictate what kinds of food are offered at schools and set the eating habits of children, particularly black and brown children, for the rest of their lives.” Although the federal government has ex- panded the size of the scientific advisory panel, increased opportunities for public input and sought to introduce greater transparency into the workings of the panel by livestreaming its meetings, a wide array of critics has been attack- ing this year’s process as deeply flawed. One reason is the panel’s recommendations are ultimately suggestions that can be discarded by agency staff who draw up the guidelines. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who spent much of his career in the agribusiness sector, has the ultimate say over the final content. “Once the advisory panel makes their recom- mendation, it goes into a black box, where there is the potential for undue political influence,” said Sarah Reinhardt, a health analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists. The fears that politics could overshadow science are not entirely unfounded. In 2018, Secretary Perdue sought to ease Obama-era nutrition standards for sodium and whole grains in school lunch programs, a move that infuriated nutritionist experts. In April, a federal judge struck down those roll backs, saying they violated Congressional procedures for creating new regulations. In 2017, Mr. Perdue, citing the need for improved customer service, merged two federal nutrition programs, a move health advocates said would compromise the agency’s scientific integrity and harm efforts to address the nation’s crisis of diet-related illnesses. President Trump, who regularly broadcasts his fondness for fast food, has shown little inter- est in the nation’s nutritional wellbeing. Complaints about industry influence did not begin with the Trump administration. Many nutrition experts were disappointed with the 2015 guidelines issued during the Obama administration, which did not explicitly urge Americans to eat less meat and eliminated long- standing limits on dietary cholesterol, changes that pleased the nation’s egg and beef producers. Then there was the issue of sustainability. The panel that year had for the first time addressed the impact of American eating habits on climate change and the environment, but the section was omitted from the final report following an outcry from the livestock industry unhappy over the panel’s suggestion that a plant-based diet was both healthier and more sustainable. This year, federal officials excised any discus- sion of sustainability. “This year’s committee has really been ham- strung from the beginning,” said Stephanie Feld- stein, the population and sustainability director at the Center for Biological Diversity. 12 | TALK MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2020 Scientific Panel on New Dietary Guidelines Draws Criticism From Health Advocates continued on page 28HEALTH NEWS WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 13 July is BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) Mental Health Month, also referred to as Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. As millions around the world work to amplify and stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, it has become clear that Black mental health needs to matter too. Historically mental health in the Black community has been a taboo topic. The stigma surrounding needing help, coupled with the trauma of systemic racism and the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic, has caused many Black Americans to grapple with a range of issues, including anxiety and depression. Being Black in America should not come with inherent oppression and predisposed health conditions, but it does — and navigating these burdens is a lot to bear. To further discuss the stress that comes with being Black in America, Yahoo Life spoke with five Black public figures who are raising awareness about the importance of seeking therapy or other forms of treatment for mental health and how to navigate this current social climate. “Free mental health care is just something that has to 1,000 percent exist for Black and brown people,” says Alysha Pamphile, cinematographer and host of the Black Girl Podcast. Pamphile, who has openly shared her journey with therapy that began after her father died, is an advocate for professional help. Through the Black Girl Podcast, Pamphile has created a community for those interested in therapy but may not have access to resources. Similarly, Ashley Akunna and Donovan Thompson, producers on the popular YouTube series The Grapevine, have created a safe space for millen- nials of color to openly discuss a wide range of topics, from mental health to HBO’s Insecure. The discussions on the show can sometimes get heated, but ultimately the purpose is to increase awareness about important issues and educate their audience. “Taking the stigma away from therapy was also big for me,” Akunna says. “I’m Nigerian-American, and I cannot tell you how often I hear people say that therapy is not for them. They don’t need it. It’s for white people. So, like Alysha, therapy has helped me.” “A combination of unplugging and then also being able to just do what I can where I can was very, very helpful for me,” Thompson says of how he takes care of his mental health. As parents, both Doyin Richards, bestselling children’s author and key- note speaker, and Kimberly Jones, an activist, writer, and filmmaker, discuss the balance of prioritizing their own mental health while also protecting their children’s. “I’m very transparent with my son about my mental health concerns,” Jones says. “He knows that Mommy has ADHD and anxiety and what that means and how my responses are. And we have systems when he can tell that I’m feeling anxious.” Though Jones describes a very open and healthy relationship with her 14-year-old son, she admits it doesn’t come without its challenges. “Sometimes I feel a certain level of guilt as a parent, right? He has to take on this responsibility of understanding how to deal with a mother, you know, with mental health concerns,” she explains. “But I mean, honestly, I don’t know if there are any Black people in America without mental health concerns. I don’t know if you’re being honest with yourself if you don’t have any. It is a rough road that has been given to us in many, many different ways. So, finding that balance as a parent — it’s difficult.” For Richards, his experience with depression has greatly shaped how he approaches mental health advocacy. “I almost took my own life due to depression, and I am clinically depressed,” he says. “That’s something that a lot of Black men aren’t willing to admit or talk about publicly.” Above all, Richards says his focus is to raise his two daughters, who are 6 and 9, to be strong Black women and “know that they’re great inside and out.” by Tatiana Pile 5 Influencers On the Stress of Being Black in America and Why Free Mental Healthcare 'Has to' Exist for People of ColorHEALTH NEWS Rhonda M. Johnson, M.D., M.P.H Senior Medical Director, Medical Management and Quality Highmark Inc. COVID-19 is a highly contagious, potentially deadly viral disease. Anyone can acquire this infection from exposure to people who have had COVID-19 infection through breathing infected droplets or contact with contaminated surfaces (less likely). As of July, 2020, there is no known treatment or cure or vaccine. Prevention remains the best strategy to avoid infection. Prevention of infection involves social distancing (stay at least 6 feet from people outside of your household); wearing a face covering when out in public (persons ages 2 years and older); and good hand hygiene (wash your hands frequently or use hand sanitizer.) COVID-19 Symptoms – How Do You Know If You Have It? 14 | TALK MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2020 AFRICAN AMERICANS AND COVID-19: WHAT’S NEXT? People can also transmit the virus without knowing they are sick. These “silent spreaders” can carry the virus but show no sign of it (asymptomatic transmission). Others can have the virus and spread it in the early phase of the disease before they show symptoms (pre-symptomatic transmission). The coronavirus affects people differently and the medical experts don’t really understand why. What is known that some people have no symptoms; some people have mild symptoms; others develop severe symptoms including pneumonia, respiratory failure and death. Certain medical conditions, however, may increase the risk of dying from COVID-19, including high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, asthma, heart disease and HIV/AIDS. Age may increase your risk - people 60 years and older, especially those with chronic conditions, may be at increased risk of dying from COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control, these symp- toms can appear 2-14 days after exposure to the coronavirus: o Fever o Cough o Shortness of breath or trouble breathing Other symptoms can include: o Tiredness o Sore throat o Headache o Aches and pains o Diarrhea or abdominal discomfort o Loss of smell or taste When to Call Your Doctor or Clinic If you have been in contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19, contact your doctor, clinic or health care practitioner right away for medical advice. If you have emergency symptoms – trouble breathing, chest pain or pressure, confusion, blue lips or face, seek care right away.HEALTH NEWS What CAN African Americans Do to Stay Alive? Take Action Now! Continue to heed the official medical and public health recommendations. Practice social distancing, which means staying at least 6 feet away from other people whenever possible and practical. Parents - this does not mean you should stay away from your babies and young children who need your love and close supervision. Wear face coverings when you are in public and wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds frequently throughout the day. Avoid touching your face as the coronavirus can enter the body through the eyes, nose and mouth. Clean all high contact surfaces at home often. Soapy warm water works well. Plan your trips to the grocery store and pharmacy – so you have enough food to last two weeks if possible and medicine to last 30 days if possible. Know the symptoms of COVID-19 (listed above) and call your doctor or health clinic if you think you might have been exposed or have this infection. If caring for someone with COVID-19 at home, know when to seek help - difficulty breathing, turning blue around the lips or if the person sick with COVID-19 becomes confused or lethargic – and seek emergency medical attention. Get information from trusted, reliable sources. There are many rumors, myths and mis-information unfortunately. WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 15 For More Information Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 website: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html Visit the PA Department of Health website: www.health.pa.gov/guides/responding-to-covid-19/ Call PA Department of Health 24 hour Hotline: 1-877-PA-HEALTH (1-977-724-3258) COVID-19 and African Americans – What Is Going On? African Americans have a higher burden of chronic diseases – high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, heart disease and asthma for example - conditions known to be associated with more severe complications and death from COVID-19. African Americans may be more likely to live in densely packed areas and live in over-crowded housing. This makes social distancing more challenging and increases the risk of spread. There may also be a lack of access to health care that is culturally sensitive, affordable, trusted and respectful. Coronavirus testing is not readily accessible for many people of color, and many African Americans rely on public trans- portation for their everyday needs, are more likely to work in service sector jobs and unable to work from home – thus increasing their risk of exposure. Do it right. Get back to life. Summer safely. HC415449 - FIN_Summer_Safely__Print_Ad_-_Talk_Mag_-_BCBS.indd 1HC415449 - FIN_Summer_Safely__Print_Ad_-_Talk_Mag_-_BCBS.indd 17/15/20 12:24 PM7/15/20 12:24 PMDo it right. Get back to life. Summer safely.Next >