Coronavirus

As Stimulus Checks Go Out, Beware Scammers, U.S. Officials Warns

“There are definitely scams where people are pretending to be a government agency or your family member or somebody that you’re in love with. They sometimes have just enough information about you to make it feel like it’s real, or they try to threaten you and make it feel really urgent. They say that you’re going to lose your social security number if you don’t pay them, which is not going to happen, or that someone that you love is going to be in trouble,” says Leach.

Published

4 years ago

March 18, 2021

Mia Lane

New rounds of COVID-19 stimulus checks are either incoming or have already reached the pockets of eligible Californians — either through the federal American Rescue Plan or the Golden State Stimulus. With the cash coming in, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is warning the general public about an expected wave of fraud targeting peoples’ stimulus cash.

Reports of fraud have risen throughout the country over the last year since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. While fraudsters target the public at-large, a 2016 FTC report found that African Americans and Latinos are more likely to become victims of fraud than whites. The same report emphasized the importance of consumer education in Black and Brown communities, so that people can recognize fraud schemes before they lose money.

The types of fraud are wide ranging, according to Jennifer Leach, director of the Division of Consumer and Business Education at the FTC.

The pandemic may have also caused the general public to become more susceptible to fraud, according to Leach, possibly due to heightened levels of stress and anxiety.

“It’s hard to get the message about fraud across to people when they’re feeling alone or worried or just anxious about people they care about or their own financial security. People who are worried about their income or jobs, or how they’re going to make rent, may be at greater risk for scams simply because they are worried, and so scammers who get hold of them and threaten them with things have a bigger impact on them,” says Leach.

The FTC is already seeing fraud schemes related to the upcoming federal stimulus checks, which the IRS began distributing last weekend after President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law on March 12.

“We’re seeing that scammers are calling and texting, e–mailing and even messaging people on social media, to try to get people to pay to get their stimulus check. You don’t have to pay to get the stimulus check, and you don’t have to give your information to anybody. It’s all happening automatically,” says Leach.

Non-stimulus specific fraud has also been on the rise during COVID, including fake COVID-related treatments, counterfeit personal protective equipment and fake work-from-home offers. According to Leach, one warning sign is the method of payment.

“I think the other thing that’s really important for people to know is that no one legitimate will ever demand that you have to pay by gift card, by cryptocurrency, or by wiring money. It’s always a scam. No matter what the story is, if they’re saying you have to pay one of those ways, it’s a scam,” said Leach.

Consumers who want to stay updated about fraud that has been reported and confirmed by the FTC can find information on the agency’s consumer website. As for people who have already fallen for fraud, Leach recommends both reporting the scammer to the FTC and talking with members of their community about the scheme.

Leach says, “A lot of people know a lot about scams, they really do, but people get embarrassed. Scammers are professionals, they are really good at what they do. Talking about scams both helps protect you and your community. If you’ve gotten the call, half your friends have too. If you thought about paying somebody, half your friends did too. It’s really valuable to let the light in on what’s going on, because that helps slow down the scammers.”

Mia Lane

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Authorities Warn: There’s a COVID Surge in California

According to data estimates by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the coronavirus in California’s wastewater has spiked for eight consecutive weeks. Hospitalizations and emergency room visits have also increased since the rise of the new subvariants. Over the last month, Los Angeles County experienced an average of 389 hospital patients per day that tested positive for the coronavirus. The FLiRT subvariants such as KP.3.1.1. Made up over 2% of coronavirus samples nationwide, an increase of more than 7% last month.

Published

3 months ago

August 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo provided by California Black Media.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

California is experiencing a COVID-19 surge this summer, experts warn, as numbers of infections increased for the third month this year.

State public health authorities attribute the summer COVID surge to more infectious subvariants that have emerged as the coronavirus evolves.

Dr. Elizabeth Hudson, regional chief of infectious disease at Kaiser Permanente Southern California, stated that subvariants of COVID-19 called FLiRT increased in recent months, particularly one named KP.3.1.1 that has become the most common strain in the country.

Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases expert at UC San Francisco, said that the subvariant KP.3.1.1 seems most adept at transmission.

“The subvariant is the one that people think will continue to take over, not only in the United States, but … around the world,” Chin-Hong said.

The majority of the people who tested positive for COVID-19 complained of a sore throat and a heavy cough. Risk factors that can increase the illness include age, underlying health issues, and vaccine dosage.

Health experts stated that the demand for the COVID-19 vaccine has increased in Northern California. However, people are having a hard time getting the vaccine due to the increasing number of cases.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

California Black Media

Gov. Newsom and Gov. DeSantis Go Head-to-Head in Nationally Televised Debate

Conservative Fox News personality Sean Hannity moderated the duel, during which the TV pundit, more than once, injected his opinion, and appeared to be providing subtle assists to DeSantis. As the debate progressed, it was clear that opinions about each topic discussed was representative of the philosophical and political chasm that divides liberal and conservative America, and a preview of campaign mudslinging that is bound to intensify as the 2024 presidential campaign ensues.

Published

12 months ago

December 10, 2023

Oakland Post

The debate between Gov. Gavin Newsom and Gov. Ron DeSantis was moderated by Fox News personality Sean Hannity. California Black Media image.

By California Black Media

In an intense, 95-minute-plus televised faceoff between California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Nov. 30, the men traded jabs and putdowns, defended their respective gubernatorial records, disagreed sharply on how to solve the country’s most pressing problems, and expressed clashing views on the performance of the Biden-Harris administration.

Conservative Fox News personality Sean Hannity moderated the duel, during which the TV pundit, more than once, injected his opinion, and appeared to be providing subtle assists to DeSantis.

As the debate progressed, it was clear that opinions about each topic discussed was representative of the philosophical and political chasm that divides liberal and conservative America, and a preview of campaign mudslinging that is bound to intensify as the 2024 presidential campaign ensues.

“I’ll tell you why I’m here,” Newsom said. “I’m here to tell the truth about the Biden-Harris record and also compare and contrast Ron DeSantis’ record and the Republican Party’s record” with that of California.

DeSantis blasted Newsom’s management of the COVID-19 crisis and criticized Newsom for prevalent crime, homelessness and deteriorating social conditions in California cities.

“You have the freedom to defecate in public in California,” DeSantis said. “You have the freedom to pitch a tent on Sunset Boulevard. You have the freedom to create a homeless encampment under a freeway and even light it on fire. They’re not the freedoms our founding fathers envisioned.”

Newsom took a jab at DeSantis’ presidential candidacy, predicting that the Florida Governor would be endorsing GOP frontrunner Donald Trump soon.

“There’s one thing we have in common,” Newsom said. “Neither of us will be the nominee for our party in 2024.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

BayCityNews

FDA Updates Approval of Pfizer Booster Vaccine for Children Under 5

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated its approval Tuesday of the Pfizer-BioNTech booster vaccine, making it available to some children under age 5. Before this update, children under 5 were not eligible for COVID-19 booster shots. Instead, they received three doses of the regular vaccine.

Published

2 years ago

March 22, 2023

Oakland Post

As of December 2022, children age 4 and younger who have not been vaccinated receive the omicron variant-specific booster vaccine as the third dose in their primary vaccine series, following two doses of the original Pfizer vaccine.

By Eli Walsh
Bay City News

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated its approval Tuesday of the Pfizer-BioNTech booster vaccine, making it available to some children under age 5.

Before this update, children under 5 were not eligible for COVID-19 booster shots. Instead, they received three doses of the regular vaccine.

However, children in that age range who completed their initial vaccination series before December 2022 only received three doses of the original Pfizer vaccine, and are less protected against more infectious variants of the virus as a result.

FDA officials updated the vaccine’s emergency use authorization Tuesday to allow those children who only received the original Pfizer COVID vaccine to receive one dose of the bivalent booster if it has been at least two months since they completed their initial series.

Other children under age 5 are not eligible for the booster, although everyone age 5 and up is eligible for a booster.

“Currently available data show that vaccination remains the best defense against severe disease, hospitalization and death caused by COVID-19 across all age groups, and we encourage all eligible individuals to make sure that their vaccinations are up to date with a bivalent COVID-19 vaccine,” said Dr. Peter Marks, the director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

Clinical data has found that both the original Pfizer vaccine and the booster vaccine that targets the omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are safe for everyone aged 6 months and up and effective at preventing the worst outcomes of COVID infection, including serious illness and death.

COVID vaccines are available at primary care providers, retail pharmacies and some facilities operated by local health departments.

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