News & UpdatesCoronavirus: resources, benefits and legal informationPlease visit this webpage to learn more and access resources for family in San Luis Obispo County.
Census 2020 - Every Family Deserves to Be Counted
Census 2020 is almost here and our young children, Spanish-speaking, and low-income populations are especially vulnerable to undercounting, which reduces local funding for many critical safety-net programs like Medi-Cal, CalFresh, Section 8, and Head Start. Accurate counting also ensures that our county is fully represented in the state and federal government and makes sure that our most vulnerable populations are visible and counted. Experts estimate that at least 5% of children under age five were not counted in the last census, with higher rates of undercount for Latino children.
Agency staff working with families and young children are a vital link to encourage families to participate in the census. It's important to get the word out about how to participate in the census (especially for families who are sharing housing) and to let immigrant families know that there is no citizenship question. The count will start in mid-March online and by phone. Since we know people need to hear or see information several times before they act on it, we need to start early with outreach and information. Watch our webinar to learn more about why the Census is important and what you as a SLO County provider can do to help to ensure the count of all young children: 
Census Handouts: Parent information handout in English and Spanish, customized with San Luis Obispo County wording:
Information about fraud and scams from the Census Bureau:
2020census.gov/en/avoiding-fraud.html 2020census.gov/es/avoiding-fraud.html Fraud and scam information in handout form (English/Spanish): 
FAQs and messaging from First 5 Association of CA:
media.thesocialpresskit.com/gmmb-team-23/First5CensusMessageGuideFINALEnglish11719_1.docx More FAQs from 2020 Census Orange County Counts: occensus.org/faqs/ Census coloring books and coloring pages (English and Spanish):
www.census.gov/schools/resources/games/coloring.html media.thesocialpresskit.com/gmmb-team-23/F5AActivitySheetsr1v6.pdf Pre-K activities and teacher guide about the Census and counting:
www.census.gov/programs-surveys/sis/2020census/2020-resources/pre-k.html Social media campaign from First 5 Association of CA in English and Spanish:
thesocialpresskit.com/first5-2020census |
Covered CA Re-OpensWith the large-scale job losses due to COVID-19, many people are losing their health insurance as well. Covered California, the state insurance exchange that provides health insurance subsidies to individuals who do not qualify for Medi-Cal, is now open for anyone who is uninsured. This is a Special Enrollment period due to the new coronavirus.
Adults who work full time for low wages often earn too much to qualify for Medi-Cal. They will face new state tax penalties in 2020 if they do not have health insurance and they are at risk for high medical costs during the current epidemic. You can help by referring uninsured clients to: www.coveredca.com/individuals-and-families/getting-covered/special-enrollment/ Clients can apply online at www.coveredca.com or get help from a certified insurance agent or certified enrollment counselor: www.coveredca.com/find-help/ Sign up for our monthly newsletters:
Read the last five newsletters here:
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The Health Access Training Project is a project of First 5 of San Luis Obispo County which advocates for quality programs and services to support children from prenatal to age five, ensuring that every child is healthy and ready to learn in school.