Contra Costa County is one of the first California counties that is offering free testing whether you are symptomatic or asymptomatic to all residents! The Public Health Dept. is encouraging everyone to get tested, especially health care workers at high risk. 

You have to make an appointment to get tested.  There are drive-thru testing sites set-up in Concord, Antioch, Martinez, Pittsburg and San Ramon. Three new state-run sites also opened in Brentwood, Pinole and Walnut Creek, accepting walk-in patients by appointment only.

West County test sites are in San Pablo and Pinole.
Call 1-844-421-0804 from 8 am to 3:30 pm for an appointment.

There is no up-front cost for testing. County residents do not need medical insurance to get tested.

The goal is to increase the current rate of testing from  400 tests per day to 2400 per day to better understand the spread of virus and get us back to work sooner. 

The City of Richmond is introducing the Richmond Cares Hotline for information on Richmond COVID-19 Resources.  We care about supporting our vulnerable populations and understand that many residents don’t have internet access or need assistance with navigating the city’s website.

The hotline  number is 510-620-6700 and will be active Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5pm. Staff will be available to answer calls and respond to voicemail messages during regular business hours.  

Workforce Development Board of Contra Costa County  launches www.BounceBackContraCosta.org to help local jobseekers and businesses through the disruption!

COVID-19 has changed our world, but you don’t have to bounce back alone. Our team of workforce experts are here to serve you with our new virtual operational model.

Whether you are someone who has lost a job or looking for a different career, or a business that needs help rebuilding, start with us to connect you to the right resource, tools, and expertise.

On April 2, Governor Gavin Newsom announced OnwardCa.org, a one-stop resource for Californians impacted by job loss due to COVID-19 pandemic. It includes a “Dynamic Matching System” to match your profile and needs. But it doesn't just help you find a job, it has a large warehouse of Covid-19 Resources, Life Essentials Listings (Money, Food, Shelter & Child Care), as well as Job Training.  

Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits will be available for eligible California families soon!

Due to Coronavirus (COVID-19), children who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals at school will get extra food benefits. These food benefits are called Pandemic EBT or P-EBT benefits. P-EBT benefits help families in California buy food when schools are closed because of the coronavirus emergency. Families will get up to $365 per eligible child on their P-EBT card to use on food and groceries.

Families with children who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals and who do not get their P-EBT card in the mail by about May 22, 2020 must apply online before June 30, 2020. The online application will be available beginning May 22, 2020 at ca.p-ebt.org.

For more information: https://www.cdss.ca.gov/home/pandemic-ebt

Fortunately, free and low-cost food providers are ramping up their service, in a way that maintains social distancing.

To help you find food, Contra Costa County has a new GIS (global information system) mapping tool. It can be used on any mobile device, just like searching for the nearest gas station or cafe on your phone.

Simply put in your address and all the places that provide food will pop up on the map and will list on the right-hand side of the screen.  Simply click and you will receive location, time and other important information.

Contra Costa County COVID-19 Food Distribution Map:https://cccgis.link/Food

Michael Nealy, RCF Connects' new Controller, has over 20 years of corporate finance experience.  A graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC (B.A.) and Fordham University in New York City (M.B.A.), he’s a dedicated family man and citizen who believes strongly in the uplift of everyone in the community.

Michael has quickly become RCF Connects' superhero.  Starting this position just days before the state's mandated shutdown, he took the reins of our Finance Department and with quiet efficiency is meticulously setting everything in order.  We are in awe of Michael's talent and so glad he is part of our team!

RCF Connects is very happy that Healthy Richmond has hired Vy (Vi) Vu for their Campaign Manager position!

Vi is of Southeast Asian refugee-immigrant background and began her social justice journey as a youth advocate and organizer in San Jose focusing on various intersectional public health policies and actions. Before coming to Healthy Richmond, she worked at Seneca Family of Agencies where she supported various adolescent mental health/crisis services programs. In her current position with Healthy Richmond, she hopes to bring her intersectional and interdisciplinary skill sets to continue serving priority populations and communities in the City of Richmond, West Contra Costa, and special populations within Contra Costa County.

RCF Connects is happy to welcome Mobility LABs Community Engagement Coordinator, Kacey Carterelliott.

Kacey has a passion for working in diverse communities, and first-hand experience invoking change in the workplace. In the 1970's she was one of the first women/minorities allowed to become technicians and the first woman/minority to become a manager of the largest central office in Northern California at Pacific Bell.  She has a close and personal knowledge of the equity process. This knowledge shows up in one of her biggest assets; the ability to build relationships, forming diverse teams using interpersonal skills and other resources.

RCF Connects is happy to welcome Mobility LABs Community Engagement Coordinator, AnDrea Neal.

AnDrea Neal was born and raised in Oakland, CA, and worked with Alameda County for 12 years. After overcoming many life-challenging obstacles, AnDrea realized her passion was to assist women and children who were less fortunate. She has volunteered at various Sober Loving homes as a Substance Abuse Counselor and Mentor.  In 2012, AnDrea relocated to Antioch and later became a Community Leader with the Safe Return Project in Richmond. 

Héctor has accepted the Policy, Advocacy & Community Engagement Manager position with Ensuring Opportunity.  We are thrilled that he is part of our team.

Since moving to the Bay Area in 2015, Héctor has worked in direct services supporting marginalized communities and founded and Chaired the San Francisco Service Provider's Coalition, a collection of organizations mobilizing to support individuals experiencing homelessness. He has also served as a consultant providing best practices and know-your-rights training, community-outreach strategy, and capacity-building support to organizations serving immigrant communities and people experiencing homelessness. Most recently, Héctor is a core member and organizer of Latinxs Unidxs de Berkeley and serves on both the Latinx COVID-19 Taskforce and the City of Berkeley Fair & Impartial Police Taskforce.

Help, I Can't Pay Rent! 

Click here for a PDF on what to do if you can't pay your rent due to COVID-19 crisis and directs you too much more information and support from cococovidresources.com

I Need Assistance with my Housing, Utilities, and Internet Service!

Check out Richmond Main Street's COVID-19 Community Resource Directory.  A comprehensive directory that they are keeping updated daily.  

I Don't Live in Contra Costa County, are there Resources for Me?

Yes.  The Bay Area Mutual Aid and COVID-19 Resources has a comprehensive list of help across 9 counties of the Bay Area.  People have risen to meet the current pandemic head-on: organizing community found programs, building tenant associations, delivering food and medicine, standing in solidarity with the most marginalized, and demanding freedom and justice for those most impacted by this crisis.

My folks don't speak English, are there Multilingual Directories I can access?

Yes!  This Google Drive directory has COVID-19/Coronavirus Information in over 90 languages.  

I'm a Senior Citizen that needs help!

From home caregiver programs to food and grocery assistance, this is a helpful directory/guide that can help.

I was just released from jail/prison due to COVID-19, is there help for me?

Yes, Reentry Success Center remains open and available by phone.  Call (510) 679-2122 between 8:30AM and 8:30PM.

What Can I Do to Help Our Community?Contact Tracing Training (First Video in Series)

UCSF Institute for Globel Health Sciences is providing a bi-weekly webinar to help train folks in Contact Tracing.  Contact tracing, a core disease control measure employed by local and state health department personnel for decades, is a key strategy for preventing further spread of COVID-19. Immediate action is needed. Communities must scale up and train a large contact tracer workforce and work collaboratively across public and private agencies to stop the transmission of COVID-19.