COVID-19 Update and Q&A - San Diego County's Current COVID-19 Status

Author, Emily Marasso, Media Communications & Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurances Services, Inc.

The rules, regulations and guidelines, in regard to COVID-19, are changing every day.  So, we thought it would be great to provide businesses with current COVID-19 updates, and give them an opportunity to ask specific questions.

On March 4th, 2021, Gary Johnston, Chief Resilience Officer for the County of San Diego, Office of Emergency Services (OES), joined Rancho Mesa to host a live COVID-19 Update and Q&A Session webinar.  Gary works closely with County and external partners to engage key stakeholders, build consensus, and implement recommendations to build the County’s overall resilience, making him a great source for information.

Following Gary’s presentation on the County’s current status, vaccinations and reopening, attendees asked a variety of questions specific to their needs and overall curiosity.   For COVID-19 resources, posters and materials specific to San Diego County, visit the County’s online COVID-19 resource center.

Cal/OSHA Covid-19 Prevention Plan Webinar with Carmen Cisneros

Author, Emily Marasso, Media Communications Assistant, Rancho Mesa Insurances Services, Inc.

January 21st, 2021, Rancho Mesa was joined by Cal/OSHA San Diego Consultation Branch Area Manager, Carmen Cisneros, to learn about the standards set in place by Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards.

A wide variety of topics, based around the pandemic, were covered. Face mask requirements, prevention plan requirements, and recording and reporting standards were just a few of the areas addressed during the webinar. 

A good source to bookmark for questions is Cal/OSHA’s FAQ page. Since questions are always being added, they have now provided a date at the bottom of the page to show when it was last updated.

The live webinar lasted just over an hour. Cal/OSHA has a 4-hour webinar available that covers the information in greater detail. The webinars are free and you can register on the Cal/OSHA Consultation website.

We want to remind you that the Cal/OSHA consultation department is here to help you. If you are interested in having a consultant visit your site or provide guidance, visit the Consultation section of the Cal/OSHA website.

Homemade Heroes to the Rescue! – At Rancho Mesa Insurance

Author, Emily Marasso, Media Communications Assistant, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Masks have become one of the most popular accessories in 2020, due to COVID-19, and are in short supply because of it. Rancho Mesa Certician Vicki Painter and retired Rancho Mesa employee Merry Rosseau knew they had to help.

Vicki and Merry worked diligently to make masks with whatever they had accessible to them. When there was a shortage of elastic, they resorted to using elastic headbands as an alternative. From lemons, to buffalo check and even Mickey Mouse, these two incredible women managed to make enough masks not only to provide for our Santee and La Mesa offices and families, but they even made enough to hand out masks to clients and delivery workers!

We would like to take a minute to send a huge virtual hug and thank you to Vicki and Merry for their hard work and generosity. They truly represent OneofOne®. From all of us at Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, we hope you are staying safe and healthy.

Client Spotlight: Veterans Village of SD Receives Public Health Award

Author, Emily Marasso, Media Communications Assistant, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Image provided by the San Diego County News Center.

On April 16th, 2020,  Veterans Village of San Diego was awarded the Live Well San Diego Public Health Champion North Central Region Award by the National Public Health Week (NPHW), sponsored by the American Public Health Association. Veterans Village of San Diego is a non-profit organization focused on assisting homeless veterans; servicing more than 3,000 vets across San Diego County. Their motto is “Leave No One Behind” and they have been doing just that for almost 40 years.

The NPHW runs from April 6 - April 12, 2020 and is observed across the United States. It is intended to highlight issues and contributions to public health in order to improve the health of the nation. Each year, NPHW chooses a theme that carries throughout the week with each day focusing on a different topic relating to the Live Well San Diego initiative. Appropriately for this year’s theme, they have chosen COVID-19.

Alongside daily focus topics, the county holds an award ceremony recognizing people and organizations that have helped to improve the well-being and health of San Diegans. Due to social distancing, the ceremony was held virtually, but the recipients were announced by the county during their daily COVID-19 briefing. 

About Veterans Village of San Diego
Veterans Village of San Diego (VVSD) has served all veterans since 1981 and is dedicated to “Leave No One Behind.” VVSD is the only program of its kind in the United States and is nationally recognized as the leader in serving homeless military veterans. Each year VVSD provides services to more than 3,000 military veterans throughout San Diego County. For more information about Veterans Village of San Diego and how you can help support their efforts, visit www.vvsd.net.

Rancho Mesa’s 7th Inning Stretch Goes Virtual

Author, Alyssa Burley, Media Communications and Client Services Manager, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Rancho Mesa’s staff is accustomed to their twice daily “7th Inning Stretch,” a walk around the neighborhood designed to get people moving and away from their desks. It’s a time to take a break from busy schedules, talk to coworkers, build strong relationships and get outdoors.

Since Rancho Mesa’s staff members are now working remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some have found a fun way to continue their daily “7th Inning Stretch” as a group, while still practicing social distancing.

Using video group chats on their smart phones, coworkers are able to take their “7th Inning Stretch” walks with their peers.

As they each walk around their respective neighborhoods, coworkers chat and exercise while keeping a little sense of normalcy in this unprecedented time.

If you are working remotely and miss the face-to-face contact you used to have with your coworkers, consider incorporating your own virtual “7th Inning Stretch” at your company.

Stay healthy and safe!

Drew Garcia Provides Insight into COVID-19 and Workers’ Compensation Claims in Total Landscape Care Magazine

Author, Lauren Stumpf, Media Communications Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

As the country continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, Drew Garcia, Vice President of the Landscape Group at Rancho Mesa and NALP’s Safety and Risk Management Committee Chair, shared his insurance expertise with Beth Hyatt Presley in her article “Take it out: Diving in deeper with COVID-19 preperation practices” published on March 20, 2020.

As a subject matter expert, Drew gives advice on COVID-19 workers’ compensation claims and business interruption as it pertains to property coverage.

According to Drew, each workers’ compensation claim is evaluated by its unique situation. In order for COVID-19 to be a covered workers’ compensation claim it, “must be caused or aggravated by a condition of employment.”

Drew says in order for COVID-19 to be considered a cause of loss, ones property policy must have pollution coverage. As a virus may be considered a pollutant.

Drew’s complete responses and the full article can be found at TotalLandscapeCare.com.