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3 mins read

Black Owned Healthcare Startup Launches Platform to Treat Coronavirus Patients Remotely

With hospitals becoming overcrowded with coronavirus patients, a Black owned healthcare startup in Chicago  has developed a tech-based method to care for COVID-19 patients at home.

Chicago telehealth startup 4D Healthware announced that it launched a new COVID-19 monitoring platform, based on its original software, which allows for remote monitoring, physician and lab supported diagnosis, and at-home treatment.

Star Cunningham, Founder and CEO of 4D Healthware

By equipping patients with pulse oximeters, which measures the oxygen levels in blood, and Wi-Fi-enabled digital tablets programmed with 4D Healthware’s software, the startup can collect biometrics, like temperature, oxygenation levels and other critical stats.

black owned healthcare startup

Those metrics are then sent to 4D Heathware’s team to be evaluated. In the event a patient’s status becomes critical, 4D Healthware coordinates for the patient to visit a nearby hospital or healthcare facility.

“Healthcare is now recognizing the value of virtually caring for patients,” said Star Cunningham, the startup’s founder and CEO. “You don’t want [COVID-19 patients] to come out. What you want to do is eliminate a certain amount of foot traffic that’s coming into the healthcare system right now.”

4D Healthware says it can service up to 500,000 coronavirus patients across the U.S. Cunningham wouldn’t disclose how many patients are currently using the coronavirus platform, but said the number is increasing “exponentially each day.”

4D Healthware’s new COVID-19 platform is based on its original software, which uses health data from wearable devices, such as Fitbits or Apple Watches, to help people with chronic conditions monitor their health more effectively. Patients with COVID-19, however, need 4D’s hardware to monitor the illness as most consumer wearables cannot.

4D mainly targets Medicare patients but also accepts patients with private insurance. The startup employs 20 people, one of which is a physician, and the startup has raised more than $4 million since launching in 2012.

“We call 4D Healthware enhanced telehealth because it’s more than that,” Cunningham said. “The beauty of 4D is that long after the pandemic ends, we are a viable long-term solution for managing patients at home.”

 

Source: ChicagoInno

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2 mins read

How This Black Owned Coffee Business is Thriving Through a Pandemic

Black Owned Coffee business

Red Bay Coffee is a Black-owned, wholesale specialty coffee roasting company based in Oakland, California.

They import and have direct relationships with coffee farmers in Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Indonesia, Guatemala, Brazil and Colombia.

The company was founded by Keba Konte, who launched it out of his home back in 2014.

Keba Konte

Pre pandemic, Red Bay served as a community hub hosting events, including food popups, concerts, magazine releases, panel discussions, and self-care festivals.

During the first few months of the coronavirus outbreak and subsequent “stay-at-home” mandates,  business slowed dramatically. Red Bay experienced a drastic reduction in their wholesale office service and cafe service. This prompted the decision to refocus on selling via their website and doing more social media marketing.

Before the pandemic, e-commerce was the smallest segment of Red Bay’s various revenue streams. Now, as a result of so many people being forced to stay at home, online sales have grown 350%.

The increase stems from the fact that much of its Silicon Valley audience is now drinking coffee at home and having their coffee beans shipped directly to them.

“Then there’s another group who were drinking our coffee at our cafés, and we had to close most of them,” Konte added. They too have turned to having their coffee beans shipped.

The pandemic has forced it to become more efficient than in the past. “In the future, we have the muscle to push ourselves into various channels, and yet we’re still small enough to be nimble to adapt to the current environment,” he said.

Visit Red Bay coffee online and subscribe to their monthly service.

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Published on
3 mins read

Real Estate is now considered an Essential Service according to U.S. Government

Real Estate essential service

On Saturday, March 28, 2020, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) updated its list of essential services during the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis and expressly included residential real estate.

The order now includes residential and commercial real estate, including settlement services, as essential services. However, if a state, city or county has an order with a more restrictive standard regarding what qualifies as an essential service, or more restrictions on activities, those guidelines will still govern the activities of a licensee. Here’s the official notification in you want to read it in full.

Here’s what the California Association of REALTORS® is recommending based on the industry’s updated status to essential services.

“Notwithstanding this new development, all real estate licensees must take into account the health and safety of their clients and fellow licensees, and follow the existing protocols for protecting against the spread of COVID-19. If such heath safeguards and protocols are not followed, the rule for the state could easily change to stop or restrict all real estate activity. To that end, in conformity with current health guidelines, real estate licensees should follow all CDC and local health mandates.

1. No open houses should be held.

2. Showings should be done virtually, if at all possible.”

Here’s a few safety and health protocols ideas to consider:

– Socially Distance – Ask your clients to leave the home or stand at least 6 feet away from you, the photographer or the Home Inspector enters the home. Try not to touch any surfaces, but if you do by mistake, wipe the surface clean with disinfectant wipes or sprays.

Of course, wash your hands BEFORE you enter the home, do not shake hands with anyone and wash your hands immediately AFTER leaving the home. And of course, if you or anyone in your home has been sick with any type of cold or flu, do not enter the home at all.

– Use the virtual showings software that is available and use 3D virtual tours wherever possible to make it easier to understand the home

– Create 3D tours and online Floor Plans – include Floor plans on your listings to help potential buyers get a flow of the house.

– Live, Virtual Walkthroughs – Instead of doing live showings, ask your client to tune into a zoom meeting on their phone and they can walk you and your potential buyer through the home

– Inspections with Hazmat Suits – Ask your Home Inspector to wear their hazmat suits when entering the home to avoid any contamination. Many of them already own hazmat suits because of some of the nasty nooks and crannies they need to examine anyway

 

Source: WAV Group

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Published on
6 mins read

What You Should Know About Loan Forgiveness under The CARES Act

loan forgiveness

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, commonly known as the “CARES Act” (the “Act”) was signed by President Trump on March 27, 2020.

The Act offers unprecedented benefits to help American employers during this national crisis. This article will focus on the loan forgiveness program promulgated under the Act.

In sum, the Act provides that that employers of 500 or fewer employees may borrow up to 2.5 times their average monthly payroll costs, subject to a maximum of $10,000,000, on a non-recourse basis, that is, without collateral and personal guarantees, for a period of up to ten years at the maximum interest rate of 4% per annum.

In the interest of brevity, I have excluded certain outliers or non-traditional employers such as seasonal employers, multi-office employers, and employers who were not in business during the first half of 2019.

Payroll Costs

The Act defines “Payroll Costs” as the sum of “(aa) (AA) salary, wage, commission, or similar compensation; (BB) payment of cash tip or equivalent; (CC) payment for vacation, parental, family, medical, or sick leave;(DD) allowance for dismissal or separation; (EE) payment required for the provisions of group health care benefits, including insurance premiums; (FF) payment of any retirement benefit; or (GG) payment of State or local tax assessed on the compensation of employees; and (bb) the sum of payments of any compensation to or income of a sole proprietor or independent contractor that is a wage, commission, income, net earnings from self-employment, or similar compensation and that is in an amount that is not more than $100,000 in 1 year, as prorated for the covered period.”

Please note that Payroll Costs do not include: (a) compensation of more than $100,000 for each employee; (b) Federal Withholding and Payroll taxes, and (c) qualified sick and family leave wages under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

Independent Contractors/Self-Employed

Fortunately, independent contractors, sole proprietors and self-employed individuals are eligible to receive a loan. These individuals must present documentation such as 1099 and other proof of income to confirm their eligibility.

Maximum Loan Amount

The maximum loan amount is the lesser of (a) 2.5 times the average monthly payroll costs of the Employer during the 1 year period before the date of the loan less any SBA loans already taken by the Employer from on or after January 31, 2020, which such loans may be eligible for refinancing under the Act or (b) $10,000,000.

Allowable Uses of Loan Proceeds

During the covered period (February 15, 2020 to June 30, 2020), the Employer may use proceeds from the loan for: (a) payroll costs; (b) costs related to the continuation of group health care benefits during periods of paid sick, medical, or family leave, and insurance premiums; (c) employee salaries, commissions, or similar compensations; (d) payments of interest on any mortgage obligation (which shall not include any prepayment of or payment of principal on a mortgage obligation); (e) rent (including rent under a lease agreement); (f) utilities; and (g) interest on any other debt obligations that were incurred before the covered period.

Nonrecourse; No Personal Guarantee

The Act provides that the loan will be nonrecourse, without collateral and without personal guarantees, from any individual shareholder, member, or partner of an eligible borrower, except if the proceeds are used for purposes not authorized by the Act.

Loan Forgiveness

Loan forgiveness is perhaps the most favorable provision of the Act. Borrowers will be eligible for tax-free forgiveness of principal due under the loan equal to the sum of the following amounts during the 8 week period following the loan closing: (a) payroll costs; (b) payments of interest on any covered mortgage obligation (which shall not include any prepayment of or payment of principal on a covered mortgage obligation); (c) payments on any covered rent obligation; and (d) covered utility payments.

Forgiveness is of course predicated on the Borrower maintaining the number of full-time equivalent employees for the 8-week period that were employed during the period of February 15, 2019 to June 30, 2019 or the period of January 1, 2020 to February 29, 2020.

Any reduction of employees will result in a proportionate reduction in the forgiveness amount. The amount of forgiveness is also reduced for any salary reduction in in excess of 25% of the total salary or wages of the employee for most recent full quarter. Borrowers will be allowed to maintain their employee count by rehiring terminated or laid off employees during the period commencing February 15, 2020 to April 27, 2020.

by Damon Gamble

Loan Forgiveness

Damon Gamble is the Owner and Managing Partner of Gamble and Associates, a a full-service Certified Public Accounting firm that provides accounting, tax and business consulting services to high net-worth individuals, and Small Businesses such as Sole Proprietorships, Corporations, S-Corporations, Partnerships, LLC’S and Trusts.

For more questions, please contact Damon at info@gamble-assoc.com.

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1 min read

2020 Essence Fest postponed amid Louisiana Coronavirus concerns

The 2020 Essence Festival is being postponed and moved “closer to the fall” amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in Louisiana, organizers announced Friday on their website.

It’s the latest festival change in the New Orleans area as COVID-19 cases in the state swelled to 2,746 with 119 deaths, with the highest concentration in Orleans and Jefferson parishes.

2020 Essence Fest

Essence Communications Inc., the festival’s parent company, said the decision was made to move the five-day multifaceted event from its original July 1-5 schedule “based on developments over the past couple of weeks, including updates from our city and health partners.”

Previously announced talent, which includes headliners Janet Jackson and Bruno Mars, will remain on the lineup for the postponed dates, and tickets sold for the originally scheduled performances will still be honored on the new dates.

New dates for the festival will be announced “shortly.”

The 26th edition of the Essence Fest is set to include two extra days of activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary year of Essence magazine, along with the annual three-night evening concert series in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Tens of thousands of attendees fill the Morial Convention Center for free daytime activities that include panel discussions and product presentations.

Essence Fest organizers previously said they intended to move forward with the July 1-5 timeframe, but also said they were already looking to identify and secure alternate dates.

 

Source: NOLA.com

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Published on
4 mins read

What does the Coronavirus Pandemic mean for the Largest Black Owned Architecture Firm?

coronavirus pandemic

The Coronavirus pandemic’s impact on architecture still isn’t totally clear. Some construction sites are closed, financial markets are fluctuating, and designers are working from home.

Jack Morley spoke with Jonathan Moody, CEO of Ohio-based Moody Nolan, about how the pandemic is affecting his business and the industry more broadly.

coronavirus pandemic
Curtis Moody

“We’re hoping for the best but planning for the worst,” Moody said. Lessons from 2008’s Great Recession are coming in handy, he said, particularly lessons about the value of diversifying project types and being aware that different sectors of the industry will fare differently.

Education projects may be hampered by schools suddenly without students (the pandemic has spurred the San Francisco Art Institute to close permanently), while multifamily housing may see boosts from slashed interest rates.

He also suggested that because construction timelines on large institutional projects are so long, a few weeks of interruption would pass relatively quickly and wouldn’t require firms to cut staffing.

Moody said that, so far, material and product supply chain delays had caused only a few minor hiccups to schedule, but had encouraged the company to think more about the necessity of items coming from halfway around the world.

“Some of these products look really nice, but are they essential?” he said.

coronavirus pandemic
Curtis Moody and son, Jonathan

Given that occupancy permits may be delayed because of a missing lightbulb from China, shipments of which may be delayed because of the pandemic, “we have to be a little more thoughtful about where [products] are coming from.” Memories of these supply chain disruptions may drive designers to source products and materials more locally even after the pandemic recedes.

The crisis could also spur changes to construction technology, encouraging contractors to adopt tools that could decrease the number of people on-site, like site-monitoring drones or robotic delivery.

Moody said that his firm’s move toward state-of-the-art teleconferencing techniques a few months ago now seems prescient and is helping the company weather the crisis. Similar forward-thinking about construction sites might be what gets the industry through this or coming crises.

While it’s easy to feel bogged down by the daily onslaught of news, Moody stressed the importance of looking ahead. “We do know that this won’t last forever,” he said, “and the things that we’ve been working on will need to continue when ready.”

In the meantime, he is seeing some upsides to the interruptions to normal work routines. “[The disruptions are] forcing us to really question what is essential and teaching us what is important.

We’ve seen our staff and clients be more decisive and thoughtful about how to best leverage expertise, maximize value, and treat people the right way. We’re seeing our humanity on display, and we’re not ashamed to show that we care for one another.”

 

Full interview at The Architect’s Newspaper

 

Related: 15 Black Architects Who Helped Build America

 

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1 min read

Howard University to receive $13 Million as part of Coronavirus Stimulus Package

howard university

The Senate unanimously passed an approximately $2.2 trillion stimulus package late Wednesday night in an effort to jump-start an economy severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

This coronavirus response package makes millions of dollars in funding available for Howard University through September 2021.

howard university
Washington DC, Howard University campus sign. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/UIG via Getty Images)

The draft legislation calls for $13 million “to remain available through September 30, 2021, to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, domestically or internationally, including to help defray the expenses directly caused by coronavirus and to enable grants to students for expenses directly related to coronavirus and the disruption of university operations.”

As you can imagine, not everyone is happy about this news. Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz took to Twitter, saying , “$13,000,000 in taxpayer funds could be going to families across the nation struggling to put food on the table in the midst of COVID-19. Instead, it’s going to Howard University. Education is important- but a $13 million check to Howard does not belong in COVID-19 relief.”

What Gaetz failed to realize is that Howard is a federally chartered university that is rightfully owed emergency funding because Congressional appropriations fund the school, which also runs Howard University Hospital, a medical facility that has been designated one of DC’s COVID-19 treatment facilities.

 

-Tony O. Lawson

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4 mins read

The COVID-19 Effect on Black Business: PR Firm Owner – DANIELLE

covid-19

The COVID-19 global pandemic will without a doubt, affect Black owned businesses for years to come.

In this series, we will be sharing personal stories from Black entrepreneurs and professionals about how they are currently dealing with this new reality.

In this installment, we spoke with Danielle Tyler, founder of Public Relations firm, TheCommsEffect.

COVID-19
Danielle Tyler, Founder @ TheCommsEffect

What were your initial thoughts when you learned about the outbreak?

My thoughts went through sort of an evolution from “hmmmm” after first learning about the outbreak in China back in January to “maybe I should be paying more attention to this” in February to “this is quite scary and will have a lasting effect on our livelihood and economy”. It’s almost surreal – like we’re playing a part in a movie, but it’s our new reality.

How has it affected your business?

I’ve had to shift my mindset. I know people take an opportunity like this to go out and get new leads and new business, but I’m more focused on providing value to my audience at the moment knowing that so many are already being effected financially by this pandemic.

I host a quarterly brunch for women who are seeking professional elevation and I’ve had to postpone that event for obvious reasons, as well as a series of branding workshops for entrepreneurs that was set to start next month. I’ve had to adjust and readjust my approach to my business and will continue to do so until this thing plays out.

What new strategies have you implemented or do you plan to implement in your business?

I’ve set aside time this week to reevaluate my strategy, develop new content for videos and posts, create a plan for starting my podcast, and look into hosting a virtual branding webinar for people who are interested in attending for a small fee. That’s the thing about consulting and owning your own business – you have to be able to adapt and shift gears to accommodate different circumstances as they arise.

If there’s one thing we should all take away from this, it’s that we are in less control of our external environment than we’d like to think we are but we do have complete control over how we adapt and navigate through challenges when they come our way.

If you had one ask of your community right now, what would it be?

Can I pick two? For one, please practice social distancing. Whether you agree with the panic level or not, what’s causing the virus to spread so fast is due to people being a “carrier” of it and not displaying symptoms, yet passing it along to someone who may not be able to fight it off as well as your body can.

Number two, everyone has a bit of resiliency in them – some more than others. Your ability to be resilient, face what we’re dealing with, adapt, re-adjust, and move forward accordingly is what will help you save your business. Be safe and be resilient.

 

-Tony O. Lawson

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5 mins read

Coronavirus and Black Entrepreneurship: The Impact On My Life And Business – ABU

black entrepreneurship

The Coronavirus pandemic has resulted in a brutal decline in economic activity that is hitting many Black owned businesses and professionals hard.

In this limited series, we will be sharing personal stories from Black entrepreneurs and professionals about how they are dealing with this new reality.

Coronavirus and Black Entrepreneurship
Abu Kamara – Co-Founder, President @ Grovara

What were your initial thoughts when you learned about the outbreak?

As entrepreneurs, our first responsibility is taking care of our team by making sure we (Grovara) provide resources and support to keep our team going when things get rough. 

So, my initial thoughts were to immediately re-strategize, work with team members to come up cost cutting strategies, reroute some of those funds saved to payroll operations in order to guarantee we weather the storm together, intact.

We were at the point of scale where development for our B2B Global Marketplace platform for wellness brands had just been completed, readying for launch and scale, and then BOOM – there’s a global pandemic. Rapid problems at this scale calls for rapid decision making and execution. 

How has it affected your business?

We had a strong January + February, crushing our numbers when compared to the previous year and then all of sudden our sales have come to a screeching halt. A good number of recurring sales and almost all of the new opportunities has dried up.

Our customers in Hong Kong, UAE, Kuwait, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, France, Belgium, South Africa are all in countries going through complete or partial lockdown.

However, even though the entire global economy is looking bleak, I see this an opportunity to keep providing excellence services to both our brands and retail partners, continue a strong push with business development, keep perfecting our platform and get ready for scale once the pandemic has subsided.

Believe you me, Grovara will be one of the first companies out the block once countries open again for business across the world. 

How has it affected your lifestyle?

I am naturally an extrovert so most definitely the socializing part of life, enjoy time with friends, family, and business partners has changed. However, I see this as a good opportunity to hunker down and get back to the basics while doubling my efforts on the business front. This will ultimately help improve the lifestyle once we get past this ?.

What new strategies have you implemented or do you plan to implement in your business?

I consider this as a time when your strategy needs a strategy. We now find ourselves in a situation where we quickly needed to re-strategize with pretty much everything.

From business development, technology development, sales approach, operations, cross utilizing team members with more responsibilities, account and market focus, down to negotiating with banks for grace periods.

It’s been an interesting exercise and I have to say this is the first time in my 10 years of entrepreneurship that  I’ve seen the caring side of banks lol…they need to keep that same energy after the pandemic. 

If you had one ask of your community right now, what would it be?

This is the time more than ever to truly support each other in the community, and make an effort to buy from other each other and keep patronizing our businesses.

There are a lot of entrepreneurs that are hurting out there. We already know that during normal times, more than half of companies that have black owners were turned down for loans.

The most important way to support our community right now, is by supporting with our dollars. Outside of this, during hard times let’s do the ultimate good which is spreading love. 

 

-Tony O. Lawson

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2 mins read

7 year old activist uses $600 of savings to make coronavirus care packages for seniors, feed 90 students

maryland

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, a first-grader in Gaithersburg, Maryland, used money he saved up to help those in need as a way to overcome fear with acts of love.

Cavanaugh Bell, 7, spent $600 of his own money, saved up from two birthdays and three Christmases, to purchase and package 65 “COVID-19 Carepacks” along with 31 hot meals from a local restaurant, Buca Di Beppo, to serve to senior citizens and help the local businesses impacted by being closed after Gov. Larry Hogan shut down restaurants Monday.

“What’s up guys! I’m at Target,” Cavanaugh said in a video for his supporters. “Thank you for your donations, and look at all the stuff we got.”

He filled several shopping carts with food and a bottle of bleach to hand out to seniors. One responded, “Oh, thank you, sweetie!”

The 7-year-old added in another video, “Don’t forget our senior citizens. They need to eat, too.”

On top of that, he also helped feed 90 students in need on Thursday.

Cavanaugh started a non-profit called “Cool and Dope” with the mission to “eradicate all bullying and youth suicide through political and social action by his 18th birthday on Nov. 20, 2030.”

He became a philanthropist and anti-bullying activist after, at just 5 years old, he was bullied to the point of having suicidal thoughts. His mom encouraged him to counteract his experience by creating a movement to spread positivity and love.

In such a short amount of time and at a young age, he’s already accomplished so much.

He gave a TEDX Youth Talk, got the city of Gaithersburg to dedicate February 21 as Bullying Awareness Day in honor of Gabriel Taye, an 8-year-old in Ohio who committed suicide because of bullying in 2017, his county designated October as Bullying Prevention Month, and this October he hopes to lead the Anti-Bullying Rally in Washington, D.C.

 

Source: FOX 11 LA

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