Live in DC and lost your job or your freelancing work dried up? Some of my friends had trouble finding the right links, so here’s a thread on where to go & what to do. /1

1] File for unemployment benefits.

If you had a job, click on this link /2 https://coronavirus.dc.gov/recovery-individuals

I don’t know if DC has any renter-specific help. I couldn’t find any, but you should definitely look around /8

If you were a freelancer, a diagram of rules of whether you’re eligible are here. /3

https://coronavirus.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/coronavirus/AEMIFlowchartGovernmentCOVID-19Relief.pdf

To file for unemployment benefits, create an account and file out an online form. /4
https://does.dcnetworks.org/claimantservices/

2) If you lost your health insurance, file for Medicaid

Start here for info and a link to apply /5

https://dchealthlink.com/individuals/medicaid?page

Before you apply, check with each of your doctors to see:
- do they take Medicaid?
- if they don’t, how much do they charge for each visit? If you have a doc they never run lab tests and you don’t see them frequently, paying out of pocket for each visit might be affordable /6

3) If you have a mortgage, see if you can get help
(Not DC specific)

Lenders are overwhelmed w calls right now, so create an online account if you don’t already have one and see if they’ve got forms for asking for mortgage relief/assistance /6

If they do, you’ll have to fill out a bunch of forms and then upload them.

There are 2 major types of relief: forbearance, where you delay payments for x months but then have to pay it all back at once, and mortgage modifications, where, for ex, it’s added to end of the loan/7

For more info, check out DC’s main site on th Coronavirus pandemic /9 https://coronavirus.dc.gov