Post COVID 19 – IRAQCHCCO

Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO)...

Covid-19 Goals

Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) has re-engineered all manpower with the aim of achieving the following projects/initiatives listed below:

Covid-19 Goals....Our Process

Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) has re-engineered all manpower with the aim of achieving the following projects/initiatives listed below:

(i) CRITICAL INVESTMENTS:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is working to control the spread of the virus, provide life-saving equipment and medical supplies, and support local stability by building the capacity of local facilities and health workers to manage cases and keep communities safe. This assistance builds upon the U.S. Government's long-term support to Iraq, which includes more than US$70 billion in total assistance over the past 20 years, of which nearly US$4 billion were invested in the health sector.

(ii) CONTROLLING THE SPREAD:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is supporting health care facilities and health workers to identify COVID-19 cases, provide adequate care to patients, and enhance disease surveillance to improve government authorities' ability to manage outbreaks. Funding is also helping upgrade existing health centers with new equipment, conduct disinfection campaigns, and improve access to personal protective equipment for healthcare workers. Iraq Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is helping to improve health authorities' ability to successfully identify, isolate, and refer COVID-19 patients for treatment as well as prevent further infection at primary health facilities in vulnerable communities, including in camps for families displaced by conflict.

(iii) SUPPORTING HEALTH CARE INFRASTRUCTURE:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is supporting educational outreach programs and distributing essential hygiene kits, as well as more than 400 hand sanitizer stations, and at least half a million masks, to help at-risk communities better protect themselves against the spread of the disease through safe hygienic practices and up-to-date information. Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is also helping/assisting the Ministry of Health ability to respond effectively by helping their laboratories prepare for large-scale testing of COVID-19, donating ambulances, and supporting the development of vital public health emergency plans, protocols, and training materials for health workers to trace, control, and rapidly respond to evolving needs.

(iv) PROMOTING RESILIENCE THROUGH COMMUNITY OUTREACH:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is supporting Iraq's most vulnerable populations, including displaced families and those who have returned home to conflict-affected communities by delivering more than 19,000 food baskets to struggling families and through cash-based transfers to help nearly 80,000 internally displaced Iraqis and 22,000 Syrian refugees meet their critical basic needs. Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is funding training programs in communications and media relations with Iraqi government and civil society partners to ensure more accurate information on COVID-19 is shared with the public and to combat the spread of disinformation, particularly in vulnerable regions of the country.

Services

It is important to establish procedures at construction sites to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Companies must take into account any COVID-19 safety requirements on construction projects that are mandated by the state or city where the project is being built.

Even in the absence of mandatory requirements, certain safety measures are just good practice, as we all work together to fight the spread of the virus.

Funding also supports health-related public service announcements and awareness campaigns on gender-based violence awareness and prevention. To date, an ongoing series of Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) sponsored videos encouraging social distancing and other mitigation measures have been viewed more than 7 million times on social media.

Agencies of the federal government tend to issue guidance that is advisory in nature and leave the regulations to state and local authorities. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued COVID-19 Guidance for the Construction Workforce.

OSHA’s one-page alert includes 12 tips to help reduce the risk of exposure. This construction-specific OSHA guidance is in addition to OSHA’s general Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19. Note that employers in higher-risk industries such as construction do have certain heightened recording and reporting requirements, and may be more susceptible to OSHA COVID-19 investigations, especially if located in a geographic area where community transmission of COVID-19 has not decreased (OSHA guidance related to these topics is discussed in Pillsbury client alerts here and here.) [UPDATE: On May 26, OSHA issued additional guidance and established a webpage related to safety for construction projects.]

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has not issued guidance specific to the construction industry, it has issued general reopening guidance. The OSHA and CDC guidance are good starting points, but to understand any additional requirements, you need to look at the states and cities or counties in which your projects are under construction.

(v) PPE PROVISIONS:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is working closely with local partners **to build up coordinated, emergency preparedness and response plans across different sectors to ensure that even the most vulnerable communities maintain access to essential items and services. Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is also providing urgently-needed supplies to health directorates and medical facilities, ranging from hospital beds to privacy curtains and thermometers, masks, and gloves.

(vi) UNITING THE CITIZENS OF IRAQ:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is fostering social cohesion by supporting the implementation of COVID-related projects designed by inter-communal youth. Activities include distributing food and hygiene baskets, sewing and distributing masks for everyday use, and developing public awareness campaigns.

(vii) REHABILITAION FOR STABILIZATION:

**Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) is supporting efforts by the Iraqi Ministry of Health and local authorities to rehabilitate 12 health facilities and provide modern equipment to help respond to COVID-19. In addition, Iraqi Construction and Health Care Contract Office (IRAQCHCCO) will rehabilitate the ISIS-destroyed East Mosul Medical Fluid Factory, one of only two facilities of its kind in the country, which will help to restore greater self-sufficiency to the Iraqi medical supply chain.