On December 14th, the City of Salem Board of Works announced the waiver for debit and credit card transaction fees will expire
beginning January 1, 2020.

During the height of the pandemic, the Board of Works
temporarily waived the fees with the City of Salem covering the expense to the payment processor on behalf of customers.

“The Board of Works previously voted to suspend debit and credit card payment fees when residents were quarantined and unable to make payments in person,” said Salem Mayor Justin Green. “The City of Salem covered the costs of those fees on behalf of residents during that time.”

Effective January 1st, 2021, the transaction fee will resume for customers paying their bill with a debit or credit card.

The charge is $2.95 per transaction and is remitted to the
payment processor.

As always, residents can avoid paying the transaction fee by paying via check or cash.

If anyone has a question about the fee reinstatement or their utility bill, please contact the City of Salem Utilities office at (812) 883-3937.

American Senior Communities (ASC) is actively preparing our senior care communities following the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use and has begun administration of the COVID-19 vaccine.

ASC is partnering with CVS and their long-term care pharmacy, Omnicare, who bring their expertise to serving seniors. 

“We are thankful for all who worked to bring the vaccine safely to us,” according to Sherri Davies, Vice President of Sales, PR & Marketing. 

“The vaccine is being offered free of charge to all residents and staff in two doses, given 28 days apart. Our goal is to have 100% of our residents and staff vaccinated. We have aggressively provided education and counseling to ensure compliance.

Videos and photos were taken on Dec. 28 at Bethany Village, one of several ASC locations where the vaccination process has begun. 

Dixie Spear became ASC’s first resident to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. You can access the photos and video here. 

CVS is actively working on a full schedule for vaccinations, and we expect to have all locations scheduled soon.

As part of ASC’s awareness campaign to achieve victory over COVID through vaccination, named “Gimme a V!”, ASC will launch a new series of commercials in January. The series aims to educate the public by combatting the most common fears surrounding the vaccine. The commercials are fronted by Quinn Buckner, NCAA & NBA Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist, Civic leader, Sportscaster, the voice of the Indiana Pacers and American Senior Communities team member. This link previews just one of the commercials in the series. https://youtu.be/cvtu2gHjCmA

ASC continues to be in close contact with local, state, and federal health authorities, following their guidance, mandates, and reporting requirements.

The residents and families we serve are our highest priority, and while this vaccine brings new hope and heightened optimism in the fight against COVID-19, we will continue to provide high-quality care with compassion to those entrusted to us with an overabundance of public health and infection control precautions.