Since the coronavirus pandemic has reached the U.S., millions of Americans have lost their jobs, and the Federal Reserve estimates that the worst is still yet to come.

A record 3.28 million Americans filed initial jobless claims for the week that ended March 21. And a new study by economists at the Fed projects that total job loss could reach 47 million – or a 32.1% unemployment rate – before the threat from COVID-19 is beaten, according to CNBC.

“These are very large numbers by historical standards, but this is a rather unique shock that is unlike any other experienced by the U.S. economy in the last 100 years,” Fed economist Miguel Faria-e-Castro wrote in a research paper posted last week.

To help lessen the fallout from these bleak statistics, the U.S. government last week passed an unprecedented $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill (known as the CARES Act). The massive stimulus set aside hundreds of millions of dollars for small businesses and larger corporations, but it also beefed up unemployment benefits and expanded them to include contract workers and the self-employed – changes that could affect promo professionals hit hard by the economic impact of the pandemic.

Here are few details about what the expanded benefits entail and how to access them:

• The CARES Act gives laid-off and furloughed workers an extra $600 a week for unemployment insurance for up to four months (on top of their state’s unemployment benefits). It also extends existing state benefits by 13 weeks.

• The CARES Act extends unemployment insurance to workers who usually aren’t eligible for such benefits at the state level, as long as their unemployment is connected to the coronavirus outbreak. That means part-time employees, freelancers, independent contractors, gig workers and the self-employed could be eligible to collect unemployment benefits.

• Officials want laid-off workers to get these benefits as soon as possible. The bill incentivizes states to pay out as early as possible, by having the federal government cover the first week of benefits for states that pay recipients as soon as they become eligible.

• To sign up for benefits, call your state’s unemployment offices or fill out an application online. (Many in-person offices are closed due to social distancing.) Be sure you are on your state’s official unemployment website. Pennsylvania’s unemployment site warns of fraudulent sites and reminds workers that the state “will never ask you to pay for UC [unemployment compensation] services, or ask you for your credit information.”

• Experts recommend calling or visiting websites at off-peak hours to ensure getting through. Some states are experiencing crashed websites and clogged phone systems due to high volume, according to CNBC.