General sorry for ‘miscommunication’ over vaccine shipments
The Army general in charge of getting covid-19 vaccines across the United States apologized on Saturday for “miscommunication” with states over the number of doses to be delivered in the early stages of distribution. “I failed. I’m adjusting. I am fixing and we will move forward from there,” Gen. Gustave...
Another U.S. coronavirus record; vaccine shipments reduced
First, Theresa Pirozzi’s 85-year-old dad got sick and was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. Days later, her mom was so weak she could barely walk. Now, instead of getting ready for Christmas, Pirozzi is anxiously awaiting updates from the hospital where both of her parents are in intensive...
Pennsylvania posts nearly 10,000 new coronavirus cases; 217 deaths
Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 9,834 new coronavirus cases, as the Keystone State gets nearer to accumulating 550,000 cases. The new data bring the total cases to 548,489. That’s a jump of more than 67,000 cases from this time last week (481,118). Officials said 50,157 of total cases are considered probable....
Pence, top congressional leaders get vaccines; Trump absent
WASHINGTON — Vice President Mike Pence and the leaders of the House and Senate received their first doses of the covid-19 vaccine on Friday as they tried to reassure the American public that the shot is safe. Pence, in a live-television event, celebrated the milestone as “a medical miracle” that...
Seattle police clear homeless camp, make arrests
SEATTLE — Police cleared a homeless camp in Seattle early Friday morning after a judge declined to block authorities from removing the people and tents. Police arrested 24 people and accused them of various offenses including failure to disperse, trespass and resisting arrest, the Seattle Police Department said on Twitter....
U.S. clears Moderna vaccine for covid-19, 2nd shot in arsenal
WASHINGTON —The U.S. added a second covid-19 vaccine to its arsenal Friday, boosting efforts to beat back an outbreak so dire that the nation is regularly recording more than 3,000 deaths a day. Much-needed doses are set to arrive Monday after the Food and Drug Administration authorized an emergency rollout...
UNC suspends 3 fraternities that feds linked to drug ring
RALEIGH, N.C. — The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced Friday that it has suspended three fraternities that have been linked to a drug trafficking ring that federal prosecutors say funneled large amounts of drugs into three college campuses. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Greensboro announced on Thursday...
House passes bill to avert government shutdown; Senate next
WASHINGTON — The House passed a two-day stopgap spending bill Friday night to avert a partial government shutdown, trying to buy time for frustratingly slow endgame negotiations on an almost $1 trillion covid-19 economic relief package. Senate action wasn’t guaranteed but appeared likely before the midnight deadline. The House passed...
Watchdog: George Floyd protests overwhelmed NYPD, sparking conflict
NEW YORK — The New York Police Department was caught off guard by the size of the spring protests after the killing of George Floyd and resorted to aggressive disorder control methods that stoked tensions and stifled free speech, the city’s inspector general said in a report released Friday. The...
Wrongfully convicted Michigan man freed after 38 years
JACKSON, Mich. — A man who was sentenced to life without parole in an arson fatality has been freed after 38 years in a Michigan prison after a woman admitted that she lied under oath during his 1983 trial. Walter Forbes, 63, walked out of Kinross Correctional Facility on Nov....
Pennsylvania sees fewer daily covid-19 cases, deaths than in recent days
Pennsylvania on Friday reported a slight drop in new coronavirus cases with 9,320 added, the fewest in three days. Since reporting a record 12,884 new cases two weeks ago, the state has seen just seven days below 10,000 cases. The seven-day average is 9,803 cases, down from a high of...
UN health agency gains access to nearly 2 billion doses of covid vaccines
GENEVA — The head of the World Health Organization said Friday that the U.N. health agency’s program to help get COVID-19 vaccines to all countries in need, whether rich or poor, has gained access to nearly 2 billion doses of several “promising” vaccine candidates. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said...
Shutdown deadline looms over covid relief talks
WASHINGTON — Bearing down on a midnight shutdown deadline, top negotiators on a must-pass, almost $1 trillion covid-19 economic relief package are committed to sealing an agreement Friday as they resolve remaining differences in hopes of passing the legislation this weekend. The pressure is on. Government funding lapses at midnight...
Motorist rescued after 10 hours in car buried by snow plow
OWEGO, N.Y. — A man who drove off the road in this week’s snowstorm spent 10 hours trapped in his car after a passing plow buried it, finally managing to get a 911 call through and being rescued in the nick of time by a New York state trooper. Kevin...
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate declines to 6.6% in November
WILKES-BARRE — Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was down 0.8 points over the month to 6.6% in November — falling below the U.S. rate of 6.7% in November for the first time since May 2015. The commonwealth’s unemployment rate was 2 points above its November 2019 level while the national rate was...
Coronavirus vaccine provided to U.S. Supreme Court
WASHINGTON — The justices on the U.S. Supreme Court are being provided with doses of the coronavirus vaccine. That is according to a letter by Capitol Physician Brian Monahan, which says the court, along with Congress and executive branch agencies are being given a limited supply of doses “for continuity...
Vice President Pence, wife Karen, get covid-19 vaccine
WASHINGTON — Vice President Mike Pence became the highest profile world leader to be vaccinated for the coronavirus Friday. Pence’s wife Karen and Surgeon General Jerome Adams also received shots on live television. President Donald Trump’s administration helped deliver vaccinations against the coronavirus earlier than even some in his administration...
Germany to start vaccinations in nursing homes
BERLIN — Germany’s health minister urged for patience on Friday as the country prepares to start vaccinating people against covid-19, saying those most at risk should be immunized first. Jens Spahn said people in nursing homes would be the first to receive shots on Dec. 27, when Germany expects to...
French teens protest after transgender classmate’s suicide
LILLE, France — About 100 teenagers rallied in northern France Friday to pay homage to a transgender student who killed herself this week after facing tensions with school officials around her gender identity. The case has drawn indignation on social media and national concern. The students held a sit-in and...
Some states say Pfizer vaccine allotments cut for next week
O’FALLON, Mo. — Several states say they have been told to expect far fewer doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech covid-19 vaccine in its second week of distribution, prompting worries about potential delays in shots for health care workers and long-term care residents. But senior Trump administration officials on Thursday downplayed the...
Biden picks Regan for EPA nominee, Haaland for interior head
President-elect Joe Biden announced Thursday that he had chosen North Carolina regulator Michael S. Regan as his nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency and New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland as his pick for interior secretary. Biden said the selections round out what he said would be an experienced climate...
8 nuns die of covid-19 in last week at Wisconsin convent
ELM GROVE, Wis. — Eight nuns living at a retirement home for sisters in suburban Milwaukee died of covid-19 complications in the last week — including four who passed away on the same day — a grim reminder of how quickly the virus can spread in congregate living situations, even...
5 accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer plead not guilty
DETROIT — Federal prosecutors say they have a “large volume of evidence” — so much that they requested an extra 40 days before bringing an indictment — but five of the six men charged with conspiring to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer pleaded not guilty Thursday. The evidence ranges from...
Moderna’s covid-19 vaccine set for OK in U.S. with panel endorsement
WASHINGTON — A government advisory panel endorsed a second covid-19 vaccine Thursday, paving the way for the shot to be added to the U.S. vaccination campaign. The Food and Drug Administration is expected to follow the recommendation for the vaccine from Moderna and the National Institutes of Health. The FDA...
1,200 Pa. health care workers vaccinated so far for covid-19Video
About 1,200 Pennsylvania health care workers received covid-19 vaccinations over the past three days as more shipments continue to arrive at dozens of hospitals statewide, Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine said Thursday. No adverse effects have been reported in the 1,205 vaccinations, Levine said. Sixteen of the initial 87...
