Michigan Gov. Whitmer: Detroit-area hospital system ‘almost at capacity’Video
LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer warned Tuesday that a Detroit-area hospital system was “almost at capacity” treating people with the coronavirus, as the state’s stay-at-home order kicked in to reduce the spread. The governor, speaking about her measure with WDET-FM, pointed to Beaumont Health, which has eight hospitals in...
2 in Pennsylvania, New Jersey accused of coughing on people, citing coronavirus
TRENTON, N.J. — Authorities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania say individuals in both states have been charged with coughing on people in stores and saying they were infected with the coronavirus. The New Jersey attorney general’s office said Tuesday that 50-year-old George Falcone of Freehold is accused of having coughed...
More than 750,000 masks auctioned for huge markup while hospitals run out
At a time when shortages of protective gear are putting health care workers at risk, more than 750,000 medical-grade masks went up for online auction in Texas. Bottles of Purell sold for over $40. A box of 16 masks went for $170. They could be had retail for $3 each...
Los Angeles County reports virus death of person under 18
LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles County on Tuesday reported what may be the first U.S. death of a person under 18 from coronavirus. Health officials said the youth lived in the Mojave Desert city of Lancaster north of Los Angeles but didn’t provide other details. “This is a devastating reminder...
Covid-19 testing at zoo produces 10 additional cases, group says
Testing for covid-19 at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium parking lot on Monday resulted in 10 positive tests, Central Outreach Wellness Center officials announced Tuesday evening. Five positive tests came out of testing in Beaver County. More than 600 people were screened for testing at the Pittsburgh Zoo location,...
Pennsylvania House votes to delay primary election for 5 weeks
The House voted preliminarily on Tuesday to delay Pennsylvania’s primary election on April 28 for five weeks, until June 2. The House is expected to send the bill to the Senate with another vote on Wednesday. The Republican-sponsored amendment would also let counties consolidate polling places, in part because some...
Moscow tells some victims to treat coronavirus at home
MOSCOW — Authorities in Moscow have changed course and are now saying coronavirus patients with relatively light symptoms should receive treatment at home. Previously, Russian health care officials had hospitalized all those who tested positive for the coronavirus along with those suspected of having it. Russia has reported 495 cases...
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo demands help as state coronavirus cases surge above 25,000
NEW YORK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo offered a grim update on the exploding coronavirus pandemic Tuesday, saying New York is in the grip of a frightening “spike” with 25,665 people now infected in the state and 210 dead. Speaking at the Javits Center in Manhattan, where the state is stockpiling...
Erie Mayor Joe Schember declares state of emergency over covid-19
Erie Mayor Joe Schember on Tuesday issued a state of emergency declaration for the city, effective immediately, because of the covid-19 pandemic. Schember said the declaration is necessary to protect city residents. He also said that by officially declaring a state of emergency “it helps ensure that we can be...
Penn State confirms case of covid-19
Penn State reported its first case of covid-19 on its University Park campus on Tuesday. An alert was sent to students and the rest of the university community. No information about the individual was immediately available. “It is up to public health authorities to determine what information is shared publicly...
Fake meme claims hunting and fishing seasons are canceled in Pennsylvania
A meme circulating on social media channels falsely claims that the Pennsylvania Game Commission has canceled all hunting and fishing seasons for 2020. But as the commission noted on its official page, it “has not suspended, altered or changed any hunting regulations, seasons or bag limits in response to the...
Local officials criticize Liberty University as students return
RICHMOND, Va. — Officials in Lynchburg, Va., said Tuesday they were fielding complaints about the hundreds of students who have returned from their spring break to Liberty University, where President Jerry Falwell Jr. has welcomed them back amid the coronavirus pandemic. “We could not be more disappointed in the action...
U.N. chief urges G20 to adopt ‘wartime’ plan with trillions
UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged leaders of the world’s 20 major industrialized nations on Tuesday to adopt a “wartime” plan including a stimulus package “in the trillions of dollars” for businesses, workers and households in developing countries trying to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. He said in a...
‘A bullet train’: New York coronavirus peak may come soon, swamp hospitals
NEW YORK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo sounded his most dire warning yet about the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday, saying the infection rate in New York is accelerating and the state could be as close as two weeks away from a crisis that sees 40,000 people in intensive care. Such a surge...
Trump hoping to see economy reopened by Easter amid pandemic
WASHINGTON — With lives and the economy hanging in the balance, President Donald Trump said Tuesday he is hoping the United States will be reopened by Easter as he weighs how to relax nationwide social-distancing guidelines to put some workers back on the job during the coronavirus outbreak. Trump’s optimism...
Coronavirus testing at Pittsburgh Zoo parking lot draws another big crowd
It was, well, a zoo at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium again Tuesday. People in their vehicles lined the parking lot of the zoo in hopes of getting tested for the coronavirus. The Central Outreach Wellness Center is offering drive-thru testing in the lot between 11 a.m. and 4...
Europe eyes smartphone location data to stem virus spreadVideo
Several European nations are evaluating powerful but potentially intrusive tools for fighting the coronavirus pandemic, a move that could put public health at odds with individual privacy. The tools in question are apps that would use real-time phone-location data to track the movements of virus carriers and the people they...
Pennsylvania State Police issue 17 new warnings Tuesday to businesses that failed to close
Pennsylvania State Police issued 17 more warnings Tuesday to businesses deemed “non-life-sustaining” that were still operating, bringing the two-day total to 44. Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday ordered any Pennsylvania business that does not serve a life-sustaining purpose to close in an effort to slow the spread of covid-19. “As...
Too close for comfort: Belgium agrees to shut hair salonsVideo
BRUSSELS — When the Belgian government announced last week that hairdressers would still be able to operate during the coronavirus epidemics, many in the profession were dumbfounded and furious. Fearing for their health and bereft of the same financial benefits as other businesses which had been forced to close, angry...
Can blood from coronavirus survivors treat the newly ill?
Hospitals are gearing up to test if a century-old treatment used to fight off flu and measles outbreaks in the days before vaccines, and tried more recently against SARS and Ebola, just might work for COVID-19, too: using blood donated from patients who’ve recovered. Doctors in China attempted the first...
Corrections officers push Pennsylvania to stop inmate transfers
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s state corrections officers’ union wants the state prison system to stop all transfers of inmates as a preventative measure against potential spread of the new coronavirus from one institution to another. Meanwhile, more businesses are challenging Gov. Tom Wolf’s order closing the physical locations of businesses determined...
W.Va. stay-home order starts Tuesday amid virus concernsVideo
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Stay home, West Virginia. That’s the message from Gov. Jim Justice as his order for residents to stay inside and close all nonessential businesses takes effect Tuesday night to stem the spread of the coronavirus. The Republican’s executive order goes into effect at 8 p.m. It says...
India’s prime minister decrees 21-day lockdown to curb virusVideo
NEW DELHI — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a “total lockdown” in the country of 1.3 billion people during a televised address Tuesday night, the most extensive stay-at-home order yet in the world’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The 21-day lockdown was set to begin at midnight. “To save...
PennDOT reopens 23 rest stops on Pennsylvania interstates
PennDOT has reopened 23 of the state’s 30 rest areas, which had been closed to slow the spread of coronavirus. The department partially reopened 13 facilities last week but kept indoor restrooms closed while providing portable restrooms and handwashing facilities. Those 13 are among the 23 rest areas returned to...
YouTube to limit video quality around the world for a month
YouTube will reduce the quality of videos around the world starting Tuesday, an effort by the world’s most popular video site to ease internet traffic during the coronavirus outbreak. Over the coming days, viewers will at first see YouTube videos in standard definition, the company said. Users will still be...
