Pennsylvania category, Page 174
Census countdown is on and a lot of Pennsylvanians haven’t been counted
Even as Pennsylvania’s census response rate ticks 3 percentage points above the national rate of 62.8%, many counties across the Keystone State are lagging way behind. As of Thursday, the U.S. Census Bureau reports less than a third of Forest and Sullivan counties’ residents have responded while counties like Chester,...
Poll shows Pennsylvanians think it’s important to follow covid safety guidelines. But are they actually doing it?
Pennsylvania’s registered voters strongly approve of coronavirus-related safety guidelines suggested by state and federal health authorities, a recent poll shows. According to a Franklin & Marshall College Poll, two in three, or 68%, registered voters believe it is “extremely important” to wear a mask whenever they leave home, and close...
Pennsylvania reports 654 coronavirus cases, 5 new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 654 new positive cases of covid-19 and five new deaths on Sunday. The new cases bring the state’s total to 113,590, with all 67 counties having reported cases, and 7,209 deaths. This the fifth day of cases under 1,000 in the state and its...
Pennsylvania reports 888 coronavirus cases, 15 deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 888 new positive cases of covid-19 and 15 deaths on Saturday. The new cases bring the state’s total to 112,936, with all 67 counties having reported cases, and 7,204 deaths. The state health department reported increases in deaths related to covid-19 in only nine...
Pennsylvania to cover cost of stamps for ballots in election
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania will foot the cost of postage for voters to mail in ballots in November’s general election, officials said Friday, a move that Gov. Tom Wolf has made a priority as the coronavirus pandemic unexpectedly fueled high interest in voting by mail under a new state law. The...
Pennsylvania cancels vehicle auction due to covid-19
Pennsylvania officials announced Friday that the commonwealth’s Aug. 11 vehicle auction is canceled as a result of the covid-19 pandemic. The auction was set to be held at Manheim Keystone Pennsylvania Auto Auction in Grantville. It was the fourth of six vehicle auctions slated for 2020. The next is scheduled...
Pennsylvania posts another day of new covid-19 cases below 1,000
On Friday, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 970 new cases of covid-19, the third straight day new incidents were under the 1,000 mark. Health officials posted 13 new deaths, its lowest new count since Monday, when it added only four deaths. On Friday, the department added new deaths in...
Philadelphia trash piles up as pandemic stymies its removal
What would Ben Franklin think? The Founding Father who launched one of America’s first street-sweeping programs in Philadelphia in the late 1750s would see and smell piles of fly-infested, rotting household waste, bottles and cans as the city that he called home struggles to overcome a surge in garbage caused...
Gov. Wolf, GOP critic spar over social media post parroting health secretary’s LGBQT comments
A public back-and-forth between Gov. Tom Wolf and one of his vocal House critics played out Thursday over the Lebanon County lawmaker’s parody of the health department secretary. The feud ended in calls from both parties for censures, resignations and dismissals. The incident started Wednesday with a social media post...
Pennsylvania reports 860 new coronavirus cases, 14 deaths
Pennsylvania’s total cases of coronavirus has reached 111,078. The state’s Department of Health on Thursday reported 860 new cases. Officials said the number of tests administered statewide within the past seven days is 163,936, with 6,822 individual positive cases being found. With 14 new deaths, the statewide total is now...
Fast-moving Pa. building fire kills roughly 42,000 chickens
MARTIC — A fast-moving fire roared through a building at a southern Pennsylvania site, killing about 42,000 chickens and causing nearly $2 million dollars in damages, authorities said. No humans injuries were reported in the fire in Martic Township, which was reported around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. The building was one...
Pa. House speakers get reprieve from criminal history plaques
HARRISBURG — The portraits of three former Pennsylvania House speakers who went to prison on corruption-related charges have received a reprieve of sorts. In one of his last acts in office, Mike Turzai, who in June resigned from his post as House speaker and his House seat, quietly ordered the...
Western Pa. residents among those receiving ‘mystery seed’ packets
Shawn O’Mahony of Penn Hills ordered a bunch of seeds online to jump-start his 2020 garden. So, when a couple of packets he didn’t recognize showed up in the spring, it didn’t seem like a big deal. “I received two of them a couple months ago,” O’Mahony said. “They were...
Pa. commissions denounce Trump memo excluding those in U.S. illegally from census
Several Pennsylvania commissions are denouncing an executive memorandum signed by President Donald Trump last week that seeks to bar people who are in the United States illegally from filling out the census, the once-a-decade survey that determines federal funding and congressional seats. Trump, who signed the memorandum July 21, said...
Pennsylvania coronavirus case total breaks 110,000
Pennsylvania surpassed 110,000 coronavirus cases on Wednesday, according to a report from the state’s Department of Health. A total of 834 new positive results brought the state’s total to 110,218. The state also reported 16 additional deaths to bring the total to 7,162 attributed to covid-19 since the state’s outbreak...
Online courses offer mental health resources for firefighters, EMS personnel
Pennsylvania’s State Fire Commissioner on Wednesday announced online mental health resources for firefighters and emergency services personnel in a move to help dismantle the stigma surrounding seeking mental health services. “More and more of our first responders are affected by the invisible wounds of traumatic experiences they have been through...
Professional strippers stage clothing-optional strike at Pa. parkVideo
Community members are angry after getting an eyeful during a stripper protest at Philadelphia’s Malcolm X Park earlier this week. As 6ABC in Philly reports, the irate community members and the group Stilettos Inc. don’t see eye-to-eye on the worth of the flesh-exposing labor strike, aimed at covid-19 restrictions and...
Dr. Rachel Levine responds to transphobic comments: ‘I do not have time for intolerance’
Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine on Tuesday broke her silence about people who have harassed and directed transphobic comments at her in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. At the start of a news briefing, Levine said she felt compelled to “personally respond to the multiple incidents of...
Covid-19 testing of all nursing home residents, staff complete, Pa. health department says
All of Pennsylvania’s 693 nursing homes have completed at least one round of covid-19 testing for all residents and staff, Pennsylvania Department of Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine announced Tuesday. This first round of testing will help to prevent further spread of the virus by detecting residents and staff who...
State, Westmoreland see drop in OD deaths; Allegheny sees increase
Pennsylvania saw a slight decrease in drug overdose deaths in 2019 for what could be the second consecutive year the number has dropped. The state health department on Tuesday released preliminary data that shows 4,348 people died in Pennsylvania from a drug overdose last year, a 1.7% decrease from 2018...
Pennsylvania reports 1,120 new covid-19 cases, 24 deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 1,120 new coronavirus cases and 24 new deaths Tuesday. The number of new reported state covid-19 cases was the second highest this month, with the highest coming July 24 with 1,213 cases. Total coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania now sit at 109,384. The state surpassed...
Penn State Extension plans online series on creating food plots for deer
Hunters who create food plots are not just looking to bring deer to an area with a good food source. They’re also playing a key role in sustainability, helping along the next generation of fawns. Penn State Extension officials will host a four-week webinar series on food plots beginning Wednesday....
Pa. school leaders to state officials: We need specifics, not guidance, for reopening plans
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s existing reopening guidance for schools is too vague, and superintendents and school boards need more specifics from the state Department of Health about how to do it safely, a superintendents group said Monday following a call with Wolf administration officials. The superintendents asked for more concrete recommendations...
Pennsylvania posts 839 new covid-19 cases on Monday
The Pennsylvania Department of Health announced 839 new cases of covid-19 on Monday. For the second straight day, the state reported a new case count below 1,000. There have been a total of 108,264 cases of covid-19 in Pennsylvania since the beginning of the pandemic in March. On Monday, there...
Wolf sides with transparency in allowing Right-to-Know bill to become law
Saying he was “erring on the side of transparency,” Gov. Tom Wolf allowed legislation requiring his administration to process Right-to-Know Law requests during emergency declarations to become law without his signature. Wolf previously said he would veto the legislation. Unanimously approved in both chambers, House Bill 2463 requires all agencies...
