Official: Pennsylvania may have passed coronavirus peak, but surges still possible

The state’s top health official said Tuesday she believes Pennsylvania has passed its coronavirus peak but cautioned that outbreaks and surges remain possible.

Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said the data and trends point toward the state being past the highest point for new cases and deaths, but she reiterated that “the virus determines the timeline.”

“As we start to reopen — as counties and regions go from red to yellow — we’re going to have to be very, very careful that we don’t see outbreaks and we are able to deal with those very, very quickly,” she said during a virtual press briefing.

The remarks came as the state inches toward the start of a phased reopening, with counties in the northwest and north-central parts of the state likely to see restrictions eased beginning May 8.

Levine and Gov. Tom Wolf have said they will announce by the end of the week which areas can move into the first phase of reopening, dubbed the yellow phase.

Officials have set criteria for counties and regions to be able to begin reopening, though both have stressed that there are no truly hard-and-fast rules.

Wolf, in a call with reporters early Tuesday afternoon, said officials will “try to be as logical and rational as we can,” noting that “there will be some subjectivity.”

“In the end, we’re looking at what we can do to keep people safe,” he said.

Once those phased reopenings are underway, Wolf said, health officials will be watching the number of new cases, mortality rates and other data points in those areas. If trends show an outbreak, he said, the reopening can and will be walked back.

The Department of Health on Tuesday reported more than 100 new deaths from covid-19 along with more than 1,200 new positive cases.

The 119 deaths reported to the state throughout the day Monday brought the statewide death toll to 1,716. There have now been 43,264 cases of covid-19 since the state saw its first two positive tests on March 6.

Among those deaths are eight more in Allegheny County, which now has a total of 87 – 78 are confirmed and nine are probable. The county also added 11 new positive cases for a total of 1,235.

Probable deaths are those for which covid-19 is listed on the death certificate and the deceased had symptoms and close contact with a confirmed case, but had not been tested.

Across the state, 2,781 covid-19 patients were hospitalized as of about 3 p.m. Of those, 600 were on ventilators and 14 were undergoing an intensive process that circulates the blood outside the body to be oxygenated so as to give the lungs time to rest.

Deaths in nursing homes continued to increase both across the state and locally. In Allegheny County, deaths in long-term care facilities increased to 66 on Tuesday from 58 a day prior. There have been 257 covid-19 cases across 31 facilities, and 84 employees have contracted the virus.

Ten of those deaths have been at Kane Community Living’s Glen Hazel location.

In Beaver County, where more than 100 residents in Brighton Rehab have tested positive for the virus, nursing home deaths jumped to 52, up from 39 a day earlier. Across three care facilities, there have been 247 cases among residents and 19 among employees.

Across the state, just under 1,000 care facility residents have died from the virus. Across 452 facilities, 7,360 residents have been infected, along with 920 employees.