AP PA Headlines 5/27/20
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania state government is preparing a temporary no-new-taxes budget plan that maintains current spending levels while budget makers watch to see how badly tax collections are damaged by coronavirus-related shutdowns and whether the federal government sends more aid to states.
Officials in the House and Senate said Tuesday they expected votes on a roughly $25 billion package this week. The spending legislation is expected to be accompanied by legislation that distributes approximately $2 billion in federal coronavirus emergency aid. The $25 billion package would carry full-year money for public schools. But most operating budget lines would be funded through Nov. 30, Senate and House officials said.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Police and state regulators are cracking down on a handful of Pennsylvania businesses that are supposed to remain shut down but have instead thrown open their doors. The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has suspended the operating licenses of two York County diners that resumed dine-in service earlier this month.
Two gyms in eastern Pennsylvania have also reopened, with state police already citing one and local police threatening to cite the other. The Pennsylvania Department of Health, meanwhile, is reporting 13 additional deaths linked to COVID-19, raising the statewide total to 5,152. State health officials also reported that 451 more people have tested positive for the new coronavirus.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — With 18 counties preparing to move to the least restrictive phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan, the number of new virus infections continues to fall throughout Pennsylvania and officials say they’re making strides in their ability to manage flareups. Virus testing has increased from 50,000 in the last week of April to nearly 80,000 last week, Wolf said Tuesday.
And a new contact tracing program — in which infected people are swiftly isolated and people they came into contact with are quarantined — has ramped up as well, he said. Wolf is moving 18 counties from the “yellow” phase of his reopening plan to the “green” phase, meaning most restrictions are lifted.
After initially asking the state to remaining in yellow, commissioners in Centre County, home to Penn State University, opted Tuesday to go along with Wolf and move to green on Friday. The commissioners had cited concern about protecting poll workers during the June 2 primary. In the green phase, restaurants and bars, salons and barber shops, gyms, theaters, malls and casinos can all open at reduced capacity, according to Wolf’s reopening plan. People will still be asked to wear masks in public and observe social distancing. Additional details on the green phase are expected to be released soon.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — There were 13 additional deaths linked to COVID-19, raising the statewide total to 5,152, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported Tuesday. State health officials also reported that 451 more people have tested positive for the new coronavirus. Since early March, infections have been confirmed in more than 68,600 people in Pennsylvania. Health officials reported that 61% of the people who have tested positive for the virus are considered to be fully recovered, meaning it’s been more than 30 days since the date of their positive test or onset of symptoms.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher than the state’s confirmed case count because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected without feeling sick. For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up in a couple of weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are at higher risk of more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — At least nine confirmed cases of a serious rare inflammatory condition in children linked with the coronavirus were reported Tuesday by the health department. The rare condition has been reported in scores of New York children and in several children in other states. A few children have died.
Some children may have symptoms resembling Kawasaki disease, a rare condition in children that can cause swelling and heart problems. Symptoms include persistent high fever, rash or change in skin color, swollen lymph nodes, red eyes and abdominal pain, said the Pennsylvania state health secretary, Dr. Rachel Levine. She said there have been a total of 17 reports of the illness in Pennsylvania, of which nine were confirmed, two were ruled out and another six remain under investigation.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia officials have begun removing dozens of people who have been sleeping at the airport during the coronavirus pandemic and plan to administer rapid COVID-19 tests before taking them to homeless shelters. Philadelphia International Airport officials had initially planned Friday to remove the homeless people who have been sleeping at a baggage claim area. But airport and city officials agreed to wait until Tuesday and to administer the tests after advocates threatened to sue if the homeless people were moved to shelters without being tested. Airport spokesperson Florence Brown says the airport has run out of options.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Features
NEW YORK (AP) — The verbal dispute between a white woman walking her dog and a black man bird watching in Central Park might normally have gone unnoticed in a city preoccupied by the coronavirus pandemic. That changed when birdwatcher Christian Cooper pulled out his phone and captured Amy Cooper calling police to report she was being threatened by “an African-American man.” The widely watched video has led to discussions about racism and led to Amy Cooper getting fired.
The confrontation began early Monday morning when Christian Cooper said he noticed Amy Cooper had let her cocker spaniel off its leash against the rules in the Ramble, a secluded section of Central Park popular with birdwatchers. In a Facebook post, he claimed the dog was “tearing through the plantings” and told her she should go to another part of the park. When she refused, he pulled out dog treats, causing her to scream at him to not come near her dog.
Amy Cooper also warned him she would summon police unless he stopped recording. “I’m going to tell them there’s an African American man threatening my life,” Amy Cooper is heard saying in the video as she pulls down her face mask and struggles to control her dog. “Please call the cops,” Christian Cooper says. “There’s an African American man, I’m in Central Park, he is recording me and threatening myself and my dog. … Please send the cops immediately!” she says during the call before he stops recording.
Police say by the time they responded, they were both gone. In the fallout, investment firm Franklin Templeton announced Tuesday afternoon it had fired Amy Cooper, saying, “We do not tolerate racism of any kind.” A group called Abandoned Angels Cocker Spaniel Rescue said it had custody of the dog for the time being.
PARIS (AP) — Few countries seem immune to the perception that politicians and officials are bending the safety rules that their own governments wrote during the pandemic. From U.S. President Donald Trump to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, global decision-makers have frequently set bad examples, whether it’s refusing to wear masks or breaking confinement rules aimed at protecting their populations from COVID-19. Some are punished when they’re caught, others publicly repent, while a few just shrug off the violations. The coronavirus pandemic has claimed more than 350,000 lives.
UNDATED (AP) – For the first time, Twitter has flagged some of President Donald Trump’s tweets with a fact-check warning. On Tuesday, Twitter added a warning phrase to two Trump tweets that called mail-in ballots “fraudulent” and predicted that “mail boxes will be robbed,” among other things. Under the tweets, there is now a link reading “Get the facts about mail-in ballots” that guides users to a Twitter “moments” page with fact checks and news stories about Trump’s unsubstantiated claims. The move comes after years in which Twitter has declined to apply its community guidelines and other rules of the road to the 45th U.S. president.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two GOP governors are offering up their states to host the Republican National Convention, a day after President Donald Trump demanded assurances from North Carolina’s Democratic governor that the convention can go forward in August despite coronavirus fears. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp sent an open plea to Trump to consider his state as an alternate site.
Kemp’s offer was followed by one from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, The convention is set to gather more than 2,500 delegates and thousands more guests, press and security officials. Plans have been underway for more than a year to hold it in Charlotte. Trump reiterated Tuesday that he hopes to have the convention in Charlotte but needed certainty “within a week.”
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Virginia school board is defending its policy of blocking transgender students from using bathrooms aligned with their gender identity. But in arguments before the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday, a transgender man who was barred as a high school student from using the boys bathrooms said the policy violated his constitutional rights. A judge ruled last year that the Gloucester County School Board had discriminated against Gavin Grimm. The court began hearing arguments Tuesday on the school board’s appeal.
NEVADA (AP) –The Trump administration is raising concerns that Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak’s plan to lift coronavirus restrictions unfairly targets religious gatherings. In a letter to the Democratic governor, the Department of Justice warns that limits on those gatherings are more strict than those on businesses such as restaurants and may be unconstitutional. Sisolak’s phased reopening plan restricts services to 10 people in places of worship or to drive-in religious services. Sisolak’s office did not immediately respond to messages about the letter. The governor plans a news conference later Tuesday to update his plans for reopening.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — History books will show that Thomas Waerner of Norway took home this year’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race trophy. But that isn’t so. Not that he didn’t’ win; he did. But he hasn’t been able return home. Waerner and his 16 sled dogs remain stranded in Alaska because of travel restrictions and flight cancellations caused by the coronavirus. Waerner says he likes Alaska — but would prefer to be in Norway with his wife, five children and 35 other sled dogs. However, there’s hope on the horizon. Waerner says he — and his dogs — plan to hitch a ride early next month on a DC-6 aircraft headed for Norway.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
