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We’re approaching the ‘green’ reopening phase | Coronavirus Newsletter

Plus, Pa.'s latest effort to help nursing homes during the pandemic

Nichole Missino, owner of Giovanni’s Media Barber Shop, has chalk on the front of her building reading, “ReOpen PA, small businesses are suffering."
Nichole Missino, owner of Giovanni’s Media Barber Shop, has chalk on the front of her building reading, “ReOpen PA, small businesses are suffering."Read moreTYGER WILLIAMS / Staff Photographer

TL;DR: Southeastern Pennsylvania counties are on track to soon move to the “green,” least-restrictive reopening phase, but Philadelphia officials are opting for a slower approach. Also, Pennsylvania will distribute $175 million to health systems across the state to help fight the coronavirus inside nursing and personal care homes.

— Ellie Silverman (@esilverman11, health@inquirer.com)

What you need to know:

🛍️ New Jersey malls may reopen on June 29, Gov. Phil Murphy announced today, with restrictions like requiring customers to wear face masks, limiting the capacity of stores to 50%, and keeping theaters, arcades, and common seating areas closed.

🎃 Eastern State Penitentiary has laid off staff and canceled Terror Behind the Walls for 2020.

🏈 Colleges want to restart sports. What’s that going to look like around here? And Dr. Anthony Fauci says the NFL will need an isolated bubble if it hopes to return in 2020.

🍽️ A popular Center City nightspot that was closed for three months recently advertised for new employees. They told old employees they could reinterview for a job.

💻 Comcast is extending its free internet for low-income customers as the coronavirus pandemic drags on.

🏠 13,000 Philadelphians applied for pandemic rental assistance. Funds ran out after 4,000.

📰 What’s going on in your county? We organized recent coverage of the coronavirus pandemic by local counties mentioned in the stories to make it easier for you to find the info you care about.

Local coronavirus cases

📈The coronavirus has swept across the Philadelphia region and cases continue to mount. The Inquirer and Spotlight PA are compiling geographic data on tests conducted, cases confirmed, and deaths caused by the virus. Track the spread here.

The Philadelphia region is approaching Gov. Wolf’s ‘green’ reopening phase, but the city is taking a more cautious route

Southeastern Pennsylvania counties are on track to soon move to the “green,” least-restrictive reopening phase. But Philadelphia officials are opting for a slower approach, with Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley saying “we need to be more careful than the other counties” as the city unveiled a slower, more restrictive approach, called Reopening with Care.

Pa. will give health systems $175 million to lead coronavirus response inside state’s struggling nursing homes

Pennsylvania will distribute $175 million to health systems across the state to help fight the coronavirus inside nursing and personal care homes. This is the latest effort in the state’s attempt to assist these facilities, where more than 4,300 people have died of COVID-19. Read more here.

Helpful resources

  1. Anxious about the prospect of socializing or shopping again? Here’s what psychologists say you can do to ease those worries.

  2. What are the first symptoms of the coronavirus?

  3. Here are 8 principles of social distancing to help figure out what you can and can’t do.

  4. Not sure what a medical term means? We have definitions for you.

  5. Have another question? Our reporters have tracked down answers.

You got this: Take a day trip to a craft brewery

My colleague Nick Vadala rounded up a dozen Pennsylvania breweries that you can visit in a day trip from Center City with locations in Kennett Square (38 miles away), Quakertown (47 miles away), Tannserville (102 miles away), and Mifflinburg (161 miles away), among others. Check out the list here.

🎵 So much to do this weekend: New 7500 cockpit thriller, John Legend v. Alicia Keys, drive-in art and music shows, and Juneteenth events galore.

🥪 Eat more plants: Recipes and tips for a plant-based picnic.

🥃 Five more Philly liquor stores will open for in-person shopping.

Have a social distancing tip or question to share? Let us know at health@inquirer.com and your input might be featured in a future edition of this newsletter.

What we’re paying attention to

  1. An epidemiologist tells NPR how to assess risk during the pandemic.

  2. When the Trump administration paid millions for test tubes, it got unusable mini soda bottles instead, ProPublica reports.

  3. Humans are dangerous right now. MIT Technology Review reports how robots, by taking over human jobs, may become the solution.

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