Is Pennsylvania reopening too slowly? Some counties, and Trump, think so. | Coronavirus Newsletter
Plus, nursing homes are treating COVID-19 patients with the unproven malaria drug Trump touted
TL;DR: President Donald Trump blasted Pennsylvania today for its slow reopening as reports circulate that he may visit the commonwealth later this week. Meanwhile, Gov. Tom Wolf threatened to pull funding from counties or municipalities that defy his shutdown order. And Southeastern Pennsylvania nursing homes are treating coronavirus patients with the unproven malaria drug Trump touted — sometimes with the consent of patients or their families.
— Ellie Silverman (@esilverman11, health@inquirer.com)
What you need to know
📓 Pennsylvania’s top education official says he expects students to return to in-person learning in the fall.
🔒 Hundreds are being released from jail during the coronavirus pandemic. But where are they going?
⚕️Chester County has become the first in Pennsylvania to undertake antibody testing. Watch how they do it here.
✈️ The New Jersey Air National Guard will do a flyover around the Garden State tomorrow. Here’s the start time, flight path, and how to watch.
📸 Photos: How is Philly coping more than two months into the pandemic?
⚾🏈 Sports update: MLB owners and the players’ union are set to discuss an initial proposal to salvage the 2020 season. Eagles fans in the stands this fall? Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said it’s possible under the right conditions.
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.
President Donald Trump blasted Pennsylvania today for its slow reopening, as reports swirl that he may visit the commonwealth later this week. Meanwhile, a growing number of county leaders are pressuring Gov. Tom Wolf to lift the stay-at-home order or provide a timeline for when they can plan to reopen. In response, Wolf threatened to pull funding from counties or municipalities that defy his shutdown order. Here’s how low Philly’s case count has to be for the state to consider reopening Southeastern Pa.
Pennsylvania nursing homes have treated coronavirus patients with the unproven malaria drug Trump touted, hydroxychloroquine, and sometimes without consent, my colleagues Vinny Vella, Jeremy Roebuck, and William Bender reported. One nursing home in Beaver County, outside of Pittsburgh, dosed most of its roughly 590 residents with the drug. A lawsuit seeking class-action status in Philadelphia elaborates on these claims and argues that this treatment is equivalent to “biomedical research” forced upon nursing-home residents.
Helpful resources
Have questions about business and daily life, family and home, going outside, masks, money and stimulus checks, protecting yourself, social distancing, symptoms and treatment, or work and unemployment? We answer almost 100 questions here.
How long immunity lasts after a coronavirus infection and what that means for vaccines.
Here are 8 principles of social distancing to help figure out what you can and can’t do.
Not sure what a medical term means? We have definitions for you.
Have another question? Our reporters have tracked down answers.
You got this: Have a ‘wave parade’
For birthdays, parents have organized drive-by social distancing celebrations, where their children’s friends drive by their houses in cars decorated with balloons and posters. Teachers have driven through their students’ neighborhoods to wave and inspire kids gathered on doorsteps and sidewalks. And there have been other “wave parades” for healthcare workers and graduating seniors. Read more here.
🌈 Stressed? Here’s where you can find free and low-cost therapy and support.
🍹 When will Philly bars be able to sell drinks to-go? The Pennsylvania Senate just made some progress.
🍋 Capture the zing of lemons in syrup, marmalade, and preserves.
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
The White House is requiring staff to wear masks in West Wing, NBC reports.
State Rep. Mike Jones, (R., York Township) spoke about reopening businesses in his county to a crowd of more than 150 people, most of whom were not wearing masks, and many shook hands, hugged, and sat close together. All of this would be in violation of Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home orders, the York Daily Record reports.
The Day the Live Concert Returns: “I don’t know when it will be safe to sing arm in arm at the top of our lungs. But we will do it again, because we have to,” Dave Grohl writes for the Atlantic.
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