The future of Philly restaurants | Morning Newsletter
Plus, some think a 19th century treatment can help solve coronavirus.
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
More than 10,000 Philadelphians have tested positive for the coronavirus in the six weeks since the city’s first positive case, Mayor Jim Kenney said yesterday. Officials added that the city could be “near the worst” of the pandemic. By the end of the week, they hope to be able to say whether cases are beginning to decline.
— Josh Rosenblat (@joshrosenblat, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
Several restaurateurs are pleading for government loans. Others have shifted to takeout and delivery, hoping that they’ll be able to reopen their bars and dining rooms soon. And others are scared they’ll never reopen. All of them, though, are looking toward May 8, when Gov. Tom Wolf wants to start relaxing restrictions on Pennsylvania businesses.
But after speaking with members of the Philadelphia restaurant community, my colleagues Erin Arvedlund and Michael Klein report that no one is expecting life and business to return to normal.
They wonder: Will anyone even want to sit at a bar?
There’s a big unknown for hundreds of people who have undergone plasma infusions to battle coronavirus infections. At least two dozen of those patients are in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The question: Does it actually work?
In theory, the process is pretty simple: after individuals have recovered from the coronavirus, their plasma (a liquid part of blood) still contains antibodies that the immune system developed to fight the disease. The plasma with the antibodies can be donated to others who haven’t recovered, the same strategy used against measles and other diseases more than 100 years ago.
Philadelphia is looking to Europe for help with America’s worst big-city drug epidemic. My colleagues Aubrey Whelan and Jose F. Moreno went to Portugal to see the world’s most radical drug policy in action: decriminalizing the use of all drugs.
Across Lisbon, the country’s capital, health workers in vans dispense free treatment every day for nearly 1,200 people. It’s part of a strategy to combat years of mounting overdoses, HIV infections, and rampant heroin addiction.
What you need to know today
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy yesterday toured the Atlantic City Convention Center, which is now a field hospital. Here’s what it looks like. Murphy also said no decision has been made on opening New Jersey’s beaches this summer.
Pennsylvania’s nonprofits are fraying because of the onslaught of demand in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Only about 400 of the roughly 32,000 immigrants in ICE detention centers have been tested for the coronavirus. And activists fear more infections.
For Philadelphians who are living alone, isolation has been “very challenging.”
Delaware County became the first county in the region to institute furloughs due to the coronavirus.
Tight housing conditions and a lack of health care are putting migrant workers on Pennsylvania farms at high risk for the coronavirus.
U.S. health regulators approved a coronavirus test that allows people to self-swab at home.
Through your eyes | #OurPhilly
Hope everyone stayed dry yesterday! Great shot, @abrams422. Thanks for sharing.
Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!
That’s interesting
📈How can you make sense of all the coronavirus info that’s out there?
🍸Pennsylvania, here’s what you’re drinking during the quarantine: Fireball shots, sweet wines, and, oh my God, a lot of vodka.
🌎It’s Earth Day today. Here are seven ways the Earth has gotten better since the coronavirus shutdown.
🏟️This is what it would take for Dr. Anthony Fauci to walk into a ballpark this summer for a game.
🤝Could the coronavirus be the death of the handshake?
🏥Ellen DeGeneres, Ciara, and Russell Wilson gave Jefferson’s dancing nurses a surprise.
Opinions
“During the long unresponsive days, we read to him and played him music and tried to figure out his iPod password, all while grappling with the terror of what might happen next. One nurse told us: ‘He will wake up and not remember this, but this will take years off your life.’” — writes Ann E. Green, a professor at St. Joseph’s University, about the experience of seeing her husband on a ventilator in an ICU.
In 1970, Philly had an amazing Earth Week, writes columnist Will Bunch. Here’s what we’ve lost since then.
President Donald Trump has joined the “Ostrich Alliance," columnist Trudy Rubin writes, meaning that he’s putting politics over science.
What we’re reading
WHYY checked in with how Pennsylvania toilet paper manufacturers are dealing with high demand.
NJ Spotlight reports on whether furloughing workers can help the state and local governments save hundreds of millions of dollars.
Vulture compiled the internet’s best coronavirus jokes.
I’m curious: what are you reading, listening to, or watching these days? Send me an email at morningnewsletter@inquirer.com with a recommendation and a reason why you want to share it with others. I could end up featuring it in an upcoming edition of this newsletter.
Your Daily Cup of | Coffee ☕
Todd Carmichael of La Colombe shows you how to brew a great cup of coffee at home, without any fancy machines. All you need are paper towels, hot water, and ground beans. My colleague Grace Dickinson also talked to Philly baristas, who gave their advice on making better coffee at home. She made a cheat sheet for you with six steps to making a better cup.