March 20, 2021 4:48 am
BERGAMO, Italy (AP) – While Italy is better managing its latest coronavirus surge, one thing that hasn’t changed is that those who are dying are predominantly elderly. Promises to vaccinate all Italians over 80 by the end of March have fallen woefully short, amid well-documented interruptions of vaccine supplies and organizational shortfalls. Just one third of Italy’s 7.3 million vaccine doses administered so far have gone to those over 80, with more than half of them still waiting for the first jab. The new government of Premier Mario Draghi has pledged to accelerate the vaccination campaign. It is aiming to vaccinate 80% of the population by September.
March 20, 2021 4:45 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Lou Barletta, the former congressman who unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Sen. Bob Casey in 2018, says he’ll make a decision in the next few weeks on whether to seek the Republican nomination for governor of Pennsylvania in 2022. Barletta said Friday that he felt the pull of running for office again during the pandemic and seeing the hardship of business owners and people losing their jobs. Meanwhile, a spokesperson says a second-term Republican state senator from Erie County, Dan Laughlin, is also considering running. The office is open since Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf is term-limited. Attorney General Josh Shapiro is widely expected to seek the Democratic nomination.
March 20, 2021 4:43 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – This past autumn, the lights went out for good at The Rex Theater, one of Pittsburgh’s most-beloved rock clubs. Like many independent venues across the United States, the South Side stage fell silent earlier in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic shuttered the live music industry without warning. But on Sept. 22, The Rex announced it would not reopen, joining other sites that have shut their doors for good. The coronavirus pandemic has hit the live music scene hard nationwide, and for musicians, the choices have been to either take an extended break or innovate.
March 20, 2021 4:40 am
UNDATED (AP) – U.S. health officials are relaxing social distancing recommendations for schools, saying students can sit as close as 3 feet apart in classrooms. The CDC guidelines signal the agency’s turn away from the 6-foot distancing recommendation. The new guidelines advise at least 3 feet of space between desks in elementary schools, even in towns and cities where community spread is high, so long as students and teachers wear masks and take other precautions. It recommends 3 feet in middle and high schools, so long as there’s not a high level of spread in the community. If there is, spacing should be at least 6 feet. The CDC says 6 feet should still be maintained in common areas, such as school lobbies, and when masks can’t be worn, such as when eating.
March 19, 2021 9:50 am
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A judge has denied a defense request to delay or move the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s death after a $27 million settlement for Floyd’s family raised concern about a tainted jury. Jury selection was halfway complete last week in former officer Derek Chauvin’s trial when the city of Minneapolis unanimously approved the payout to settle a civil lawsuit over Floyd’s death. Chauvin’s attorney, Eric Nelson, called the timing of the settlement deeply disturbing and unfair, and said it jeopardized Chauvin’s chance for a fair trial. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill had called the timing “unfortunate” but declined to delay the trial.
March 19, 2021 4:18 am
A new mother and an Army veteran who installed security systems are among eight people killed by a gunman who opened fire at three massage parlors in the Atlanta area. Family members say 33-year-old Delaina Yaun went to Youngs Asian Massage Parlor on Tuesday to get a rare break from caring for her 8-month-old daughter. A brother of 54-year-old Paul Michels says he was considering a change of careers after doing electrical work for more than 25 years. John Michels says his brother was considering opening a spa of his own. Police have not released the names of all the victims.
March 19, 2021 4:17 am
McALLEN, Texas (AP) – A former camp for oil field workers that is now housing immigrant teenagers has emerged as a trouble spot in the Biden administration’s response to growing numbers of children arriving at the border. The U.S. government has stopped taking immigrant teenagers to the converted camp amid questions about the safety of emergency sites it is setting up in border states. The Associated Press has learned that the converted camp has been plagued by multiple issues just five days after the Biden administration opened it amid a scramble to find space for immigrant children.
March 19, 2021 4:14 am
MIAMI (AP) – Two Royal Caribbean lines will resume cruises in the Caribbean in June, ending a yearlong hiatus. Passengers 18 and older will be required to test negative for COVID-19 before getting on the ships. The company’s Celebrity Cruises subsidiary said its Celebrity Millennium ship will relaunch on June 5 from St. Maarten. One itinerary will stop in Aruba, Curacao and Barbados, and another will stop in Tortola, St. Lucia and Barbados. CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo said returning to the Caribbean “marks the measured beginning of the end of what has been a uniquely challenging time for everyone.
March 19, 2021 4:13 am
ATLANTA (AP) – For Asian Americans, 2020 was a year of political success and newfound influence. But it was also a time of vulnerability to racist assaults. That painful dichotomy will be on display Friday when President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the first person of South Asian descent to hold national office, visit Atlanta just days after a white gunman killed eight people, most of them Asian American women, in three metro-area massage parlors. Biden and Harris will meet with Asian American state legislators and other community leaders about racist rhetoric and actions against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
March 19, 2021 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The United States has cleared President Joe Biden’s goal of injecting 100 million coronavirus shots, more than a month before his target date of his 100th day in office. This as the president prepared to set his sights higher in the nationwide vaccination effort. The nation is now administering about 2.5 million shots per day. Biden, who promised to set a new goal for vaccinations next week, teased the possibility of setting a 200 million dose goal by his 100th day in office. He told reporters Friday that, “We may be able to double it.” His comments come as the U.S. is on pace to have enough of the three currently authorized vaccines to cover the entire adult population just 10 weeks from now.
