April 29, 2020 3:58 am
(WPXI) – Pennsylvania restaurants, struggling because of the coronavirus pandemic, would be able to serve to-go cocktails under a new bill. The legislation, passed by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Tuesday, would allow restaurants and stores with r-licenses who have lost 25% or more of their business during the COVID-19 outbreak, to sell the to-go cocktails. According to the bill, the drinks must be in a container with a lid and cannot exceed 64 ounces. Customers have to keep the drinks in their trunk or another place in their car without the driver and passengers. The bill moves onto the Senate for a vote.
April 29, 2020 2:27 am
Washington County officials say there are businesses in that area that are ready to safely re-open, but they are following Gov. Tom Wolf’s orders — which seem to be ever-changing. “It has been a challenge to try to know which course of actions to take in Washington County next because the info continues to change,” said Diana Irey Vaughan, chairman of the board of Commissioners. On Tuesday, Wolf backed off the regional concept to re-open parts of the state. “We had put out a map in terms of our health care regions, but the governor has said that we are not going to be beholden to any specific map or any specific scheme,” said Dr. Rachel Levine, Pa. secretary of health. Wolf said he will consider reopening individual counties. Washington County is hoping to be a part of that plan. There are 109 COVID-19 cases and two deaths here. Wolf said he will be as objective as possible in evaluating the data and consider areas where hospitals have not been overwhelmed. There are some counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania with extremely low COVID-19 numbers and no deaths.
April 28, 2020 1:14 pm
ATLANTA (AP) – A representative for Ashley Ross of the reality TV show “Little Women: Atlanta” says she’s died in a Georgia car crash. Publicist Liz Dixson says Ross – also known as “Ms. Minnie” – died of her injuries Monday at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. Dixson says the wreck happened late Sunday night on a road south of Atlanta. City of South Fulton police did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday. Dixson says the family asks for privacy as they grieve. The Lifetime series follows the lives of women with dwarfism who try to make it big in Atlanta’s hip-hop and rap music scene.
April 28, 2020 8:37 am
ROCHESTER, Minn. (AP) – Vice President Mike Pence chose not to wear a face mask while touring the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. It’s an apparent violation of the world-renowned medical center’s policy requiring them. Video feeds show he didn’t wear a mask when he met with a Mayo employee who has recovered from COVID-19. He was also maskless when he visited a coronavirus testing lab. And Pence was the only participant not to wear a mask during a roundtable discussion. Food and Drug Administration chief Stephen Hahn was among those wearing masks. Pence’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Photo: CNN)
April 28, 2020 4:53 am
UNDATED (AP) – Hillary Clinton has endorsed Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy. Her backing on Tuesday continues Democrats’ unification efforts ahead of a fall campaign against President Donald Trump. Clinton announced her support in a virtual town hall with Biden on Tuesday. As the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, Clinton made history by becoming the first woman to lead a major party’s ticket. Clinton and Biden both ran for the Democratic nomination in 2008 but lost to Barack Obama, who ended up tapping Biden as his vice president and Clinton as his secretary of state.
April 28, 2020 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The White House has released new guidelines aimed at answering criticism that America’s coronavirus testing has been too slow, and President Donald Trump is trying to pivot toward a focus on “reopening” the nation. The new testing targets would ensure states had enough COVID-19 tests available to sample at least 2.6% of their populations each month – a figure already met by a majority of states. Areas that have been harder hit by the virus would be able to test at double that rate, or higher. Still, there are doubts from public health experts that the White House’s new testing targets are sufficient.
April 28, 2020 4:14 am
President Donald Trump says states should “seriously consider” reopening their public schools before the end of the academic year, even though dozens already have said it would be unsafe for students to return until the summer or fall. Only a few have publicly considered earlier openings, including Montana, which says school districts can resume classroom instruction on May 7. Trump’s suggestion in a call Monday with governors drew criticism from some education officials who say a quick return would bring major risk and little reward. None of the governors on the call responded to the suggestion.
April 28, 2020 4:13 am
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – The first major test of an almost completely vote-by-mail election during a pandemic is about to unfold in Ohio, offering lessons to other states about how to conduct one of the most basic acts of democracy amid a health crisis. The Tuesday primary also could provide a preview of a November election that might still be marred by the coronavirus outbreak. Joe Biden has all but locked up the Democratic presidential nomination since the state’s March 17 primary was delayed. Instead, the spotlight has shifted to the process. Ohio law guarantees that voters who don’t receive a ballot they requested by the legal deadline can vote in person.
April 28, 2020 4:12 am
DETROIT (AP) – Fiat Chrysler is backing off a planned May 4 restart at its North American factories because it could conflict with stay-home orders in some states. The move likely means that factories of all three Detroit automakers will be idled for at least another two weeks as they negotiate reopening terms with the United Auto Workers union. Ford, General Motors and FCA factories have been idled for over a month due to fears of spreading the coronavirus. Detroit auto companies employ about 150,000 factory workers mainly in the industrial Midwest, but there are factories from New York to Tennessee and Texas.
April 28, 2020 4:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump will sign an executive order Tuesday meant to stave off a shortage of chicken, pork and other meat on American supermarket shelves because of the coronavirus. The order will use the Defense Production Act to classify meat processing as a critical industry to ensure that production plants stay open. The order comes after industry leaders warned that consumers could see meat shortages in a matter of days after workers at major facilities tested positive for the virus. A senior White House official outlined the order on condition of anonymity to discuss it before its release.
