April 10, 2020 1:51 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Gov. Tom Wolf is issuing an executive order Friday to authorize the early release of up to 1,800 inmates from Pennsylvania state prisons in an effort to minimize the spread of the new coronavirus. The governor’s office said that releases to halfway houses or home confinement could start as early as Tuesday. The plan is similar to what other states and some Pennsylvania counties have undertaken. It allows the release of inmates serving time for nonviolent offenses who are within nine months of scheduled release, or within 12 months for those considered at heightened risk from the coronavirus.
April 10, 2020 4:09 am
LONDON (AP) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care where he was being treated for the new coronavirus, as his government told Britons to prepare for several more weeks in lockdown. In a statement Thursday, his office said Johnson “has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery.” It said he was in extremely good spirits. Johnson had been in intensive care for three days after his symptoms worsened. News of Johnson’s improving condition was welcomed across the British political spectrum – and by U.S. President Donald Trump, who tweeted: “Great News: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has just been moved out of Intensive Care. Get well Boris!!!”
April 10, 2020 4:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Attorney General William Barr believes the Russia investigation that shadowed President Donald Trump for nearly two years was started without any basis and was intended to “sabotage the presidency.” Barr made the comments during an interview with Fox News Channel that aired Thursday night. He has appointed a U.S. attorney to lead a criminal investigation into the origins of the Russia probe. He says the Justice Department has evidence there was “something far more troubling” than just mistakes during the early stages of the FBI’s Russia investigation. That investigation later morphed into special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe.
April 10, 2020 4:07 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) – The United Nations secretary-general is warning that the coronavirus pandemic is threatening international peace and security. Antonio Guterres warned the U.N. Security Council this can potentially lead “to an increase in social unrest and violence that would greatly undermine our ability to fight the disease.” The council is the U.N.’s most powerful body and it has been silent on COVID-19 since it started circling the globe in January. But after Thursday’s meeting the council issued its first brief press statement. It expressed “support for all efforts of the secretary-general concerning the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to conflict-affected countries.”
April 10, 2020 4:06 am
South Korea has reported 27 new cases of the coronavirus, marking its ninth consecutive day below 100, as infections continue to wane in the worst-hit city of Daegu. Figures released by South Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday brought nationwide totals to 10,450 cases and 208 virus-related deaths. While the country’s caseload has slowed from early March, when it was reporting around 500 new cases per day, KCDC director Jeong Eun-kyeong has raised the possibility of a broader “quiet spread,” pointing to recent transmissions at bars and other leisure facilities that could indicate eased attitudes toward social distancing.
April 10, 2020 4:05 am
With the federal stockpile drained of protective gear, states are turning to each other, private industries and anyone who can donate in a desperate bid to get respirators, gloves and other supplies to doctors, nurses and other front-line workers. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services confirmed Wednesday that the federal cupboard is officially bare at least through this month after it was able to fulfill just a sliver of states’ requests. States already have begun working together, whether its forming regional alliances to create greater purchasing power or sending excess supplies to hot spots.
April 10, 2020 4:04 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The White House says hospitals taking money from the $2 trillion stimulus bill will have to agree not to send “surprise” medical bills to patients treated for COVID-19. Surprise bills happen when a patient with health insurance gets treated at an out-of-network emergency room, or when an out-of-network doctor assists with a hospital procedure. They can run to tens of thousands of dollars. The stimulus bill created a $100 billion fund for the health care system. Providers who accept the grants will have to agree not to bill more than patients would have paid in their insurance network.
April 10, 2020 4:03 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump’s new coronavirus aid request has gotten tied up in congressional politics. Democrats refused to rubber stamp Trump’s proposal for $250 billion more to boost small businesses, demanding modifications along with an additional $250 billion for health care providers and states. Republicans wouldn’t go along. The standoff doesn’t end the pursuit of more rescue funds, but it came as the government reported that 6.6 million more people filed for unemployment benefits last week. This is increasing worries that the economy is sliding toward a severe recession. Democrats and Republicans agree the aid is urgently needed and talks are sure to continue, but it reinforces that Congress and the White House will need to find bipartisan agreement
April 10, 2020 2:49 am
Authorities are investigating an explosion early Thursday morning in Greene County that leveled a home and a business on Water Dam Road. According to reports, firefighters were called out just before five o’clock to Alpha Graphics and Signs in Washington Township. Local firefighters say they were on the scene for more than four hours and the State Police Fire Marshal is investigating, but they don’t believe that the explosion is suspicious. Authorities say the owners, a husband and wife, also lived at the location and were home at the time. The wife is believed to have suffered burns on her arms and was taken to an area hospital. Officials say the building was leveled.
April 10, 2020 2:44 am
The Washington County Chamber of Commerce held a webinar to update local communities on strategies local health systems are taking to combat Covid-19 in the upcoming weeks. Brook Ward, CEO of Washington Health System and Louis J. Panza, CEO of Monongahela Valley Hospital both spoke about their organization’s preparations and the challenges that this pandemic presents. Ward said that his organization is planning for any surge that is being predicted by studying several models predicting infection rates. Both hospitals are dealing with an executive order signed by Governor Tom Wolf on Wednesday that demands hospitals update Harrisburg on equipment and supplies housed in all hospitals across Pennsylvania. This executive order could allow the state to commandeer supplies and move them to other areas deemed more in need of those supplies. Panza states that even though elective surgeries have attacked the finances of his hospital, stopping those surgeries has gone a long way to preserving supplies and equipment that may be needed as early as this weekend or through the month of April. Both CEO’s feel that Washington County has been very lucky in its experience with the Covid-19 virus, but Panza points out that in his experience, citizens have been quite conscious of social distancing and obeying the stay at home order. Both men recognize that the Easter and Passover holidays are here for many people in the area, but they stress that no one host any kind of gathering. Panza pointed to spikes in flu cases that occur annually after Thanksgiving and Christmas as reasons to stay home. Ward and Panza both suggested that everyone stay home during this holiday season because neither one wants to see a spike in Covid-19 cases in the week after Easter.
