March 28, 2020 5:53 am
DETROIT (AP) – President Donald Trump has issued an order that seeks to force General Motors to produce ventilators for coronavirus patients under the Defense Production Act. Trump says negotiations with General Motors had been productive, “but our fight against the virus is too urgent to allow the give-and-take of the contracting process to continue to run its normal course.” Trump says “GM was wasting time” and says his actions will help ensure the quick production of ventilators that will save American lives. GM said its commitment to build ventilators has never wavered
March 28, 2020 4:26 am
There are 533 additional positive cases of the coronavirus in Pennsylvania on Saturday, bringing the total to 2,751, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. In addition to the new cases, 11 more deaths have been reported. The statewide death total is now at 34. There are 21,016 patients who have tested negative, the Department of Health said. Here is a breakdown of cases in western Pennsylvania counties:
Allegheny County: 219
Fayette County: 10
Washington County: 23
Beaver County: 22
Butler County: 41
Lawrence County: 8
Westmoreland County: 41
Mercer County: 6
Greene County: 6
Armstrong County: 2
Indiana County: 2
March 28, 2020 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has signed an unprecedented $2.2 trillion economic rescue package into law, after swift and near-unanimous action by Congress this week. The package will support businesses, rush resources to overburdened health care providers and help struggling families during the deepening coronavirus epidemic. As he signed the bill Friday, Trump declared it “will deliver urgently needed relief.” He thanked members of both parties for putting Americans “first.” The House passed the legislation earlier Friday by voice vote. The legislation will speed government payments of $1,200 to most Americans and increase jobless benefits for millions of people thrown out of work. Businesses big and small will get loans, grants and tax breaks.
March 28, 2020 4:14 am
ATLANTA (AP) – The Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, a civil rights leader who helped the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, has died at 98. A charismatic and fiery preacher with oratory skills on par with King, Lowery led the SCLC for two decades. He remained an active force in social issues such as war and poverty long after his retirement. Lowery was considered the dean of civil rights veterans and lived to celebrate a milestone that few of them thought they would ever witness – the election of an African American president. President Barack Obama awarded Lowery the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. A family statement says Lowery died Friday.
March 28, 2020 4:03 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Gov. Tom Wolf followed through on his threat to veto a bill to provide potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks for petrochemical plants that use natural gas extracted in the state. In his veto message Friday, Wolf said he could support awarding an incentive like the one in the bill, but only after a thorough analysis of a proposed project. The Republican-penned bill passed both GOP-controlled legislative chambers by veto-proof majorities in early February. It authorized the “energy and fertilizer manufacturing tax credit.” Wolf’s administration estimated the tax credit would be worth about $22 million annually per plant and expire at the end of 2050.
March 28, 2020 3:58 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Gov. Tom Wolf is ordering a big expansion of his stay-at-home order, from 10 to 19 counties. Wolf’s Friday order adds Berks, Butler, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Luzerne, Pike, Wayne, Westmoreland and York counties. Already included were the state’s most populous counties, including Philadelphia and Allegheny County. In the meantime, a shuttered reform school for boys in suburban Philadelphia and Temple University’s sports and events center could be used as overflow as coronavirus cases grow and hospitals are pressed for space. Wolf’s administration announced that it had confirmed 531 more coronavirus cases, a 30% jump to more than 2,200, and six more deaths for a total of 22.
March 28, 2020 3:16 am
LONDON (AP) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for the new coronavirus, but remains in charge of the U.K.’s response to the outbreak. Johnson said Friday that he was tested on the advice of the chief medical officer after showing “mild symptoms” of a temperature and a persistent cough. He said that he can continue to communicate with his team “thanks to the wizardry of modern technology” and is leading the fight against the coronavirus. The government said that if Johnson is unable to work, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will replace him.
March 27, 2020 1:33 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. Department of Education has announced that Penn State University will be required to make major changes to how it handles sexual assault complaints following an investigation of the school’s handling of allegations in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos details how the university will be held accountable through a major overhaul of its Title IX procedures after it “failed to protect students and address their complaints of sexual abuse.” The university has paid more than $100 million to settle claims from about three dozen people who alleged 73-year-old Sandusky had abused them. The former coach has consistently maintained his innocence.
March 27, 2020 12:42 pm
Kane Community Living Centers announced Friday that two residents of the Glen Hazel facility have tested positive for COVID-19. Both residents were tested due to unexplained fevers. They remain at the facility in isolation. Following guidance from the state health department, Kane says it will be testing patients whose rooms are nearby to the two positive residents. Additional screening of staff who work on the unit will be implemented, including inquiring into sick relatives at home and monitoring for cough and sore throat in all staff and residents. Fever checks will be conducted on residents at each shift change. Since March 13, Kane has restricted all visitation except for certain compassionate care situations such as end of life, and all volunteer activity. Additionally, access has been restricted for all non-essential healthcare personnel. All group activities were canceled at the same time, and communal dining of residents was ended at the same time.
March 27, 2020 4:03 am
TORONTO (AP) – Canada says it told the U.S. that a Trump administration proposal to put troops at the U.S.-Canada border amid the coronavirus pandemic was entirely unnecessary and would damage relations between the two longtime allies. Canada went public with its position Thursday, and the Wall Street Journal reported late in the day that the Trump administration had dropped consideration of the plan.áCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government has been in discussions with the White House about convincing the U.S. it didn’t need to put troops on the the border.
