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.
April 28, 2020 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Partisanship as well as uncertain scheduling may hamper if not halt work on a new coronavirus relief package. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says it might be time to consider a “guaranteed income” for Americans and insists that the next bill must provide aid to state and local governments to pay police, fire and other front-line “heroes.” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell counters that his priority is to shield business owners from onerous laws. Leaders announced Congress will return May 4, but some lawmakers are being warned that full operations may not be able to resume for a year.
April 28, 2020 4:08 am
Peters Township Council received an updated report from Fire Chief and Emergency Management Coordinator Michael McLaughlin. In McLaughlin’s report he provided council the PA Department of Health’s newest numbers on Covid-19 cases identified by zip code. The report indicated that the 15317 zip remained steady at 22 cases and the 15367 zip code remained at 6. It is important to note that the 15317 zip code also encompasses North Strabane Twp., Canonsburg and parts of Cecil Twp. Supply stock is good. The township received a shipment of supplies from the county and McLaughlin is comfortable with his supplies stock. When asked by councilwoman Monica Merrell about the future should a second wave of the corona virus emerge, McLaughlin described conservation methods being used by first responders and the continuation of supplies orders to keep ppe in stock. McLaughlin described his fire department as an organization of programs. He went on to describe virtual programs for the installation of child car seats and fire drills that school students can run at their homes should an emergency like that occur. McLaughlin also congratulated the “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” campaign that started last week. The program is a cooperation of the fire department, Peters Township Meals on Wheels and the Peters Township Rotary Club. It assists residents that are susceptible to Covid-19 with obtaining prescriptions or grocery shopping. If a resident is food insecure, the Meals on Wheels program can step in and supply non perishable food items. The program is managed by the Peters Township Emergency Management Team and volunteers from the Rotary Club do the legwork for the program. Information on the program is available on the Peters Township website.
April 28, 2020 4:06 am
PITTSBURGH — State leaders brought in 1,000 new workers, took employees from other departments and even asked retirees to come back to work. But the problems with the state’s unemployment system are still happening. “I’ll sit there for at least a half-hour while I’m watching the news and it continues to redial and nothing,” said James Hairston. Hairston is from Castle Shannon. He’s in the state’s unemployment system and even received a check before the pandemic happened. He said it’s been no money and no answer, though, since early March. “They instructed me to go to to the site and file one time to see if reactivates. I’ve been doing that for the last eight weeks,” he said. Hairston is just one of the 1.7 million Pennsylvanians filing unemployment claims. It’s led to an email backlog of nearly a month. “If someone hasn’t filed a claim yet because they can’t get a hold of them, we will still take them,” said Susan Dickinson, director of unemployment benefits. Dickinson said people who haven’t received an unemployment PIN number after three weeks to contact the office. A wrong address or other inaccurate information could be causing the delay. About $3.5 billion has already been paid out in unemployment compensation.
