Pennsylvania Ping!
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Posted on 05/04/2021 12:43:00 PM PDT by lightman
Pennsylvania will lift COVID-19 restrictions on businesses on Memorial Day, Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration said Tuesday.
The Wolf administration also said the state’s order on wearing masks in public will end when the state hits the target of 70% of residents 18 and older are vaccinated.
“We continue to make significant progress in the fight to stop the spread of COVID-19 and as more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC evolves, we can continue to move forward with our reopening efforts,” Department of Health Acting Secretary Alison Beam said in a statement.
Other than the masking, the COVID-19 restrictions will end Monday, May 31 at 12:01 a.m. The Wolf administration made the announcement on the lifting of restrictions in conjunction with the bipartisan COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force.
“With millions of Pennsylvanians getting vaccinated, it’s time to plan the transition back to normal,” said Sen. Art Haywood, a Philadelphia Democrat who is on the task force. “Hospitalizations and deaths are down. This action today is a key step forward.”
State Sen. Ryan Aument, a Lancaster County Republican who also serves on the task force, welcomed the lifting of the restrictions.
“While the restrictions that were put in place at the outset of the pandemic have been a major source of frustration for many Pennsylvanians and businesses, it is the collaborative work of this bipartisan Task Force that is allowing us to finally roll back the restrictions and get back to normal life,” Aument said.
Right now, just over 50% of eligible Pennsylvanians have been at least partially vaccinated.
New York, New Jersey and Delaware have announced plans to end COVID-19 restrictions this month.
The Wolf administration said the state’s lifting of restrictions doesn’t prohibit municipalities or school districts from continuing with their own more aggressive measures if they desire to do so.
The news is undoubtedly welcome news to the restaurant and hospitality industry, which has taken a financial beating during the pandemic.
John Longstreet, president & CEO of the Pennsylvania Restaurant & Lodging Association, said the announcement helps restaurants but is small consolations for those that have shut down.
“The definitive timeline will allow owners and operators time to plan, but for far too many businesses who shuttered over the last few months, this announcement is too late,” he said in a statement. “As a major economic driver throughout the Commonwealth, the hospitality industry needs further support to regain a sense of normalcy to attract its workforce, retain a consistent customer base and meet ever-changing mitigation standards.”
Last month, the governor eased some restrictions on restaurants and other businesses. On April 4, capacity limits were raised to 75% for restaurants, gyms and entertainment venues including casinos, theaters and malls. Wolf also allowed restaurants to serve alcohol later after previously requiring “last call” at 11 p.m.
Other task force members cheered the news which arrives more than a year after the pandemic radically altered every aspect of life in Pennsylvania.
“I’m thrilled after more than a year that we are able to lift these restrictions so that we can move to more normal life,” Rep. Tim O’Neal, a Washington County Republican, said in a statement. “This will help grow our economy and assist our small businesses that have sacrificed so much due to COVID-19. Thank you to Pennsylvanians who have chosen to be vaccinated. Your efforts have helped us arrive at today.”
Beam urged Pennsylvania residents to get vaccinated in order to move toward a more normal life. Some central Pennsylvania providers have said they’ve seen a decline in demand over the past couple of weeks.
“I encourage Pennsylvanians to take the critical steps needed to put this pandemic behind us by getting vaccinated, follow through with both doses if you receive the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, and continue to take steps like masking, frequent hand washing and sanitizing and social distancing,” Beam said.
More than 1.1 million people have contracted the coronavirus and more than 26,000 deaths have been tied to COVID-19, according to the Pennsylvania Health Department.
State Rep. Bridget Kosierowski, a Lackawanna County Democrat who is a nurse, serves on the task force. She urged Pennsylvanians to get vaccinated.
“Lifting mitigation orders on Memorial Day and announcing that masking orders will be lifted once 70 percent of Pennsylvania’s adults are fully vaccinated are all benefits from following the scientific medical research and data,” she said in a statement. “Many sacrifices had been made over the past year while we waited for help. The help is now here in the form of a vaccine and we must do everything we can to encourage everyone to receive their vaccination so we can overcome this pandemic.”
“Let’s follow the science, because it’s the path to us all returning to normalcy,” she said.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3956252/posts
...but Pennlive does not require excerpting so you can read all the details without leaving this page!
Pennsylvania Ping!
Please ping me with articles of interest.
FReepmail me to be added to the list.
Hubris is a stinky cheese.
What % of PA are vaccinated ???
Why the arbitrary 70%? Is that supposed to be “herd immunity”? We’ve never had herd immunity for respiratory viruses (e.g RSV, Coronaviruses, Swine Flu, Rhinoviruses, Flu, etc.). From day 1 this has been a ploy to get everyone to take the vaccine
That always feels like some sort of threat. Carrot and Stick. Do you want to be mask-free? Well, then do as you're told!
But I'm already mask-free and I don't need anyone's permission.
And why the arbitrary date. Does Covid celebrate holidays?
In other words... they need to kill off 70% of the population of Pennsylvania so the government can become solvent again.
Maybe the mask orders will end when ... never mind.
https://www.media.pa.gov/Pages/Health-Details.aspx?newsid=1436
According to the CDC, as of Tuesday morning, May 4, Pennsylvania has administered first doses of vaccine to 50.6% of its entire population, and the state ranks 10th among all 50 states for first doses administered by percentage of population.
According to the CDC, as of Tuesday morning, May 4,
Pennsylvania ranks 5th among all 50 states for total doses administered.
Vaccine providers have administered 8,754,703 total vaccine doses as of Tuesday, May 4.
3,592,845 people are fully vaccinated; with a seven-day moving average of more than 83,800 people per day receiving vaccinations.
1,863,243 people are partially vaccinated, meaning they have received one dose of a two-dose vaccine.
5,456,088 people have received at least their first dose.
(Pennsylvania population is about 12.6 million)
B I N G O!
Everyone needs to vote on the Constitutional amendment in the upcoming primary. Take away Wolf’s infinite emergency power!
Exactly!
Take off the mask. It does not work anyway.
Does everyone remember all of the imbeciles here on FR saying, "Its just a piece of cloth, what's the big deal? Just wear it, its for everyone's safety."
Where are those imbeciles now, eh? I guess now its, "Oh, come on, its just an injection of an experimental "vaccine" which won't make you immune, what's the big deal? Its for everyone's safety."
Idiots, imbeciles, and fools, all.
I never put it on.
Yep. Even most solid republicans I know are full in on this nonsense. Every
Person I know who had COVID and have immunity got the shots anyway. It’s so weird.
Only 7.5% of Philadelphia residents are vaxxed - does Wolf keep the brothers in masks forever?
And the wreck the Trump economy and the middle class.
And do you remember my frequent counter-posts this time last year saying "this is an easily counted compliance check...a way of gauging how many will take the vaccine and later, the implanted chip?" Obedience training.
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