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Coronavirus

COVID cases continue to rise in Warren County

Warren County’s COVID-19 numbers continue to rise and its transmission rate is “high,” according to the CDC. Over the past five days, there have been 37 new cases reported locally — 13 on Saturday, none on Sunday, none on Monday, eight on Tuesday, and 16 on Wednesday. During that stretch, the county surpassed 7,000 cases per 100,000 residents — the number stood at 7,052.6 as of Wednesday’s reporting. Of the 2,764 total cases in the county to date, 2,101 have been confirmed and 663 are probables. The department reported that there had been 16 COVID-positive cases at Warren ...

GOP leaders reject Wolf’s call for mask mandate in schools

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Top Republican lawmakers on Thursday rejected Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf's call for legislation mandating masks in schools, saying it should remain a local decision. The majority of districts do not have mask mandates in place as students return to school. "At this late date, in many of our communities, local leaders have already made important decisions they believe are in the best interest of their residents and are prepared to adjust those decisions as challenges evolve," Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre, and House Speaker Bryan Cutler, ...

Wolf asks legislature for law mandating masks in classrooms

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania schools need a statewide requirement that students in classrooms wear masks as protection against the coronavirus, the Democratic governor wrote in a letter Wednesday to legislative leaders. Gov. Tom Wolf asked Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre, and House Speaker Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster, to call lawmakers back to Harrisburg immediately to work on a bill to order schools and child care facilities to require masks in classrooms. Concerned parents, pediatricians, teachers and others have been urging state officials for such a ...

Pennsylvania jobless rate down, payrolls up 29K in July

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania's unemployment rate dropped to a new post-pandemic low and the labor force shrank in July as payrolls jumped by nearly 29,000, according to state figures released Friday. Pennsylvania's unemployment rate dropped three-tenths of a percentage point to 6.6% from June's adjusted rate, the state Department of Labor and Industry said. The national rate was 5.4% in July, more than a point below Pennsylvania's. The figures come out as the federal government prepares to end supplemental payments of $300 a week to people who lost jobs or self-employment ...

22 COVID cases in county in last two days

There have been 22 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Warren County in the past two days. Those new cases have not led to a surge at Warren General Hospital. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Wednesday data, there have been 2,709 total cases in the county, and 107 deaths. The number of deaths has not changed since Aug. 11. There have been 48 new cases so far in August. The 22 in two days exceeds the totals for all of both June (20 cases) and July (18). According to the department, there have been 10 COVID-positive patients at Warren General in the past week. That ...

US jobless claims hit a pandemic low as hiring strengthens

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell last week for a fourth straight time to a pandemic low, the latest sign that America's job market is rebounding from the pandemic recession as employers boost hiring to meet a surge in consumer demand. The Labor ...