Pennsylvania category, Page 136
Vote signals support for child sex abuse window in bill form
HARRISBURG — The state House of Representatives showed solid support Tuesday for enacting a two-year lawsuit window for child victims of sexual abuse as a regular bill, two weeks after the Legislature gave its first round of approval to a similar constitutional amendment. The 148 to 53 vote set the...
Pennsylvania’s push for vaccine equity has been a challenge
Getting shots into the arms of the state’s most vulnerable elderly and minority residents remains a challenge, even as vaccine begins a steady flow into Pennsylvania, state officials said Tuesday. It took the combined efforts of three managed care giants tasked with reaching out to the marginalized and those most...
‘Pennsylvanians owe a debt of gratitude’: Wolf salutes grocery employees as pandemic heroes
Gov. Tom Wolf on Tuesday recognized grocery store employees, hundreds of thousands of whom found themselves thrust to the front lines of the covid-19 pandemic, going to work in order to supply what the rest of the state needed to stay home. Such employees have had access to covid-19 vaccine...
Pa. officials encourage more covid testing as cases rise
As covid cases and hospitalizations rise in Pennsylvania, the Department of Health on Tuesday described a renewed push for expanding testing. Despite the increase in infections, officials said the demand for testing has decreased. Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said continued testing is imperative as the virus continues to spread....
Pa., Allegheny County covid hospitalizations up more than 20% week to week
Recent covid hospitalizations continue to be a story in the commonwealth. Pennsylvania and Allegheny County hospitalization levels have consistently gone up since late March, and hospitalization totals now rival counts seen in February. Hospitalizations For the 17th consecutive day, the number of people hospitalized for covid-19 in Pennsylvania has increased,...
Pennsylvania civic commemoration of Holocaust Remembrance Day set for Thursday
The Pennsylvania Jewish Coalition is inviting the public to take part in a Holocaust Remembrance Day observation on Thursday. Known as Yom Hashoah in Hebrew, the event was established in Israel in 1959. The name comes from the Hebrew word “shoah,” which means “whirlwind” or “catastrophe,” and is used as...
Pa. House passes bill seeking to keep state on daylight saving time
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Monday passed legislation urging Congress to do away with the semi-annual clock changing ritual and authorize states to make daylight saving time permanent. By a vote of 103-98, the House chose to join 15 other states that have passed legislation asking for this change...
The deciding vote in Pa.’s high-stakes political redistricting could be yours, if lawmakers agree
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — Liz Forrest doesn’t expect four of Pennsylvania’s most powerful lawmakers...
Pennsylvania revises school reopening guidelines
The Pennsylvania Department of Education and Department of Health on Monday announced new recommendations for schools — suggesting most should reopen for some degree of face-to-face instruction. The new recommendations bring the state into alignment with recent guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which in mid-March...
Blue Streak, Tumble Bug won’t run at Conneaut Lake Park this year
Conneaut Lake Park is scheduled to reopen over Memorial Day weekend, but some of its iconic rides will be out of operation this season. The Blue Streak and Tumble Bug won’t run this year, according to the Meadville Tribune. “(The Tumble Bug) will not be in use this year, as...
Female Pa. Republican lawmakers introduce measure to prevent athletes born male from competing in girls’ school sports
A group of female Republican lawmakers on Monday unveiled a bill they said was intended to protect biological girls and women who take part in school sports from competing against athletes who were born male. The proposal, they said, came in response to President Joe Biden’s Jan. 20 executive order...
Covid cases continue to rise, but the pace appears to be easing
As Pennsylvania loosens its covid-19 mitigation restrictions, the spike in new cases of the virus is showing slight signs of slowing. Over the past two days, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reports there were 6,651 new cases added, bringing the total cases since the pandemic began to 1,045,400. While the...
‘It gives us some peace:’ Family reacts to arrest in Pa. mother’s death during road-rage incidentVideo
Manheim mother of six Julie Eberly was laid to rest Friday, the same day her family got the news they were hoping for — an arrest in the road-rage shooting that caused Eberly’s death. “I know this won’t really change anything nor bring Julie back, but it gives us some...
Pa. cannabis legalization remains unlikely as neighboring states go for it
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. A version of this story originally appeared in our free weekly newsletter. New Jersey. New York. Virginia. One by one, Pennsylvania’s neighbors are moving to legalize recreational...
A man ahead of his time: Sen. John Heinz remembered 30 years after tragic death
Henry John Heinz III was a man in his prime. The 52-year-old U.S. senator and heir to the H.J. Heinz food empire had everything going for him April 4, 1991, the morning he climbed aboard a small, twin-propeller plane in Williamsport. The short flight to Philadelphia was for him to...
Allegheny, Westmoreland report highest new covid case totals since January
Allegheny and Westmoreland counties on Saturday each saw their highest new number of covid cases since mid-January. Allegheny County added 653 cases, the highest since 670 were added on Jan. 13, while Westmoreland’s 214 additional cases were the most since 277 on that same day in January. Pennsylvania’s 5,343 new...
Pennsylvania Game Commission says 2020-21 deer harvest surpassed previous year
Pennsylvania hunters killed an estimated 435,180 deer during the 2020-21 hunting seasons, the state game commission announced Friday. That topped the previous license year’s harvest of 389,431 by about 12%, the agency reported. In the past 21 years, since 1993, the state’s hunters have harvested more than 400,000 deer in...
Wolf: More than 112K Pa. teachers and staff vaccinated in 3 weeks
More than 112,500 teachers and school staffers across Pennsylvania received a covid-19 vaccine in less than a month, leading Gov. Tom Wolf on Friday to declare his aggressive vaccination plan for educators a victory. “This is a great success,” Wolf declared during a trip to Luzerne County. “We know that...
MMA fighter has finger severed in Philly match; doctors reattach it
A mixed martial arts fighter had his finger severed during a match in Philadelphia, but doctors were eventually able to reattach it. Khetag Pliev was injured Thursday night during the second round of his fight, which was stopped when the referee noticed Pliev was missing his left ring finger. “In...
Pennsylvania’s covid cases remain elevated
Pennsylvania on Friday reported more than 4,000 new cases of coronavirus — the seventh time in two weeks the state has eclipsed that threshold. The state added 4,656 newly reported cases, raising the total case count to 1,033,406. The seven-day average, at 4,034, has been above 4,000 cases for the...
Real ID enforcement to begin Oct. 1 for air travel
The Real ID deadline is creeping back up. If you are planning to fly on a commercial domestic flight or enter a federal building that requires acceptable identification after Oct. 1, you’ll need a Real ID-compliant driver’s license or photo ID card. Aside from the state-issued card, there are various...
Pennsylvania saw upswing in covid cases, hospitalizations in March
Covid-19 cases in Pennsylvania took an upswing in March, though nothing like what was experienced last fall through the beginning of this year. The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Thursday reported 3,893 additional cases; and the seven-day average of cases in the state ticked up to 4,073. The seven-day total...
How much is your town slated to get from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan?
The American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion stimulus package signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, includes funding for counties and local municipalities. The money, which will be sent in two batches, must be spent by the end of 2024 on projects that include reimbursement and expenses...
Board OKs $1.5 million renovation of governor’s offices in Pennsylvania Capitol
HARRISBURG — The group that oversees maintenance and construction in the Pennsylvania Capitol voted unanimously Wednesday to spend nearly $1.5 million to renovate the governor’s suite. The Pennsylvania Capitol Preservation Committee authorized an overhaul of the 10-room suite that is expected to be finished by year’s end. The work will...
Pennsylvania reports 4,000+ covid cases for 4th time in a week
Pennsylvania on Wednesday reported its fourth day in the past week with covid-19 case totals above 4,000. The state health department reported 4,557 cases, bringing the state’s total to 1,024,857. Allegheny County added 418 newly reported cases to climb to 85,680, while Westmoreland’s 126 additional cases bumped its total to...
