Pennsylvania category, Page 145
Pa. voters to get final say on limiting governor disaster powers
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania voters will likely soon get the final say about whether to limit the governor’s powers during a disaster emergency after a divided state House of Representatives endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment Wednesday. House members voted 116 to 85 in the latest legislative approval vote. One more vote...
Child sexual abuse lawsuit ‘window’ moves near referendum
HARRISBURG — The state House has given its final approval to a proposal to change the Pennsylvania Constitution to give those who say they were victims of child sexual abuse a retroactive two-year “window” in which to file civil lawsuits, no matter how long ago the alleged abuse occurred. State...
Pennsylvania adds 5,874 covid cases, highest in a week
Pennsylvania added 5,874 additional cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, the highest number in the past week. The newly added cases from the Pennsylvania Department of Health raise the state’s total to 818,369. Of the 222 deaths newly reported Wednesday, 214 are from January, seven are from December and one is...
Gov. Wolf defends moving smokers to top covid vaccine priority group
Smokers are among people included in Pennsylvania’s first priority group for the covid-19 vaccine, a move state officials tried to justify this week. Health officials announced Jan. 19 that the state would follow updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that recommended anyone aged 65 or older...
Lawyer says Pelosi laptop hasn’t been recovered from Pennsylvania suspect
HARRISBURG — A laptop stolen from the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the U.S. Capitol attack has not been recovered from the home or car of a Pennsylvania woman accused of helping steal it, the woman’s lawyer said Tuesday. Public defender A.J. Kramer told a federal judge that...
Pa. overdose deaths likely to increase because of pandemic disruption
Overdose deaths in Pennsylvania will likely tick upward for the first time in several years when 2020 reports are finalized, according to state officials, showing the effects of a year marked by isolation and a cutoff of group and in-person services. Overdose drug deaths were higher month over month for...
State Rep. George Dunbar elected caucus chair
A fellow Westmoreland County lawmaker has been elected to fill the Republican caucus leadership post left vancant by the death of state Rep. Mike Reese. Rep. George Dunbar, R-Penn Township, will serve as majority caucus chair for the 2021-22 legislative session, a caucus spokesman said Tuesday. Reese, 42, of Mt....
Covid hospitalizations in Pa. have dropped for almost a week
The number of covid-19 patients hospitalized in Pennsylvania has decreased every day over the past six days, according to state Department of Health data. There were 3,790 covid-19 patients hospitalized in the state on Tuesday, dropping by almost 100 from 3,887 on Monday. The biggest drop came Jan. 22, when...
Pandemic unemployment program reboot creates confusion in Pennsylvania
When the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry announced state residents were eligible to file for an additional 11 weeks of Unemployment Compensation, thousands flocked to the online portal. But they didn’t have much luck there. With a new federal CARES Act extension in place, payments for the Pandemic Emergency...
Feds seek to boost pandemic student nutrition card benefits by 15%
The federal government plans to issue Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to eligible schools and students beginning in early spring, following President Joe Biden’s executive order last week boosting those benefits by 15%. Through P-EBT, eligible students receive temporary emergency nutrition benefits loaded on EBT cards used to purchase food....
Pennsylvania sets early start, statewide schedule for trout season
Pennsylvania’s trout season will open earlier than usual this year, and statewide, on April 3. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission on Monday set the opening date and also approved a single statewide Mentored Youth Trout Day on March 27. As a result of the consolidation, separate regional mentored youth...
Covid contact tracing still challenging in Pennsylvania
Contact tracing remains a challenge in Pennsylvania, officials said Monday. From Jan. 10 to Jan. 16, only 18% of the 46,708 covid cases reported had a case investigation started within 24 hours, according to the Department of Health. An additional 5% had a case investigation started within 48 hours. “We...
Police investigating death of 4 family members at Pa. home
EXTON — Police are investigating the deaths of four family members found in the basement of their southeastern Pennsylvania home. Police in Chester County responded to the West Whiteland Township home after an out-of-state relative called shortly after 12:30 p.m. Sunday to report being unable to contact the family. Detective...
Covid cases continue to drop in Pennsylvania, fewer deaths starting to follow
With new coronavirus cases on the decline in Pennsylvania, a report from the state Department of Health shows covid-related deaths are also beginning to slow slightly. Over the past two days, the state added 7,910 new cases of covid-19 — a 21% drop from the same two-day period last week,...
Extended unemployment benefit payments to restart, Pa. officials say
Thanks to a new federal CARES Act extension, payments for the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program will resume Monday. Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) Acting Secretary Jennifer Berrier made the announcement on Saturday. “Since receiving the information we needed from the federal Department of Labor two weeks...
Thousands of drug, alcohol recovery homes in Pa. still operate without state oversight
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — In December 2017, Gov. Tom Wolf signed legislation to increase oversight for drug and alcohol recovery houses — a...
John Fetterman talks marijuana, voters, style in CBS interviewVideo
In a national interview that aired Sunday morning, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman spoke about his push to legalize marijuana, getting working-class people back to the Democratic Party, his political past and future, and being named a style god. Fetterman spoke to Mark Whitaker for “CBS Sunday Morning” from his Braddock...
Frustration grows with Pennsylvania’s ‘confusing’ vaccine rollout
In the hours after the big announcement, the region’s health systems were inundated with phone calls and emails to clinics, physicians and call centers. Thousands of people were suddenly eligible to get the covid-19 vaccine. They wanted it fast. But the announcement by Pennsylvania officials — expanding the vaccination eligibility...
Pa. legislator mocks trans state health secretary who is a Biden nominee
HARRISBURG — A Pennsylvania legislator from Armstrong and Indiana counties shared on Facebook an image mocking the appearance of the state’s recently departed health secretary, Dr. Rachel Levine, a transgender woman who has been nominated to serve in the Biden administration, and then offered a general apology Saturday. State Rep....
Hospitalizations related to covid continue to fall in Pa.
For the third consecutive day, Pennsylvania on Saturday reported a significant drop in the number of patients who are hospitalized with covid-19, according to the state Department of Health. The state reported that 3,997 patients are hospitalized with the virus. That’s down from 4,882 on Wednesday. The number of newly...
Pennsylvania income tax returns can be filed online with new state system
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue has rolled out a new online income tax returns filing system. According to the state Department of Revenue, those wishing to file their state tax returns or make income tax payments can do so on mypath.pa.gov. “We’re excited to offer a new online filing system...
Pennsylvania casinos saw revenue drop by $759 million in 2020, state reports
Pennsylvania casinos saw total revenues decrease by $759 million in 2020, a year plagued by the coronavirus pandemic that forced the properties to shutter for several months. According to a new report from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, $2.65 billion was generated last year from the state’s 13 casinos through...
Wolf announces nominations for Secretary of Health, appoints Acting Physician General
Gov. Tom Wolf will nominate his deputy chief of staff to lead the state Department of Health, taking the place of Dr. Rachel Levine, who was tapped earlier this week by President Joe Biden as his assistant secretary of health. Alison Beam, 34, will take over as Acting Secretary of...
Pa. reports fewer hospitalizations, deaths, cases of covid-19 than in recent days
The number of Pennsylvanians hospitalized with covid-19 reportedly dropped dramatically Friday, according to the state Department of Health, although no reason was given. The newly reported number of people hospitalized with coronavirus in the state was 4,169 — almost 600 fewer than was reported the day before. At the same...
Wine mystery boxes offered through Pennsylvania-owned Fine Wine and Good Spirits website
After a year of heightened liquor sales because of the coronavirus pandemic, state officials are offering a package that could help switch up those go-to quarantine drinks. Boxes of wine are available for purchase on the Fine Wine and Good Spirits website, which promotes the sale as “uncork a new...
