Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?Last Friday, Gov. Tom Wolf announced he would ease restrictions on gatherings and businesses in Franklin County on May 29, thanking “the Pennsylvanians who have made tremendous sacrifices since the virus emerged in our state.”That same week, COVID-19 cases hit a peak at WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital, filling the intensive care unit.Some doctors there feared they would soon be overwhelmed.“A couple more cases could tip the balance,” said one physician who has treated COVID-19 patients there and who asked not to be named out of fear of...…Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?Last Friday, Gov. Tom Wolf announced he would ease restrictions on gatherings and businesses in Franklin County on May 29, thanking “the Pennsylvanians who have made tremendous sacrifices since the virus emerged in our state.”That same week, COVID-19 cases hit a peak at WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital, filling the intensive care unit.Some doctors there feared they would soon be overwhelmed.“A couple more cases could tip the balance,” said one physician who has treated COVID-19 patients there and who asked not to be named out of fear of...WW…

Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?One of the most powerful tools in fighting the coronavirus is a spreadsheet.Every morning, Montgomery County contact tracer Neil Lader opens one up on his home computer, and delves into another day of chasing down the virus. The document contains a list of names and data points — people to follow up with, people who he hasn’t been able to reach.Around 9 a.m., he gets a list of new contacts — people who have just tested positive for COVID-19 and need to isolate. He adds them to the list.Then, he works the phone. Over the course of each 30 to 90...…Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?One of the most powerful tools in fighting the coronavirus is a spreadsheet.Every morning, Montgomery County contact tracer Neil Lader opens one up on his home computer, and delves into another day of chasing down the virus. The document contains a list of names and data points — people to follow up with, people who he hasn’t been able to reach.Around 9 a.m., he gets a list of new contacts — people who have just tested positive for COVID-19 and need to isolate. He adds them to the list.Then, he works the phone. Over the course of each 30 to 90...WW…

A new Trump administration rule limiting online classes for international students has thrown the tens of thousands of students enrolled in Pennsylvania universities into new uncertainty, less than two months before school resumes.Published on Monday afternoon, the “temporary final rule,” as the regulation is paradoxically called, will no longer allow those with common F-1 or M-1 international student visas while taking a full online course load. This mirrors regulations that exist during non-pandemic times, which were suspended in March to give schools flexibility when the coronavirus...…A new Trump administration rule limiting online classes for international students has thrown the tens of thousands of students enrolled in Pennsylvania universities into new uncertainty, less than two months before school resumes.Published on Monday afternoon, the “temporary final rule,” as the regulation is paradoxically called, will no longer allow those with common F-1 or M-1 international student visas while taking a full online course load. This mirrors regulations that exist during non-pandemic times, which were suspended in March to give schools flexibility when the coronavirus...WW…

Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?This week, Congress is considering another, as unemployment remains stubbornly high across the country and coronavirus cases rise nationwide.One hotly watched agenda item is the extra $600 per week in unemployment assistance the federal government has been bankrolling since the spring, which is set to expire at the end of the week.The majority of the 3.3 million Pennsylvanians who have applied for some form of unemployment assistance since the CARES Act passed should have received the additional $600 payments, according to the state Department...…Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?This week, Congress is considering another, as unemployment remains stubbornly high across the country and coronavirus cases rise nationwide.One hotly watched agenda item is the extra $600 per week in unemployment assistance the federal government has been bankrolling since the spring, which is set to expire at the end of the week.The majority of the 3.3 million Pennsylvanians who have applied for some form of unemployment assistance since the CARES Act passed should have received the additional $600 payments, according to the state Department...WW…

Get daily updates from WHYY News!The free WHYY News Daily newsletter delivers the most important local stories to your inbox.The video shows one officer punching the suspect with a clenched fist, while another can be seen hitting the man with his knee.A woman who pleaded guilty to setting fire to police cars amid the 2020 racial justice protests in Philadelphia has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison.The jury found they deprived the 46-year-old Black man of medical care and failed to stop Derek Chauvin as he knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes.Sign up for our weekly...…Get daily updates from WHYY News!The free WHYY News Daily newsletter delivers the most important local stories to your inbox.The video shows one officer punching the suspect with a clenched fist, while another can be seen hitting the man with his knee.A woman who pleaded guilty to setting fire to police cars amid the 2020 racial justice protests in Philadelphia has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison.The jury found they deprived the 46-year-old Black man of medical care and failed to stop Derek Chauvin as he knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes.Sign up for our weekly...WW…

Supreme Court limits how EPA can respond to climate change The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion in a key environmental case, WV v. EPA, says the federal agency lacks authority to use greenhouse gas emissions caps to force fossil fuel power plants out of business.For, Congress has failed to pass standalone climate change legislation. That left the Obama White House to rely on the 1970 Clean Air Act in order to craft regulations that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, currently the in the country. In its in West Virginia v. the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S....…Supreme Court limits how EPA can respond to climate change The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion in a key environmental case, WV v. EPA, says the federal agency lacks authority to use greenhouse gas emissions caps to force fossil fuel power plants out of business.For, Congress has failed to pass standalone climate change legislation. That left the Obama White House to rely on the 1970 Clean Air Act in order to craft regulations that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, currently the in the country. In its in West Virginia v. the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S....WW…

City officials announced that a new, federally-backed vaccination site will open in North Philadelphia the week of April 5.The clinic will be located on the campus of Esperanza, a non-profit serving the Latino community in Hunting Park, as reported was expected.Situated in a charter high school run by the group, the clinic will deliver between 1,500-2,500 doses per day from the city’s allocation from the federal government. That allotment averages around 30,000 to 40,000 first doses each week.“We’re still working out many, many details on the Esperanza site operations,” said Philadelphia...…City officials announced that a new, federally-backed vaccination site will open in North Philadelphia the week of April 5.The clinic will be located on the campus of Esperanza, a non-profit serving the Latino community in Hunting Park, as reported was expected.Situated in a charter high school run by the group, the clinic will deliver between 1,500-2,500 doses per day from the city’s allocation from the federal government. That allotment averages around 30,000 to 40,000 first doses each week.“We’re still working out many, many details on the Esperanza site operations,” said Philadelphia...WW…

Nearly one in five Black Pennsylvanians was unemployed as 2020 ended, according to a by the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning D.C. think tank. That was the highest rate of unemployment for Black people in any U.S. state at the time.As vaccines roll out and some economic indicators improve, a pandemic that has disproportionately harmed Black people also has worsened pre-existing economic inequality, experts and community leaders said.Initially, the pandemic actually leveled the playing field, according to Kyle Moore, the economist focusing on race and inequality for EPI who crunched...…Nearly one in five Black Pennsylvanians was unemployed as 2020 ended, according to a by the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning D.C. think tank. That was the highest rate of unemployment for Black people in any U.S. state at the time.As vaccines roll out and some economic indicators improve, a pandemic that has disproportionately harmed Black people also has worsened pre-existing economic inequality, experts and community leaders said.Initially, the pandemic actually leveled the playing field, according to Kyle Moore, the economist focusing on race and inequality for EPI who crunched...WW…

The Rittenhouse home of Pennsylvania Banking and Securities Secretary Richard Vague, a prominent Philadelphia venture capital investor, was visited by federal agents Thursday morning over a cyberstalking case involving his 20-year-old stepson.According to an affidavit unsealed in the U.S. Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Fordham University student Mikael La Ferla — also known as Mikael Zarett — is alleged to have used social media “to obtain nude or partially clothed pictures” of an unnamed minor in suburban Lower Moreland Township in 2018. La Ferla is the son of Vague’s second wife, Laura...…The Rittenhouse home of Pennsylvania Banking and Securities Secretary Richard Vague, a prominent Philadelphia venture capital investor, was visited by federal agents Thursday morning over a cyberstalking case involving his 20-year-old stepson.According to an affidavit unsealed in the U.S. Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Fordham University student Mikael La Ferla — also known as Mikael Zarett — is alleged to have used social media “to obtain nude or partially clothed pictures” of an unnamed minor in suburban Lower Moreland Township in 2018. La Ferla is the son of Vague’s second wife, Laura...WW…

Digital signs around Norristown said it was 43 degrees, but with the wind it felt much colder in the small encampment by the banks of Stony Creek where Dottie and Mark Spillane have been staying.The couple, both 60, have briefly been homeless before. Then, before the pandemic hit, Mark’s severe health issues cost him his job delivering used cars. With COVID looming, he couldn’t find a new one, and their landlord kicked them out.“I was in the hospital, I was getting out, and I couldn’t get my rent paid. I couldn’t get back to work. It just was bad timing,” he said, of the pandemic shutting...…Digital signs around Norristown said it was 43 degrees, but with the wind it felt much colder in the small encampment by the banks of Stony Creek where Dottie and Mark Spillane have been staying.The couple, both 60, have briefly been homeless before. Then, before the pandemic hit, Mark’s severe health issues cost him his job delivering used cars. With COVID looming, he couldn’t find a new one, and their landlord kicked them out.“I was in the hospital, I was getting out, and I couldn’t get my rent paid. I couldn’t get back to work. It just was bad timing,” he said, of the pandemic shutting...WW…