Pennsylvania reaches milestone in reopening counties during COVID-19 pandemic
Erie County will not be joining Western Pennsylvania in reopening more businesses due to alarming evidence of COVID-19 community spread there, Gov. Tom Wolf said Friday.
He said Erie will not be moved into the green phase of reopening nonessential businesses until the county is stable and its new virus cases show evidence of decreasing.
“Our work is not yet done,” Wolf said when the state reached a milestone in his reopening plan.
A dozen new counties will move to the green zone June 12. Washington and Greene counties joined most of Southwestern Pennsylvania in moving Friday to green, which will allow bars and restaurants to reopen under social distancing guidelines.
“Today we reached a landmark in our fight against COVID-19,” Wolf said.
He said the state’s infection rate continues to decline while the number of tests for the virus have increased.
The novel coronavirus has killed 5,886 people in the state since late March. Another 69 new deaths statewide from the virus were announced Friday. There were 443 new cases of the virus announced, taking the statewide total to 74,385.
Washington County’s case count grew by one to 141, while Greene County has been at 27 for some time.
During questioning Friday, Wolf admitted to reporters that he took a risk of catching the virus when he joined marchers Wednesday at a rally in Harrisburg against racial injustice.
“It was a risk worth taking for that specific cause,” he said.
Wolf also said face mask wearing will likely be recommended into the fall, when health experts predict a resurgence of COVID-19.
“We’re trying to figure out what the new world looks like,” he said.