May 6, 2020 5 min read

Shut out of the most recent coronavirus redesignation of part of Pennsylvania, commissioners from four counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania are appealing to Gov. Tom Wolf to not only upgrade the area from red to yellow, but to be part of the planning to do so.

Drafts of open letters from commissioners in Washington, Greene, Fayette and Butler counties became available late Tuesday.

Washington County Commission Chairwoman Diana Irey Vaughan confirmed that the letter had been sent via email, as did her counterpart in Butler County.

“Frankly, our residents are angry,” the officials asserted in the letter, which raised the possibility of legal action.

The governor announced last Friday that residents of two dozen counties in northwestern and north-central Pennsylvania will no longer be on red-alert constraints to shelter in place as of May 8, allowing retail to resume operations with stipulations.

“We are a commonwealth, meaning any government in which all people involved have a say,” the commissioners of the four counties told the governor.

“While we recognize that this is a health emergency … calls to have real conversations beyond mere question and answer sessions remain unanswered.”

Friday was first time county-level officials and legislators learned of state Department of Health Secretary Rachel Levine’s discussion of an algorithm known as the “Risk-Based Decision Tool” that was being used to reopen aspects of the northern region’s businesses, and they want more information about it.

“The status of what businesses can be open in the yellow and then green phase has changed sometimes twice in the same day,” commissioners from the four counties wrote. “Our phones and emails are flooded with calls and appeals for help. As such, we are left with no other option but to support legal action by our residents and businesses protect their constitutional rights, safety and welfare as citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

Officials of the four counties say they lack critical information on licensed care facilities, such as real-time client census and the number of front-line care employees in those facilities, to assess and address personal protective equipment and testing.

They also want to know how the criteria used in the algorithm are being tracked and measured, how movement from one phase to the next and/or back will occur, and how input from local people will be gathered and considered.

The officials also want to know more about testing and contact tracing capabilities in counties and how local officials will be engaged in organizing and planning for this process.

Noting they “represent the residents and citizens in our communities whose businesses and lives are near or total ruin as these closures remain in effect,” the commissioners referred to small businesses experiencing inconsistent communication regarding their designation as life-sustaining or non-life sustaining and have had appeals denied or simply unheard” without knowing what went into the decisions.

Auditor General Eugene DePasquale has said his office will review the procedure used for the waivers.

Greene County Commission Chairman Mike Belding said Tuesday that the final wording of the letter was likely to be discussed at today’s agenda-setting meeting, and whether its contents required a formal vote Thursday would be up to the county solicitor.

In the draft, the Greene County commissioners told the governor they “listened and abided by the Centers for Disease Control and Department of Health requirements and we have one of the lowest positive rates in the Commonwealth.

“Greene County is unique in that we are bordered on two sides by the state of West Virginia. As our businesses struggle to survive like many in Pennsylvania, they also fear losing customers to West Virginia companies that have had fewer operating restrictions placed upon them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We can safely reopen businesses in Greene County and operate those businesses in accordance with CDC and DOH guidance.”

Fayette County commissioners wrote: “Governor, you asked us to sacrifice to ‘flatten the curve.’ (We) did just that, as evidenced by our low case totals. At no point in this crisis was our health care system overwhelmed by patients with COVID-19. Only 14 of our citizens required hospitalization during this crisis.”

Other cases were treated as outpatients. In the last two weeks, Fayette County has had zero COVID-19 in-patients.

“Throughout the crisis, we monitored and managed the situation in Fayette County by working closely with our Emergency Management Department, ensuring wise decisions were made and necessary personal protective equipment was acquired,” their statement continued.

“But somehow this is no longer about flattening the curve; this has morphed into trying to ensure that nobody ever gets the virus. We know this virus adversely affects the elderly and chronically ill, more so than the general population. Resources and emphasis should be allocated to making sure these at-risk citizens are protected while permitting our business community to return safely to work.”

The Washington County commissioners wrote, the burden businesses “have had to endure over the past two months has been unprecedented. Several will not be reopening their doors, leaving a tremendous void in many of our communities.

“By picking winners and losers, deeming certain businesses essential and non-essential, the governor, whether intentionally or unintentionally, decimated an entire class of small business owners and the families and communities they support.

“Washington County, like all counties in our region, believes that during times of national crisis, we come together as Americans and abide by the stay-at-home orders. But now is time for us to act as Pennsylvanians and if necessary, residents of Washington County and demand that the governor allow us to responsibly reopen for business.”

If suit is filed over the situation, Butler County Commission Chairman Leslie Oschey said the venue would be U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.

Two counties – Indiana and Beaver – declined to join in the letter because it raised the possibility of legal action, according to Oschey.