Wolf set to announce next counties to reopen Friday
Gov. Tom Wolf is set to announce the next round of counties that will transition into a partial reopening Friday.
Neither Wolf nor state Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine revealed which counties would be included.
Levine declined comment Thursday about when the additional counties would transition to the so-called yellow phase.
Twenty-four counties, all in the northwest and north central part of the state, transitioned from red to yellow zones at midnight Friday.
The transition removes stay-at-home orders and reopens many retail businesses. Restaurants must continue operating as take-out or delivery, and salons, casinos and indoor movie theaters will remain closed.
When Fayette, Greene and Washington counties were left out of the first round of openings, state and local elected officials called upon Wolf to reopen the area, citing low case numbers.
Fayette County鈥檚 number of cases remained at 84 for the third day on Thursday, and Greene County鈥檚 stayed at 27 for the sixth day.
Washington County has 120 cases.
Levine said Thursday that testing is more readily available than it was two weeks ago. At the time, those who had COVID-19 symptoms and worked in the health care field, lived in a long-term care living facility or were 65 or older were prioritized for testing.
鈥淲e want more than just the sickest people to be tested,鈥� Levine said. 鈥淲e want to expand testing to all symptomatic individuals to get a better idea of how many patients have COVID-19.鈥�
Statewide, 52,916 people have tested positive for the virus. The state Department of Health reported 3,416 people have died, a 310-death increase between Wednesday and Thursday.
Levine said the increase is attributable, in part, to a reconciliation of data amongst different reporting systems.
With Mother鈥檚 Day on Sunday, Levine advised residents who remain in counties still designated red zones not to have in-person visits.
鈥淭he safest thing you can do for yourself and your mother 鈥� is to do that visit virtually,鈥� she said.
For additional information on COVID-19, visit health.pa.gov.