As coronavirus cases keep rising, Gov. Tom Wolf is urging Pennsylvanians to be prepared for a long “war” to deal with this crisis.
“We don’t know how bad the surge will be or when it will end," Wolf said at a news conference Thursday. “We must prepare ourselves mentally and physically to be in this for the long haul.”
Wolf said this is not a battle. “This is a war,” he said.
Pennsylvania’s diagnosed coronavirus cases grew by the hundreds today. At least 16 people have died.
Wolf and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine provided an update on COVID-19 in the state in a news conference that ran about 30 minutes.
You can watch them live online here.
The state has confirmed 1,687 patients have tested positive for the coronavirus, including 560 new cases reported today, the largest one-day increase to date. On Wednesday, 276 new cases were reported.
“This demonstrates that exponential rise that we have been discussing,” Levine said.
Levine offered more information on the ages of those who have tested positive. She said 46 percent of all cases have involved adults 50 and over.
She said 39 percent of those who have tested positive are between 25 and 49 years old.
“It’s very important younger adults not be complacent about their susceptibility to Covid-19," Levine said.
Among those who have been hospitalized, 46 percent are over 65. All of those who have died in Pennsylvania are adults, Levine said.
The governor was asked about the possibility of schools re-opening during this academic year. Wolf has ordered schools to be closed until at least April 6 and possibly longer if necessary. Some school leaders have said they are bracing for the possibility that schools won’t re-open this spring.
“We’re going to have to decide what happens with the rest of the school year,” Wolf said. "We’re woking with educators to be fair to the students and the educators to keep all of them safe.”
The bulk of the cases have been concentrated in Philadelphia and its suburbs. There are 402 cases in the city of Philadelphia alone, while neighboring Montgomery County has 282 cases.
However, cases have been found in 48 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, state officials said. More people are testing positive in central and western Pennsylvania.
Businesses considered non-life-sustaining have been closed across the state. Also, 10 counties, most of them in eastern Pennsylvania, are under stay-at-home orders, which means people shouldn’t go places except for life-saving reasons.
Wolf said he projected unemployment claims would reach 800,000. Pennsylvanians filed about 650,000 unemployment compensation claims over the past 11 days, the Associated Press reported.
Wolf was asked about releasing the names of businesses which have been granted waivers by the state to remain open. He said if disclosing the names is in the public interest, he’ll do it.
“I want to be as open and transparent as I can,” Wolf said. “I also don’t want to make this process subject to all kinds of pressures that will make it work less well."
Wolf thanked lawmakers for approving $50 million in coronavirus relief measures.
Nationwide, the coronavirus has killed more than 1,000 people.