All Pennsylvania counties will be out of the red phase by June 5.
“Today, the first Pennsylvania counties moved into the green phase,” Gov. Tom Wolf said on Friday. “Next week at 12:01 Friday, June 5, 16 more counties will move from yellow to green.”
He further said that “every county that is currently in the red phase is slated to move into the yellow phase at the same time.”
Eighteen counties including Cameron, Elk, McKean and Potter entered the green phase on Friday, and the total number of green counties will be 34 on June 5. There are 10 counties moving from red to yellow next week.
“We will continue to monitor these counties, and we’ll keep talking with local officials so everyone feels comfortable with reopening.
In the local area as of Friday, Cameron County has two confirmed cases; Elk, four confirmed cases and two probable cases; McKean, eight confirmed, four probable and one death; and Potter, four confirmed.
Dr. Rachel Levine, secretary of health, said there were 693 new cases on Friday, bringing the total to 70,735 in Pennsylvania. Total deaths are 5,464, and an estimated 64% of people have recovered.
As counties reopen, “We have an important job,” said Levine. “We need to stay alert.”
She asked people to be aware of their surroundings when they leave home and plan on how to maintain social distancing around others. When someone can’t social distance, “Actually consider whether or not you have to go.”
Wolf agreed that people need to continue to follow safety rules, even in green counties.
“We can’t isolate ourselves forever, can’t do that forever, and we still don’t have enough tests, still don’t have a vaccine,” he said. “So we need to continue to be careful.”
When talking about increased testing in Pennsylvania — and the importance testing has on reopening safely — Wolf said, “We have more test sites than any other state in the United States, and we keep figuring out ways to open more.” The state is expanding contact tracing, too, he said.
One problem, Wolf said later in Friday’s press conference, is, “We’re not even close to the point where we have enough tests to do surveillance testing for anyone who wants to have a test. Right now, you have to have some symptoms, some sense that you need to have a test.”
Another challenge, he said, is making sure tests are accessible for the state’s 13 million residents. He said testing is becoming increasingly more available.
By taking precautions, Wolf said, “It’ll mean that our lives can return more quickly to the normalcy that we all look forward to.”
He asked employers to be “responsible and diligent,” too, by encouraging sick workers to stay home and keeping workplaces sanitized in accordance with Department of Health guidelines.
Answering a question about schools reopening, Wolf confirmed that schools will be reopening this fall. He said it will look different and could include things like fewer students per classroom and maybe some online work.
The Department of Education is now developing guidance for reopening schools, which he anticipates will be released next week.
Wolf said he does not anticipate a vaccine to be ready by the fall.
Levine said she is optimistic they will have a “rapid accurate point of care test” by then, as many companies are trying to develop one. Such a test might be able to be done by nasal or oral swab by someone who is not a health care professional and provide results in 15 or 20 minutes, she suggested.
“Even now it takes 24 to 48 hours to get a test back,” she said.
Wolf said they plan to do “everything in our power” to prevent another shutdown like the one counties are now coming out of.”
During the press conference, Wolf was asked about the possibility of delays in getting the results due to the number of mail-in ballots.
“I would bet there is some delays,” he agreed, though he added, “At this point, no one knows. It’s the first time we’ve done this.”
Wolf explained, “This is the first we’ve had this many people vote mail. He noted that nearly 2 million people applied for mail-in ballots — far more than the roughly 200,000 absentee ballots from past elections.
A reporter asked who would be responsible for monitoring that groups of more than 250 people don’t gather in green counties.
“I guess state police will have the ability to cite,” Wolf said, but he compared the rule to regulations about stop signs.
“The reason stop signs work is because we self-enforce,” he said. “And we do have a guideline that says 250 people is the cap. You shouldn’t be going beyond that or you’re tempting fate. If you go through a stop sign, you’re tempting fate.”
According to Wolf, keeping people safe will ultimately come down to business owners and individuals making decisions “that they’re going to abide by the dictates of this virus.”
