State announces new mitigation orders
New requirements, which take effect Friday, say people coming to Pennsylvania must be tested, masking measures expanded
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania on Tuesday announced new measures to slow the explosive spread of the coronavirus, including an order effective Friday that requires people entering the state to get a virus test before they arrive or quarantine for 14 days afterward.
Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine, in announcing mitigation measures that also include tougher masking requirements, said the travel-test order also applies to Pennsylvanians who travel out of the state and return, excluding commutes for work.
The state wants travelers to be tested within 72 hours before entering Pennsylvania.
There was no mention of enforcement, and Levine acknowledged that officials are relying on voluntary compliance. She said no one will stop travelers to ask about testing as they get off an airplane or drive into Pennsylvania, for example.
The real intent, Levine indicated, is to stop people from traveling especially over Thanksgiving and to do it in concert with other states.
“These measures are actually, in terms of traveling, extremely similar to what other states are doing,” Levine said. “We really want people to stay at home and to stay within their household and not to travel, for example, to do a lot of traveling to see friends and family during the Thanksgiving holiday.”
Beside the travel and masking orders, the state sent a memo to hospitals to encourage cooperation in the face of surging patient loads and issued new recommendations on testing plans and protocols for colleges and universities.
Levine prefaced the details of the new orders by citing an exceptionally bleak statement that she said Pennsylvania received Tuesday from the White House Coronavirus Task Force.
“There is now aggressive, unrelenting, expanding, broad community spread across the country, reaching most counties, without evidence of improvement but rather further deterioration,” Levine said, quoting from the report.
The action cameonadayPenn-
sylvania reported a record 5,900 more cases and saw hospitalizations statewide surging toward the early pandemic peak of about 3,000.
Levine said she briefed state lawmakers of both parties Monday about the situation.
Reacting to the announcement Tuesday afternoon, Democratic state Sen. Lisa Boscola of Northampton described it as “an honor system,” and said she was glad there were no new lockdowns.
Pressure on hospitals
Levine cited a projection from the University of Washington that Pennsylvania will run out of intensive care beds in December if the surge continues. Theprojection shows there will be sufficient medical-surgical beds, although it is not clear whether they will be available in all regions.
There were more than 2,700 people hospitalized Tuesday, more than double the number three weeks ago.
Levine said care given to COVID-19 patients is much improved from the spring, when little was known about the virus. Hence, she said, she hoped the surge in hospitalizations would not be followed by a surge in deaths.
“We do anticipate seeing challenges to our health care system,” Levine said.
The memo, Levine said, asks hospitals to work through partnerships to be ready to support one another. Some may have to modify scheduling of elective procedures, Levine said, and make decisions on which procedures can be done sooner and which can be delayed.
Hospitals, according to the memorandum, also should move up critical elective procedures and prepare to suspend them if the health care system becomes strained.
The hope, Levine said, is that the state does not have to issue a mandate to hospitals.
Dr. Thomas Whalen, executive vice president and chief medical officer of Lehigh Valley Health Network, said the system is “actively involved in regional planning with our other acute care hospital partners across the commonwealth.”
Whalen said LVHNismonitoring the COVID-19 situation.
“We appreciate that the secretary acknowledges that those of us on the front lines of the pandemic are best positioned to assess andcare for all our patients, whether they are suffering infection from COVID, cancer, heart disease or any other health need,” Whalen said.
SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, a union representing 45,000 nurses and health care workers in the state, thanked Levine and the Wolf administration for the enhanced mitigation measures. In a statement, SEIU President Matthew Yarnell said workers have quarantined, watched people in their care die from the virus, and even lived apart from their children to keep their families safe.
“The impact on our state’s caregivers cannot be overstated, which is why it’s so important for the [Health Department] to continue enforcing steps to mitigate the spread and guide a safe
recovery,” Yarnell said.
More masking
The new masking order requires people to wear masks indoors when with others who are not from their household, even if they are practicing social distancing.
“This applies to every indoor facility, such as schools, gyms, doctors’ offices, public transportation, anywhere food is prepared, packaged, or served, and this applies if you have people in your home who are not part of your household,” Levine said.
Whenoutdoors, people should continue to wear masks if they are unable to keep a distance of at least 6 feet from people they don’t live with.
Levine said how Pennsylvania fares in the coming weeks and months will largely depend on the public’s willingness to wear masks and stay away from each other.
“In the end, people will have the consequences of their actions as well as their families and their communities, and if they do not wear masks, if they do not social distance, then those communities are going to see even more spread of COVID-19,” she said.
Higher education Additionally, the state issued recommendations for colleges and universities to test students when they return from a break, at the beginning of each term, and throughout the semester.
Lehigh University in Bethlehem already planned to expand its COVID-19 testing protocols in the spring, spokesperson Lori Friedman said.
All students living in Lehigh dormsorcomingontocampusare required to be tested and follow quarantine protocols if needed. Testing will be coordinated with residence hall move-in dates.
Muhlenberg College in Allentown also will increase testing.
All students returning in the spring will be tested before arriving on campus, according to a message the college posted on its website. Once the semester starts, all students living on campus or nearby will be tested every two weeks at a minimum, and Muhlenberg has designated two locations for quarantine use.
Tightening restrictions
Other states have been reverting to earlier restrictions or tweaking existing ones as the fall surge in cases breaks daily infection records. Gov. Phil Murphyof
NewJersey, for example, ordered that limits on private indoor gatherings be reduced from 25 to 10 people, and limits on outdoor gatherings be reduced from 500 to 150 people.
Wolf held an online meeting over the weekend with Murphy and other regional governors to discuss mitigation efforts.
And Philadelphia officials on Monday announced a ban on indoor dining at restaurants and indoor gatherings of any size, public or private, as the city battles a resurgence of the coronavirus.
The city also plans to shutter gyms, museums and libraries, prohibit in-person instruction at colleges and high schools, and reduce occupancy at stores and religious institutions, city Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley said at a news conference Monday.
The newly announced Pennsylvania cases on Tuesday brought the total to 275,513, including 106 in Lehigh County and 95 in Northampton County.
Theseven-day moving average of newly reported cases was 5,265 on Tuesday, an increase of 55% from 3,398 a week ago.
Levine called the new mandates “strategic” and “targeted” and said adhering to them would help businesses and schools stay open and help prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed.
“Wemuststand united in stopping COVID-19,” Levine said.