UpdatedMon, May 10, 2021 at 11:24 am ET
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Lifting COVID-19 restrictions before the Memorial Day weekend would help re-invigorate suffering tourism industries, officials said. (Shutterstock)
PENNSYLVANIA Lawmakers in Pennsylvania are asking Gov. Tom Wolf to lift the COVID-19 mitigation measures three days earlier than planned, noting the importance of Memorial Day weekend to the struggling tourism and hospitality industries.
The Wolf administration had recently announced that all mitigation measures related to the pandemic, except for the mask mandate, would be lifted on Memorial Day. This approach would allow these businesses to have a full holiday weekend to begin to recoup the losses they suffered during COVID-19, according to a letter sent to the governor that was signed by more than 20 state lawmakers. We are not aware of any scientific standard or evidence that suggests that moving this timeline up a few days would present any serious risk to the health and
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As vaccine rates slow with the threat of a new surge looming this fall, elected officials on both sides of the aisle are stepping forward to encourage constituents to get a covid-19 vaccine even as they acknowledge this is a personal decision.
While experts say such efforts could be a double-edged sword at reelection time and will appeal to a limited group, they say every bit could help sway someone who is on the fence.
Pennsylvania Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, R- Hempfield, spoke publicly last week about her decision to get vaccinated and encouraged others to take the leap, saying, “It can’t hurt,” and it could speed the return to normalcy. She said she’s been careful to stress she does not support forced vaccination. Despite that caveat, she said her local office informed her it received some negative calls after the Tribune-Review reported on her
4 days ago
State law, and the emergency power it delegates, was designed to handle more commonplace, short-term disasters like floods and hurricanes. Since the pandemic has lasted for well over a year and has carried with it restrictions on public life, the Republican-controlled state legislature has grown more and more impatient with Democratic Gov. Wolf, who has wielded the sole power to add or remove those restrictions.
The executive and legislative branches have been working together recently under the COVID-19 Joint Vaccine Task Force, which some have held up as an example of a more cooperative emergency government.
If the emergency powers ballot initiatives are approved, they argue that cooperation would happen more often.
Pa. senators ask Gov. Wolf to lift COVID-19 restrictions at start of Memorial Day weekend PennLive.com 16 hrs ago Jan Murphy, pennlive.com
Nearly half of Pennsylvania’s state senators are urging Gov. Tom Wolf to lift his COVID-19 mitigation orders on businesses before Memorial Day.
In a letter to the governor, they asked for the restrictions to be lifted on Friday, May 28 - the Friday before Memorial Day. Currently, Wolf plans to remove the restrictions on Memorial Day, May 31.
Lawmakers argue removing the restrictions three days earlier would help the hospitality and tourism industries, which have been hurt badly by the pandemic.