Pennsylvania is among seven states losing a seat in the U.S. House after the numbers from the 2020 Census were counted. That means Pennsylvania's congressional delegation will drop from 18 to 17 and its share of the Electoral College will be trimmed from 20 to 19. Pennsylvania's population grew by 2.4-percent since 2010, well behind the nationwide 7.4-percent growth rate.
New Jersey is holding on to all its representatives in Washington D.C. It comes after results from the 2020 Census were released, revealing the Garden State's population grew by nearly 500,000 people over the past decade. Gov. Phil Murphy is citing the results as a win, saying they are a testament that New Jersey is the best state in the nation to live, work and raise a family.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health Monday confirmed a two-day total of 5043 new cases of coronavirus in the commonwealth, pushing the overall state total to 1,136,057. Over that same two-day period, five new COVID-related deaths were reported, leaving the state's overall total at 25,988. The statewide percent positivity rate for the seven days ending April 22nd dropped to 8.6-percent.
Lehigh Valley Health Network says appointments remain for an upcoming mass vaccination drive-through event in Northampton County. Northampton Community College on Green Pond Road, will host a drive-through vaccination event 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday. Appointments are required.
"In every part of the commonwealth our goal is to get as many people vaccinated as we possibly can," says Gov. Tom Wolf, who says that includes the homebound. Wolf says these are people who have been particularly hard-hit by the pandemic because they were more isolated than everyone else. He says the state is looking to find a way they can reach those homebound Pennsylvanians and make the vaccine accessible to them. The Department of Aging, Area Agencies on Aging, housing associations, nursing care organizations and other community partners will be tasked with doing that.
Two COVID-19 testing sites are coming to Monroe County. One will be open daily from 10am until 7pm beginning tomorrow at the Pocono Mountain Volunteer Fire Company in Mount Pocono. The other launches May 2nd at the Eldred Township Community Center in Kunkletown and will also operate from 10am to 7pm every day. The testing will be done on a first-come, first-serve basis and about 450 people will be able to get tested each day.
Doctors are seeing a rise in younger people being admitted into hospitals for COVID-19. Penn State Health's Dr. Peter Dillon says the spike they're seeing is in the 18-to-49-year-old category range. He added that few of them get placed in the ICU, but many from this age group have been experiencing more severe symptoms of the virus.
New Jersey is allowing up to 500 people at large outdoor gatherings starting on May 10th, as part of the state's post-pandemic reopening process. Gov. Phil Murphy it's based on increased vaccinations and declining hospitalizations, while hopefully giving businesses and other groups time to prepare. "I would hope these are the first set of announcements of I hope many sets of announcements over the next number of weeks," Murphy says. Also on May 10th, outdoor carnivals and fairs can resume at 50-percent capacity.
Lower Mount Bethel Township resident Ann Roth took home an Academy Award for best costume design in the Netflix original "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom." This was Roth's fifth Oscar nomination and her second win.
Allentown police officers responded to the first block of South Perry Street shortly after 7:30 p.m. Sunday to investigate a shots-fired report. While officers responded to the call, a gunshot victim arrived at the St. Luke's Hospital - Allentown Campus at 17th and Hamilton streets. the victim was suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg and is expected to survive.
Phillipsburg High School’s head wrestling coach and a district math teacher at the school were arrested Monday and charged with essentially blackmailing a school district official to vote in favor of a tenure vote. Longtime math teacher George Chilmonik and coach Dave Post, who's also a math teacher, allegedly threatened to expose embarrassing information unless that school district official influenced a tenure vote. Both men face potential lengthy jail sentences if convicted.
A former Pennsylvania high school cheerleader is having her First Amendment case brought up at the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2017, Brandi Levy was upset about being kept on the JV cheerleading team and posted a message on Snapchat that read, "F-school, F-softball, F-cheer, F-everything." The Mahonoy Area School District responded to the then-14-year-old's post by suspending her from cheer for a year. Levey says the school shouldn't be able to punish her or other students for how they feel or saying how they feel. Her parents won their case in lower courts and it will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court tomorrow.
Aerial spraying to battle gypsy moth outbreaks in Pennsylvania is going to be underway soon. The state's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources says the Bureau of Forestry will be overseeing the spraying of almost 150 sites totaling more than 203,000 acres. The spraying will be done by helicopters and planes. Gypsy moths are an invasive species that cause major habitat loss by killing many different types of trees including oak, sweet gum, basswood, birch, aspen and willow.
There's a new effort to repeal the death penalty in Pennsylvania. House Bill 999 is sponsored by Democrat Chris Rabb and Republican Frank Ryan, who says there are both financial and moral reasons to end the practice. "In my mind it's a matter of looking at an overall understanding about the justice involved and making sure the families of the victims are taken care of, but at the same time we recognize that there is a moral imperative to do the right thing," Ryan says.
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board is going to be holding a limited-release lottery series that will give some vendors a chance to buy more than 200 bottles of 28 rare whiskeys. Those who are interested in joining the lottery are being asked to register on Fine Wine and Good Spirits' official website. The deadline to register is Friday at 5pm.