HARRISBURG (Newsradio 1020 KDKA) - Governor Tom Wolf's efforts to mitigate another COVID-19 surge in Pennsylvania have been applauded by national health policy leaders.
"In this pandemic, it is imperative to take bold action before cases rise exponentially—to get ahead of the curve," said Ezekiel J. Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., former special advisor for health policy to President Obama, and vice provost for Global Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania. "Gov. Wolf is doing just that. We need to ensure physical distancing, the wearing of face masks, and limiting indoor activities. Gov. Wolf's actions to implement these measures will save lives and allow continued reopening of the economy in a safe and smart way."
On July 15, the governor instituted new restrictions throughout the state which included reducing indoor dining to 25 percent capacity for restaurants, previously at 50 percent. In addition, alcohol sales were limited to being permitted with meals only, nightclubs were forced to close temporarily, and gatherings of 25 people or more indoors (or 250 outdoors) were prohibited.
At the time of the restrictions announcement, Wolf said "Clearly this is a bad thing for the businesses we're targeting here, the question is would we be in a worse position if we allowed what happens in Florida where no one's going to restaurants." He added that states that opened too quickly are now affecting other states. "We don't want to become Florida, we don't want to become Arizona, we don't want to become Texas," said Wolf.
"Governor Wolf is making the very difficult and very necessary decision that will save lives in Pennsylvania," said Andy Slavitt, former Acting CMS Administrator and United States of Care Board Chair. "Having reviewed the data, seeing Pennsylvania taking steps before this becomes a full-blown crisis is the only way to mitigate an out of control tragedy. I know the governor realizes the hardship caused by the pandemic on Pennsylvanians. These actions will help bring a quicker end to them."
At the beginning of July, Pennsylvania Secretary of Health, Dr. Rachel Levine mandated that masks be worn any time people leave their home and will be in public and unable to maintain proper social distancing.
"Governor Wolf has shown throughout this crisis that he is doing what Washington refuses to do: let science and public health dictate decisions, and taking needed steps to protect the people of Pennsylvania from COVID," Ron Klain, former chief of staff to Vice-President Biden, and President Obama's 'Ebola czar' said. "That is the best plan to save lives, and, in the long run, promote a sustainable economic recovery."
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