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UPDATED: 5/10/20, 12:47 p.m.
In Dauphin County, just a small fraction of 1% of the population has died from COVID-19. Jeff Haste, chairman of the Dauphin County Commissioners, said the government response has been more detrimental for the population than the actual virus.
"It’s time for the people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to take their state back," he declared.
As more was learned about the virus and who’s most vulnerable, Haste said it was clear nursing homes and long-term care facilities are where the attention needs to be focused and that businesses should be allowed to adapt to the new normal with a chance to prosper.
"To me, all of the lives matter, not just lives with COVID," he said. "It’s also those lives that are now struggling to find out what they do because they don’t have a means of income."
Haste said businesses cannot succeed when the governor, who he called a dictator, and an unelected health secretary put them in a lockdown.
"I don’t want to ever say that I think the governor and the health secretary aren’t well intended, because I think they are," he expressed. "But I really think they’re short-sighted and I really think they’re underestimating the ability of our people to do the right thing."
Gov. Wolf's office has not responded to a request for comment.
Haste continued, "And you can’t take them to court right now because the courts are shut down, so we’ve in essence got ourselves in a position where only one branch of government is calling all the shots."
Pennsylvania has nearly 1.8 million people on unemployment.
Pennsylvania provides COVID-19 update
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 1,295 new positive cases of COVID-19 Sunday, bringing the state's total to 56,611.
19 additional deaths were also confirmed, raising Pennsylvania's total fatalities to 3,707.
The vast majority of coronavirus patients are from our area. In all, health officials say 30,950 cases and 2,302 deaths have been reported in Philadelphia and the four suburban counties. Southeastern Pennsylvania remains in the red phase.
"As we prepare to move a number of counties from red to yellow, we need all Pennsylvanians to continue to follow the social distancing and mitigation efforts in place," said Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine. "We must continue to protect our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians, which includes our seniors, those with underlying health issues, our healthcare workers and our first responders."
Allegheny, Armstrong, Bedford, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Fulton, Greene, Indiana, Somerset, Washington, and Westmoreland counties are next to be moved to the yellow phase.