“We have transitioned to using the Electronic Death Registration System or EDRS to get as near to real time information regarding people whose deaths have been attributed to COVID-19,” she explained.
Levine said this system changes how they report deaths on their website.
“Now that's not being double counted, but we will be reporting it in two different ways to relay both of those pieces of information,” she added.
This comes as Pennsylvania's death toll from the COVID-19 outbreak has passed 4,500 and about 63,000 people have been infected, the state Health Department said.
Officials added 87 deaths to the tally, after 61 were announced Saturday and 15 on Sunday. More than 3,000 deaths from the coronavirus pandemic in Pennsylvania have been residents of nursing homes or personal care facilities.
Gov. Tom Wolf has begun relaxing social distancing and business closure guidelines, with more than half of the state's 67 counties currently in the "yellow" zone that permits some businesses to operate. Twelve more counties are scheduled to be reclassified as yellow on Friday.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher than the state's confirmed case count because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected without feeling sick. There is no data on how many people have fully recovered.
Related
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up in a couple of weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are at higher risk of more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
Montgomery County
At the Montgomery County coronavirus briefing, some sharp words were exchanged between commissioners.
After Commissioner Val Arkoosh gave her daily update, she asked if anyone else wanted to comment. Commissioner Joe Gale jumped in to talk about his weekend, where he distributed American flags to people to put on veteran’s graves — a tradition Arkoosh had postponed until later this year.
Gale doing it anyway wasn’t the only thing that bothered her.
“He did not have a mask on. He was personally handing a number of individuals who are older age and at highest risk from serious complications from COVID-19 — he was personally handing them flags,” she said.
She added Gale should have also been in quarantine because he was exposed to Commissioner Ken Lawrence, who last week was tested positive for coronavirus.
Gale didn’t take these comments lightly.
“You can mask shame me all you want, I’m not going to sit here and be bullied for honoring fallen veterans. It’s enough already with the mask shaming, the mask bullying and creating mask hysteria,” Gale said.
He said he was in the open air and didn’t think a mask was needed.
The briefing ended right after Gale’s response.
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