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UPDATED: 5:45 p.m.
“As a former business owner, I deeply share the concerns of some in the legislature," Wolf said.
"Unfortunately, we cannot flip a switch and reopen the Commonwealth. There isn't going to be one big day," he added.
In the gradual reopening of the state, Wolf said he will take the following approach:
- The approach to reopening the state will be data-driven
- There will be guidance and recommendations for business owners, employers and residents
- There must be adequate PPE and testing available
- The state will need to have a monitoring and surveillance program that allows for swift containment
- Protections for vulnerable populations must remain steadfast
- Limitations on large gatherings should remain in place during the reopening
The governor said he will provide more details next week.
He added, "There is no magic wand to wave to get us back to where we want to be."
Wolf's plan comes a day after President Donald Trump, pressing to restart the ravaged U.S. economy, gave governors a road map for economic recovery.
This outline comes as Pennsylvania's unemployment rate zoomed upwards in March to its highest point since 2014 as workers began to feel the effects of Wolf's coronavirus-related business shutdown and stay-at-home orders, according to figures released Friday.
Pennsylvania's unemployment rate shot up to 6%, up from 4.7% in February, the state Department of Labor and Industry said.
The national rate was 4.4% in March. But unemployment surveys were conducted well before the full force of the shutdowns took effect, resulting in more than 1.4 million Pennsylvanians filing for unemployment benefits since March 15, or nearly one in four workers.
Pennsylvania's unemployment rate last year hit a nearly two-decade low of 4.1%.
A separate survey of households found Pennsylvania's civilian labor force fell by 19,000, just a month after hitting a new record above 6.5 million. Employment fell by 104,000 while unemployment rose by 85,000.
A separate survey of employers showed seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls fell by 40,000 in March, below 6.1 million after hitting record levels earlier this year. That wiped out eight months of gains.
Hardest hit was the leisure and hospitality sector, off by 17,000. Financial activities grew slightly, the only sector to expand.
Friday's figures are preliminary and could change.
Pennsylvania now has more than 29,000 positive cases of the coronavirus. Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine confirmed more than 1,700 additional cases and 49 new fatalities on Friday.
The death toll in the state now stands at 756.
To date, 118,000 patients in Pennsylvania have tested negative for the virus.
Montgomery County officials remind people to wear masks correctly
Seven more Montgomery County residents have died after getting infected by the coronavirus, bringing the death toll in the county to 135. More than 2,400 county residents have tested positive since the outbreak.
With the Wolf administration requiring people to wear masks in grocery stores and other essential businesses, Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh is reminding residents that masks don’t make people invincible.
She says while wearing masks protects other people from you, she says cloth masks provide only a little bit of protection for you.
Arkoosh, who was an anesthesiologist before, says it’s important how you handle the mask while wearing it, and especially when you take it off.
“Try to resist touching it from the front and pulling it off that way. Because if it’s contaminated then you’ve contaminated your hand,” she explained.
She says the best thing to do is to put it straight into hot water and wash it with soap. It doesn’t need to be a washing machine.
But she says if you put it on a counter, for example, you’ll contaminate that surface.
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