Category: Government

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Business Coronavirus Government Health Opinion

Are all COVID-19 tests created equal?

Yesterday I shared my distaste for the once-in-a-while drive-thru COVID-19 testing events. With a little effort, and at the same cost, people can be tested everyday of the week in a manner more suited for a medical procedure like a doctor’s office or clinic and not through a car window.

People don’t ask enough questions about their health care and are willing to accept anything anyone brings them. I asked a few simple questions directly to the Black Doctors Covid Consortium who came to Chester in March to do a drive-thru testing in Chester and I didn’t get a straight answer. I guess they figured I had no right to ask who invited them and they had no responsibility to answer. I decided all my other questions would probably not be answered so I let it go. 

Today, I read an article in the Washington Post where the Maryland Health Department has ordered a Prince George’s labthat had been processing coronavirus specimens collected at pop-up clinics to cease operations, saying the facility does not have the proper certification. Obviously, someone asked a few questions in Maryland which led to the suspension of Advanced Pain Medicine Institute’s license to operate a medical lab and perform any lab testing.

Categories
Coronavirus Government Health Opinion

Should people with freckles get priority for COVID-19 cases?

If someone told you 70% of the people with COVID-19 had freckles, you’d expect there’d be a mad rush to find out what was going on with the spotted ones. Yet, there are communities across America reporting 70% of their people with COVID-19 are Black, even when they represent a scant 13% of the population in those communities, and the response is, ‘Oh my, that’s interesting!’

Yesterday’s paper said the Governor’s new chief concern is minority communities but it has nothing to do with conducting tests and everything to do with urging medical facilities to follow a mandate from the Pennsylvania Department of Health to include race and ethnicity data in demographics with test results. Todays’ paper says, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be prioritizing COVID-19 testing for nursing home residents and workers, following a request from U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., this week.

Who’s got the juice to get testing to Delaware County’s Black communities? From what I’ve seen, everyone has failed up to this point. 

Categories
Coronavirus Crime Criminal Justice Government Health Opinion

Should you call the cops on people not keeping their social distance?

I was in a long line at the grocery store, as we’re all prone to do these days, and as the line was inching closer to the checkout, the lady behind me was inching closer to me clearly ignoring the bright yellow Xs on the floor. I couldn’t tell her to step back because the guy behind her had moved up, almost in the spot she should have been in.

With everything else going on, it wasn’t worth being too bothered by it. I saw a report out of New York City of the number a calls the police are getting for people violating social distance rules and people are obviously very bothered by it. The number of calls were well over 1000 and I wonder what people expect the police to do.

I normally don’t report on news out of Canada, but this story caught my eye because it deals with police response to social distance calls – ‘Crackdown on coronavirus rule breakers could have consequences.’

Categories
Community News Coronavirus Government Health Opinion

Has Chester started COVID-19 testing yet?

On March 23, Mayor Kirkland sent out a press release saying he intended to request COVID-19 tests for Chester. Those aren’t my words. This is from his press release. https://wp.me/p2kkJO-75y

I don’t know if he still intends to request; has requested; had his request denied; or the tests are on the way. There hasn’t been an update on the city’s daily updates regarding his intent to request or another press release to update us. We’ve never heard from the Chester Bureau of Health. I don’t know where to turn for answers.

One thing is for certain. COVID-19 in Chester is on the rise.

  • April 8 – 14 cases.
  • April 9 – 28 cases.
  • April 16 – 61 cases.
  • April 17 – 71 cases.
Categories
Coronavirus Government Health Opinion

Black folks, pollution, the president, and coronavirus are a deadly cocktail

I think it’s old news by now that Black and Brown folks are not faring well with COVID-19 compared to Whites and Asians. A lot of environmental racism occurs in America which contributes to the health conditions of the people living around polluting industries and the president isn’t helping by rolling back EPA regulations.

Here’s quotes from a couple articles addressing the deadly cocktail…

Categories
Coronavirus Family Government Opinion

Who should be able to get an abortion during the coronavirus?

I’m almost 60-years-old and other than war, the only political fight I can recall has continued since as early as I can remember is the right to have an abortion. It’s one of those issues that never goes away and never any closer to resolving.

Now, in these coronavirus days, abortion is a big issue again because some state lawmakers are taking a hard line at stopping all abortions to save surgical masks and gloves for COVID-19 care. As if dealing with coronavirus isn’t enough for governments and their citizens, people are out here protecting a women’s right to an abortion in these scary times fighting lawmakers out here trying to save every mask and rubber glove they can.

Categories
Community News Coronavirus Government Opinion

West Chester lays off borough employee differently than Chester City due to coronavirus

For my out of town readers, Chester, PA and West Chester, PA are separate municipalities, located in two separate counties, separated by about 18 miles. Chester City is in Delaware County and West Chester borough is in Chester County. These two places couldn’t be more different in demographics, wealth disparity, and livability. Yet, one thing seems common: both municipalities need to lay-off their staffs.


I was disappointed at the lack of information coming out of Chester City Hall regarding their layoff edict last week, and unlike Chester City, West Chester provides a lot of context to who, how, and why they’ve made the staff cuts they’ve made due to the coronavirus.

Let’s assume Chester City faced many of the same issues as I share what West Chester government officials had to say about their layoffs in today’s Delaware County Daily Times and Daily Local.