With PA’s mask mandate set to end, COVID-19 cases continue to fall in Centre County, state
Pennsylvania’s universal mask mandate will end at 12:01 a.m. Monday, though businesses and organizations still have the option of requiring face coverings, the Wolf administration said Friday.
“We are continuing to make progress toward stopping the spread of COVID-19 throughout the commonwealth, as many Pennsylvanians have taken responsibility for their own health and the health of their communities by getting vaccinated,” Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said in a statement.
“Even though the universal masking order will be lifted in a few days, businesses, organizations, health care providers and other entities maintain the option of requiring employees, guests or customers to wear a mask, regardless of their vaccination status.”
Those who are not fully vaccinated are urged to continue wearing a mask in public.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines mandate masks on planes, buses and other public transportation as well as in airports and other transportation facilities.
Beam said a month ago that the mask order would be lifted when 70% of adults were fully vaccinated or by June 28 — whichever happened first. As of Friday, almost 60% of adults are fully vaccinated.
How many cases in Centre County?
Centre County reported just five cases of COVID-19 between last Saturday and Friday, a decrease of 12 cases compared to the previous week.
Overall, there have been 16,910 cases — 15,414 confirmed and 1,496 probable — along with 70,775 negative tests.
Here’s the picture in PA
Across the state, there were 1,302 cases, a drop of 820 compared to last week. Daily totals ranged from a low of 174 on Wednesday to a high of 258 on Friday.
There have been a total of 1,211,299 cases in Pennsylvania, along with 4,742,330 negative tests and a 97% recovery rate.
Hospitalizations, deaths decline
Hospitalizations continue to fall statewide. Between Monday and Friday, the number of patients decreased by 61 to 380.
Mount Nittany Medical Center is treating six COVID patients between ages 19 and 76, a spokesperson said Friday. The hospital has seen a daily average of eight COVID patients this month.
This week, there were 76 deaths across the state, which brings the total to 27,636. The week’s total is a decrease of 27.
The Health Department reported one new Centre County death on Tuesday to bring the total to 226.
How many vaccines were given this week?
As of Friday, Pennsylvania has given 11,555,953 vaccine doses (excluding Philadelphia and federal facilities). An average of 22,500 people were vaccinated during the past seven days, a decrease of 11,800 from the previous week.
Pennsylvania has given first doses to 62.2% of the entire population, the CDC said, which ranks eighth in the country. The CDC also said Friday that: 59.4% of Pennsylvanians 18 and older are fully vaccinated and 74.9% have gotten their first dose; and Pennsylvania ranks fifth among the states for total doses given.
In Centre County, 152,913 doses have been given — 77,337 partial and 75,576 full. Since last Friday, 1,667 doses have been administered. The week before, 2,620 doses were given.
All Pennsylvanians 12 and older are eligible for the vaccine. Visit mountnittany.org/coronavirus to make an appointment with Mount Nittany Health or vaccines.gov to find other providers.
Where can I get a COVID test in Centre County?
The Health Department is operating a COVID testing site through Thursday at the Centre County Recycling & Refuse Authority Interpretive Center, 253 Transfer Road. Testing is available on Saturday and Tuesday-Thursday from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. and is on a first-come, first-served basis. No appointment is needed.
Mount Nittany Health is moving its COVID test site from the hospital parking garage to its Blue Course Drive location starting Monday. The site will be open 4-7 p.m. Monday-Friday and 8 a.m.-noon Saturday for symptomatic patients by appointment only.
The site will take patients from any provider as long as he or she makes the appointment and faxes the order, Mount Nittany Health said. Appointments can be made by calling 814-234-6106.
Positivity rates drop in county, state
Centre County’s positivity rate fell below 1% this week, according to the state’s early warning monitoring system dashboard. For the period June 18-Thursday, the county’s rate stood at 0.7%. That’s the ninth lowest rate in Pennsylvania, tied with Blair and Clearfield counties.
The county’s previous positivity rate was 1.7%.
Pennsylvania’s rate fell to 1.2% from the previous week’s reading of 1.4%. Potter County reported the highest rate at 9.3%.
Centre County had 2.5 cases per 100,000 residents, the seventh lowest rate in Pennsylvania. The week before, the county’s rate was 10.5 cases. The state has a rate of 7.8 cases per 100,000 residents.
This story was originally published June 26, 2021 at 7:00 AM with the headline "With PA’s mask mandate set to end, COVID-19 cases continue to fall in Centre County, state."