On paper, Sewickley Heights has had one of the highest case rates of covid-19 in Allegheny County.
In early January, the borough of roughly 800 residents had about 307 positive cases a case rate of 3,700 per 10,000 residents, or 37%. Nationally, the rate was 7.5% on Jan. 25. In Pennsylvania, it was around 6.3%.
“I knew that number had to be wrong,” said John Bunce, a resident of Leet.
He said the Sewickley area is “very well-behaved” when it comes to following county, state and federal guidelines to curb the spread of the disease. Bunce’s daily routine includes going to Mass, a coffee shop and a bakery where he observes people following all of the rules.
Dr. Rachel Levine (courtesy Biden transition team)
President-elect Joe Biden announced this week that he had nominated Dr. Rachel Levine to be the assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Levine would be the first openly transgender person to be confirmed to a federal appointment by the U.S. Senate. Dr. Rachel Levine will bring the steady leadership and essential expertise we need to get people through this pandemic – no matter their ZIP code, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability – and meet the public health needs of our country in this critical moment and beyond, said Biden in a statement.
Self-reported data from Beaver County s long-term care facilities miss about half of December s COVID-19 cases reported through a different database and even skip most of the deaths.
According to data reported by individual facilities, about 87 residents tested positive in 10 facilities during December, with 15 residents dying. Data published by the Pennsylvania Department of Health shows 174 residents who tested positive between Dec. 1 and Dec. 29 at 15 facilities, with 35 residents dying. That s five missing facilities, and as many as 85 residents and 20 deaths unaccounted for.
State officials say they know there s a discrepancy.
Pennsylvania uses a system called the National Electronic Disease Surveillance System, or NEDSS, to transfer public health data from healthcare systems such as hospitals and long-term care facilities to public health entities. The system allows entities to swap data electronically. For instance, when a person tests positive for COVID-19, the