COVID-19 Vaccine

A significant percentage of staff at Pennsylvania’s skilled nursing facilities have not been vaccinated against COVID-19. There have been more than 2,775 outbreaks in 1,586 long-term care facilities since the start of the pandemic, making the low vaccination rates worrisome to health officials.

The state Health Department told vaccine providers on Thursday to refrain from using J&J’s COVID-19 vaccine until April 24, or until the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Food and Drug Administration issues new guidance.

The speaker of the Pennsylvania House has tested positive for the coronavirus.

A recent spike in coronavirus cases in some states has led one of the nation's top health experts to suggest that governors could “close things down” like they did during previous surges.

The one-shot nature of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine makes it ideal for county jails where stays average just over a month. With that vaccine off the table, jails are rescheduling clinics while they consider their options.

On today's program: How federal and local officials share information could impact vaccinations, now that Pennsylvania providers have been instructed to halt administering the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine until April 20; a change in the city’s census tract could impact how the Hill District gets federal assistance moving forward; and a local tech-worker union says Google isn’t meeting with them to finalize a contract.

Beginning tomorrow, all Pennsylvanians 16 and older will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. The move comes a week ahead of schedule.

Long-term care facilities, like nursing homes, have been cautious to loosen coronavirus restrictions. But preliminary data from UPMC show that elderly people who receive the COVID-19 vaccine do mount antibody responses.

The state Department of Health denied a public records request from Spotlight PA, citing a decades-old law that it has frequently used to shield the public from scrutinizing its pandemic response.