Coronavirus vaccine study gets started in Philly | Coronavirus Newsletter

TL;DR: As Philly and its surrounding suburbs brace for a surge in coronavirus cases, local leaders asked Gov. Tom Wolf to allow them to send patients elsewhere if hospitals here become overwhelmed by cases. Philadelphians are trying to flatten the curve, with more than two-thirds saying they are following social distancing rules “very closely.” A coronavirus vaccine study is getting started in Philly, and in international news, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has tested positive for the virus, has been moved to intensive care.

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— Ellie Silverman (@esilverman11, health@inquirer.com)

🛑 Mayor Jim Kenney and leaders of Philly’s four suburban counties asked Gov. Tom Wolf to allow hospitals in this region to send some patients elsewhere if they become overwhelmed by cases. They predict ICU bed needs will exceed availability.

🏥 In New Jersey, deaths from the virus have topped 1,000, but Gov. Phil Murphy said the pace of new infections is slowing.

💰One in six Pennsylvania workers has now filed for unemployment since coronavirus shutdowns started.

👮Philadelphia Police Lt. James Walker, 59, died from the coronavirus, the city’s first employee to die as a result of the pandemic.

👐 A city survey shows that more than two-thirds of Philadelphians say they are following social distancing rules “very closely.”

🇬🇧 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has tested positive for the virus, has been moved to intensive care.

📈As of Monday evening, there are more than 8,000 reported cases in the Philadelphia area. Track the spread here.

Pennsylvania closed schools March 13, New Jersey followed days later, and teachers, students, and families have been left to figure out how to continue learning remotely. While New Jersey has required schools to keep teaching its students, Pennsylvania initially did not. Now Pennsylvania is requiring “a good-faith effort."

Even though lessons have been moved online, computers sent to students, training provided for staff, there are still hurdles.

Many students in the Philadelphia School District lack internet access, in addition to computers. The school district has been distributing Chromebooks and is negotiating purchasing mobile hot-spots for students. They hope to start online learning the week of April 20.

My colleagues Maddie Hanna and Kristen A. Graham put it this way: “How do you track attendance? What lessons do you prioritize? And how much work is too much, for children being supervised by older siblings or by parents juggling jobs — or dealing with job losses?”

Being out of school is especially difficult for children already struggling. My colleague Wendy Ruderman writes about how now, 9-year-old Dean Pagan, who suffered brain damage from lead poisoning, no longer receives the occupational therapy and counseling his Ambler school provides.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals of Plymouth Meeting is administering the first dose of an experimental vaccine against the coronavirus to a group of Philadelphia-area volunteers.

The company began work on its vaccine in January and at least one other vaccine candidate, by Cambridge, Mass.-based Moderna Inc., has started human testing. But most of the several dozen in development haven’t reached this more advanced stage yet.

Inovio will be looking to make sure the vaccine, now called INO-4800, does not cause any adverse effects. Researchers will be able to tell if the volunteers’ bodies would be able to fight off an infection by analyzing blood samples.

“There is still a long road ahead before we have a safe, effective, and globally accessible vaccine ready for broader use, but today we have reached an important milestone on that journey,” Richard Hatchett, chief executive officer of the the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which helped fund development of the Inovio vaccine, said in a statement.

🥁 Philadelphia hip-hop band The Roots will now stream YouTube content five nights a week.

⚾ Larry Bowa, 74, is still going strong, 50 years after unlikely major-league debut.

🎥 Why National Treasure was our latest One Movie, One Philadelphia pick.

Bike shops are on the Philadelphia’s list of essential businesses allowed to remain open, and bike maintenance and repair shops are on Pennsylvania’s list of “life-sustaining” businesses. While some have closed to protect their staffs, most are open with changes to store hours and customer experience, my colleague Grace Dickinson reports. Here is a list of where you can get your bike serviced and what to expect when you get there.

Have a social distancing tip or question to share? Let us know at health@inquirer.com and your input might be featured in a future edition of this newsletter.

The Flyers Charities is donating $250,000 to help Philabundance, one of the area’s largest hunger-relief organizations, feed people during the pandemic. The donation will help provide meals for thousands of children, families, and seniors.

“Prior to COVID-19, approximately 700,000 people across our nine-county service area went to bed at night not knowing where their next meal would come from,” said Sara Hertz, chief development officer at Philabundance. “Several weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic, that number is steadily increasing.”

Last week, the 76ers and the Sixers Youth Foundation donated $250,000 to Philabundance.

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