WBEN 930am

LATEST BUFFALO CORONAVIRUS NEWS

In-Depth: Challenges facing churches amid the pandemic

NEW YORK (AP) — Crowded bars and house parties have been identified as culprits in spreading the coronavirus. Meat packing plants, prisons and nursing homes are known hot spots. Then there’s the complicated case of America’s churches. The vast majority of these churches have cooperated with health authorities and successfully protected their congregations. Yet from the earliest phases of the pandemic, and continuing to this day, some worship services and other religious activities have been identified as sources of local outbreaks. They are by no means at the top of the list of problematic activities across the U.S., but they have posed challenges for government leaders and public health officials whose guidelines and orders are sometimes challenged as encroachments on religious liberty. “If we wanted to have zero risks, the safest thing would be to never open our doors,” said prominent Dallas megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress. “The question is how can you balance risk with the very real need to worship.” In the past two weeks alone, there have been two notable church-government confrontations in California. San Francisco's city attorney sent a cease-and-desist order in late June to the Roman Catholic archdiocese, alleging that some of its churches had violated a local ban on large indoor gatherings. The archdiocese promised to comply. A few days later, state officials temporarily banned “indoor singing and chanting activities” at all places of worship, prompting some pastors to defy the rule. Evangelical pastor Samuel Rodriguez said worshippers at his Sacramento megachurch joined in singing hymns on July 5, even as most of them wore face masks and obeyed social-distancing guidelines. “To forbid singing in a church is morally reprehensible,” Rodriguez said. “That is how we petition heaven.” The extent to which religious gatherings have contributed to the pandemic’s toll may never be known with any precision. But there’s no question they have played a role throughout, internationally as well as in the United States, even as myriad houses of worship halted in-person services for safety reasons. Of the first wave of cases in South Korea in February, several thousand were members of the secretive Shincheonji Church of Jesus. Hundreds of other cases were linked to a Muslim missionary movement event in late February in Malaysia that was attended by about 16,000 people from numerous East Asian countries. In the second week of March, before warnings and lockdown orders proliferated in the U.S., 35 of the 92 people who attended events at a rural Arkansas church developed COVID-19, and three of them died, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report issued in May. More recently, in mid-June, a small-town church in northeastern Oregon became the epicenter of the state’s largest coronavirus outbreak when 236 people linked to the Lighthouse Pentecostal Church tested positive. According to the Observer newspaper in nearby La Grande, the church in Island City had held religious services, a wedding and a graduation ceremony in the weeks preceding the outbreak, sometimes with more than 100 people in attendance in defiance of state restrictions on gatherings. Union County, with a population of 25,000 people, had recorded fewer than 25 cases during the pandemic prior to the church outbreak. Within two weeks, it had Oregon's highest per capita rate of coronavirus infections. Also in June, West Virginia’s health department announced outbreaks linked to five churches in different parts of the state. The biggest was at Graystone Baptist Church in Lewisburg with 51 cases, three of them fatal. In several cases, churches that resumed in-person services opted to close again after outbreaks. Among them: — A church and an administrative office affiliated with the Church of God in Cleveland, Tennessee, which is the home base for the Pentecostal denomination. No official case count has been released, but a senior leader of the denomination, General Overseer Tim Hill, confirmed that the number of verified cases is growing, and that several church leaders were among those seriously ill. One pastor, Ernie Varner of Lenoir City, Tennessee, died Friday, six days after posting on Facebook, “I'm in the ICU with COVID. Please pray for me." — Calvary Chapel, an evangelical church in Universal City, Texas. It reopened in early May only to close anew in late June after dozens of staff and churchgoers tested positive, including Pastor Ron Arbaugh and his wife. Arbaugh says he regrets telling worshippers last month they could resume the tradition of hugging each other during an interlude of mid-service socializing. — Holy Family Catholic Church in Las Vegas. The diocese announced Thursday that the church would be closed indefinitely after a priest who celebrated Mass this week tested positive. — First Baptist Church of Tillmans Corner in Mobile, Alabama. It resumed in-person services May 17 after the governor gave a statewide green light, but recently canceled them at least through July 31 after more than 20 of the congregation’s 1,500 members tested positive. Pastor Derek Allen wrote a blog post describing the outbreak as a “harrowing and demoralizing journey,” and offering advice to other pastors: “Assume every sniffle is COVID-19, and act quickly. We’ve learned that the tests take too long, and false positives are possible along with false negatives." Another Baptist church, First Baptist Dallas, was in the spotlight June 28 when it hosted Vice President Mike Pence at its annual Freedom Sunday celebrations. Most of the 2,400 attendees wore face masks, but some criticism surfaced after the choir sang without masks. Jeffress, the church’s pastor and a prominent evangelical conservative with close ties to President Donald Trump, said the choir and orchestra had been tested for COVID-19 beforehand. The church said a few who tested positive did not take part in the event. Jeffress bristled at the idea that choirs should be temporarily banned. “Choirs will always be a part of worship for us,” he said. “We think it’s possible to still have them but do it in a safe way.” A few days after the Freedom Sunday event, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued an order requiring people wear face masks in most public settings — with several exceptions, including participants in religious services. Some churches, through their physical attributes and the decisions of their leaders, have been able to minimize risks as worship resumes. In Incline Village, Nevada, along the north shore of Lake Tahoe, St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church took advantage of a unique feature to relaunch scaled-back, in-person services this month: its outdoor mountain amphitheater chapel shaded by pine trees. Church officials took precautionary measures such as moving the log-bench pews farther apart, capping attendance at 50 and requiring worshippers have their temperature taken, employ hand sanitizer and wear masks. There was no Eucharist or passing of the peace, and the usual post-service coffee hour was held by video conference. “Good morning, children of God,” the Rev. Sarah Dunn, the church’s rector, said from behind a plexiglass screen, welcoming parishioners back to the socially distanced service July 5 after 16 Sundays apart. She acknowledged feeling “mixed emotions”: apprehension as the virus remains a threat, but joy at being able to gather in the sacred space. ___ Associated Press reporters Peter Orsi in Truckee, California, Anthony Izaguirre in Charleston, West Virginia, and Sara Cline in Salem, Oregon, contributed to this report. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through the Religion News Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for this content. ___

July 12, 2020

With NY recovering, Cuomo fears US hotspots will bring spike

NEW YORK (WBEN/AP) — The number of New Yorkers hospitalized with the coronavirus fell to the lowest point in nearly four months, state officials said Saturday.But Gov. Andrew Cuomo is predicting a new increase in cases amid outbreaks in other states.“The only question is how far up our rate goes,” Cuomo said in an interview with WAMC radio on Friday. “You can’t have it all across the country and not come back.”The governor acknowledged the limitations in enforcing quarantine rules for travelers returning from states with rising rates of transmission. The travel advisory currently applies to people entering New York from 19 states, including California, Texas and Florida.“How do you catch somebody driving in, right? I mean, it’s very very difficult, it’s trying to catch water in a screen,” Cuomo said. “And there’s a certain inevitability to it. It was in China, got on a plane, went to Europe, people in Europe got on a plane, came here. Then it went down south, down west and it’s going to come back.”The state on Saturday reported 799 COVID-19 hospitalizations — the lowest number since March 18.Six people in the state died of the coronavirus on Friday, but state officials said the three-day average death toll had fallen to its lowest rate since March 16.A prayer service was held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Saturday to bless the ashes of Mexicans who have died from the coronavirus. Their remains will be taken to Mexico for burial.“I urge residents to stay New York tough and not give up the ground we’ve worked so hard to gain together, particularly in the face of rising cases throughout the country and compliance issues here at home,” Cuomo said in a statement.Deaths in several other states were rising, meanwhile, including Arizona, Illinois, New Jersey and South Carolina.The virus has killed more than 130,000 people in the U.S. and more than a half-million worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University, though the true numbers are believed to be higher.New York state has recorded nearly 25,000 deaths, according to an official state tally that doesn’t include people who likely died of the disease.

July 11, 2020

Trump threatens to pull tax exemption for schools, colleges

In his push to get schools and colleges to reopen this fall, President Donald Trump is again taking aim at their finances, this time threatening their tax-exempt status. Trump said on Twitter on Friday he was ordering the Treasury Department to re-examine the tax-exempt status of schools that he says provide “radical indoctrination” instead of education. “Too many Universities and School Systems are about Radical Left Indoctrination, not Education,” he tweeted. “Therefore, I am telling the Treasury Department to re-examine their Tax-Exempt Status and/or Funding, which will be taken away if this Propaganda or Act Against Public Policy continues. Our children must be Educated, not Indoctrinated!” The Republican president did not explain what prompted the remark or which schools would be reviewed. But the threat is just one more that Trump has issued against schools as he ratchets up pressure to get them to open this fall. Twice this week Trump threatened to cut federal funding for schools that don't reopen, including in an earlier tweet on Friday. It's unclear, however, on what grounds Trump could have a school's tax-exempt status terminated. It was also not clear what Trump meant by “radical indoctrination” or who would decide what type of activity that includes. The White House and Treasury Department did not immediately comment on the president's message. Previous guidance from the Internal Revenue Service lays out six types of activities that can jeopardize a nonprofit organization's tax-exempt status, including political activity, lobbying and straying from the organization's stated purpose. But ideology is not on the IRS's list, said Terry Hartle, senior vice president of the American Council on Education, which represents university presidents. Any review of a school's status would have to follow previously established guidelines, he said. “It’s always deeply troubling to have the president single out schools, colleges or universities in a tweet,” Hartle said. “Having said that, I don't think anything will come of this quickly.” In his latest threat, Trump revived his oft-repeated claim that universities are bastions of liberalism that stifle conservative ideas. He used the same argument last year when he issued an executive order telling colleges to ensure free speech on campuses or lose federal research funding. His interest in colleges' finances appears to have been renewed as several schools sue the Trump administration over new restrictions on international students. Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology sued to block the policy earlier this week, followed by Johns Hopkins University on Friday. The University of California system has said it also plans to sue. The universities are challenging new guidance issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement saying international students cannot stay in the U.S. if they take all their classes online this fall. The policy has been viewed as an attempt to force the nation's universities to resume classroom instruction this fall. Under the rules, international students must transfer schools or leave the country if their colleges plan to hold instruction entirely online. Even if their schools offer a mix of online and in-person classes, foreign students would be forbidden from taking all their courses remotely. The lawsuit from Harvard and MIT argue that the policy breaks from a promise ICE made in March to suspend limits around online education “for the duration of the emergency.” Until Friday, Trump had mostly focused his efforts on reopening elementary and secondary schools as millions of parents wait to find out if their children will be in school this fall. He has insisted that they can open safely, and in a Friday tweet argued that virtual learning has been “terrible” compared with in-person instruction. “Not even close! Schools must be open in the Fall. If not open, why would the Federal Government give Funding? It won’t!!!” he wrote. Trump issued a similar warning on Twitter on Wednesday, saying other nations had successfully opened schools and that a fall reopening is “important for the children and families. May cut off funding if not open!” Trump has not said what funding he would withhold or under what authority. But White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany has said the president wants to use future coronavirus relief funding as leverage. McEnany said Trump wants to “substantially bump up money for education” in the next relief package, but only for schools that reopen. “He is looking at potentially redirecting that to make sure it goes to the student,” McEnany said at a Wednesday press briefing. She added that the funding would be “tied to the student and not to a district where schools are closed.” But Trump's control over school funding is limited. The vast majority of funding for public elementary and secondary schools comes from state and local sources, and nonprofit colleges are more likely to rely on tuition or state aid than federal money. His threats to withhold funding have been denounced by a growing array of education and health groups, including a medical association that the White House has repeatedly cited in its press to reopen schools. In a joint statement with national education unions and a superintendents group, the American Academy of Pediatrics on Friday said decisions should be made by health experts and local leaders. The groups argued that schools will need more money to reopen safely during the coronavirus pandemic and that cuts could ultimately harm students. “Public health agencies must make recommendations based on evidence, not politics,” the groups wrote. “Withholding funding from schools that do not open in person full-time would be a misguided approach, putting already financially strapped schools in an impossible position that would threaten the health of students and teachers.” The American Academy of Pediatrics has supported a fall reopening, saying in June guidelines that schools should strive to start the academic year with their students “physically present in school." Vice President Mike Pence, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and McEnany have repeatedly, and as recently as Wednesday, cited the group in defense of Trump’s approach. But Friday’s statement acknowledged that it may be best for some schools to stay online. School leaders, health experts, teachers and parents should be at the center of reopening decisions, the groups said, “taking into account the spread of COVID-19 in their communities and the capacities of school districts to adapt safety protocols to make in-person learning safe and feasible.” Some districts have already announced plans for only a partial reopening, with a mix of in-person and online instruction. New York City’s public school district, the nation’s largest, said students will be in classrooms two or three times a week and learn remotely between. DeVos has opposed that kind of approach, saying it fails students and taxpayers.

July 11, 2020

NHL, players approve plan to resume season, extend CBA

Hockey became the latest sport to finalize a return during a global pandemic after NHL owners and players approved an agreement Friday to resume the season — and with it an assurance of labor peace through September 2026. Games are scheduled to begin Aug. 1 in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta, with coronavirus cases in the U.S. pushing the league into Canada for the summer and fall until the Stanley Cup is awarded in late September or early October. Training camps open across North America on Monday, which is also the deadline for players to opt out of participating with no penalty. Minnesota's Zach Parise said earlier this week he doesn't think a lot of players will choose not to play, but the NHL already has one example. Hours after the agreement was reached, Calgary defenseman Travis Hamonic became the first to publicly opt out, citing family reasons. Hamonic's daughter was hospitalized last year with a respiratory illness "I wish I could lace up my skates and be out there battling, blocking a shot and helping my team win, but my family has and always will come first,” Hamonic said. “Being my little kids’ dad every day is the most important job I have.” Flames general manager Brad Treliving said, "While we will miss Travis in our lineup, we understand and respect his decision.” The return-to-play plan, tentatively approved by the NHL and NHL Players’ Association on Monday, was ratified by the league’s board of governors and with majority approval from players following a three-day voting period, ending Friday. Along with it, the two sides also formally approved a four-year extension of the collective bargaining agreement. “This agreement is a meaningful step forward for the players and owners, and for our game, in a difficult and uncertain time,” NHLPA executive director Don Fehr said. “We are pleased to be able to bring NHL hockey back to the fans.” The NHL is back with an expanded 24-team playoff format, but things will be much different from the norm: There will be no fans. There will be between five and six games a day at the start — up to three at each site, which will be heavily cordoned off from the public. And for the first time in league history, there will be an unusual final four in Edmonton to settle a championship later than ever before with ramifications pushing back the start of next season to December or even as late as January. Still, hockey is preparing to go on in a year that has upended life for millions, and sports along with it. Only twice since 1893 has the Cup not been awarded: in 1919, when the final couldn’t be completed because of the Spanish flu pandemic, and 2005 when the season was wiped out by a lockout. “While we have all worked very hard to try to address the risks of COVID-19, we know that health and safety are and will continue to be our priorities,” Commissioner Gary Bettman said. “We know that all of our fans are excited about our return to the ice next month, and that has been our goal since we paused our season on March 12.” Even so, the NHL is being cautious in its return with Toronto and Edmonton to serve as hub cities through the qualifying and first two rounds of the playoffs. The 12 Eastern Conference teams will play in Toronto and the 12 West teams in Edmonton, with home-rink advantages for the Maple Leafs and Oilers conceded in a nod to television preferences. The top four teams in each conference — Boston, Tampa Bay, Washington and Philadelphia in the East, and St. Louis, Colorado, Vegas and Dallas in the West — automatically advance to the field of 16 and will play separate round-robin tournaments to determine seeding. The best-of-five qualifying round series in the East are No. 5 Pittsburgh vs. No. 12 Montreal, No. 6 Carolina vs. No. 11 New York Rangers, No. 7 New York Islanders vs. No. 10 Florida and No. 8 Toronto vs. No. 9 Columbus and in the West No. 5 Edmonton vs. No. 12 Chicago, No. 6 Nashville vs. No. 11 Arizona, No. 7 Vancouver vs. No. 10 Minnesota and No. 8 Calgary vs. No. 9 Winnipeg. Action will begin with five games on Aug. 1, starting with Hurricanes-Rangers, Islanders-Panthers and Penguins-Canadiens in Toronto, and Oilers-Blackhawks and Flames-Jets in Edmonton. The preliminary round will feature 52 games played through the first nine days before teams will get a break on Aug. 10, when the NHL will hold the second phase of its draft lottery. Each of the eight eliminated teams will have an equal chance of winning the No. 1 pick, after the first phase of the draft lottery left the choice undetermined. The first round of the playoffs will then begin at each of the two hub cities on Aug. 11. Teams will be re-seeded every round, and the remainder of the playoffs will all be best-of-seven series. The NHL draft has been tentatively set for Oct. 9 and 10 and likely be held by phone rather than in a traditional arena setting. Players have been able to skate and train off-ice in voluntary, small-group workouts since June 8. The league has reported 35 players testing positive since that point, though the hope is that number will hit zero once teams are scheduled to travel to their respective hubs on July 26. With personnel limits — each team's travel parties are limited to 52 people, with rosters capped at 31 players — quarantining restrictions and daily tests for players, coaches, management, plus arena, hotel and restaurant staff, the NHL will try to complete a season that was shut down March 12 with 189 games and the playoffs remaining. Teams will be quarantined from families and the general public during play at least for the qualifying and first two traditional playoff rounds. Getting back on the ice also comes with labor peace through at least 2026. The CBA extension includes an agreement to send players to Olympics in 2022 and 2026 — pending an agreement with the International Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation — and includes some salary deferrals that allow both sides to bear the brunt of losses from the COVID-19 pandemic and share in the benefits of an upcoming U.S. TV rights contract. “All we know is we will be playing hockey, there will be labor peace so long as this thing gets ratified for another four years, six years maybe,” Carolina veteran Justin Williams said. “That’s good for the fan, that’s good for the TV audience, that’s good for the players, it’s good for everybody. So we’re obviously excited about that. It’s awesome that they were able to do this. I don’t think a normal CBA negotiation goes this quickly. But both parties wanted it done and they got it done.” ___ AP Sports Writers Dave Campbell and Aaron Beard contributed to this report. ___ For more AP NHL coverage: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

July 11, 2020

Seneca Niagara Resort and Casino employee tests positive for COVID19

Niagara Falls, NY (WBEN) Seneca Niagara Resort and Casino reports an employee has tested positive for COVID-19. The resort says it has initiated immediate response protocols set forth in its phased reopening plan.Seneca Niagara says it is also working with the employee, who last worked on July 4, directly to establish whom they may have come in contact with, to guide them to the appropriate resources, including seeking medical guidance through their physician. In an abundance of caution, Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino has completed a deep sanitization of all applicable areas per their response protocols.All employees have been notified by internal communication, says Seneca Niagara, and the area where the employee was working has been regularly cleaned and disinfected daily as part of the enhanced safety protocols, and is now temporarily shut down to undergo additional deep cleaning. The casino confirms the employee complied with the required face mask protocols while on property. “The health and safety of our guests, team members, and their families remains our highest priority, and we wish our team member a full and quick recovery. We have established protocols in place to address any guest or team members who present a positive or suspected positive case or have had potential exposure,” said David Sheridan, Interim CEO & CFO, Seneca Gaming Corporation. "We are actively addressing this information per our strict protocols set forth in our Health, Sanitation, and Physical Distancing plan. Our team is in contact with the team member. We are also guiding team members who may have encountered the affected team member to the appropriate resources for testing and to seek medical guidance through their physician.” The casino reminds players and guests as well as employees to follow all safety protocols in place and to stay home if they are experiencing any symptoms or not feeling well.Seneca Gaming Corporation says its Health, Sanitation & Physical Distancing plan includes a number of protocols to minimize the risk of spread of COVID-19, including mandatory face masks for all employees and guests while on property, social distancing, and a rigorous cleaning regimen in all areas throughout every day.

July 10, 2020

State health officials allow limited nursing home visitation

Buffalo, NY (WBEN) Families with loved ones in nursing homes across New York state are welcoming some big news from Albany. Nursing home visits have returned, with restrictions.State Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker today announced nursing homes and long term care facilities in New York will be allowed to resume limited visitations for facilities that have been without COVID-19 for at least 28 days, a threshold set by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Residents in these facilities will be allowed two visitors at a time, and the visitors must undergo temperature checks, wear face coverings and socially distance during the visit. At least one of the two visitors must be at least 18 years of age or older. For each facility, only 10 percent of the residents can be allowed visitors at any time; for example, in a 100-bed facility no more than 10 residents can have visitors per day in order to maintain proper social distancing and ensure safe compliance. Nursing Homes accepting visitors will be required to send their visitation plan to NYSDOH.“With the knowledge we now have about how COVID-19 came into nursing homes – mainly through asymptomatic staff and visitors through no fault of their own – it is critical that as we resume visitations to these facilities we do it in a smart and cautious way to ensure the health and safety of residents and staff,” State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said. “We will continue to closely monitor the situation in each facility, and make adjustments based on the facts and data moving forward. I know how painful it has been for residents of these facilities to endure such a long period of time without seeing family and loved ones, and my hope is that this adjustment to the visitation policy will provide some comfort to everyone.”Zucker also announced the resumption of on-site visitation for the state’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman program, which provides additional support to residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities, effective July 15, 2020. Ombudsman staff must utilize appropriate PPE for the duration of the visit, and must be screened as if they were a staff person of such nursing home, including having to present a verified negative test result to the nursing home within the past week.Stephen Hanse, President and CEO of the New York State Health Facilities Association and the New York State Center for Assisted Living (NYSHFA/NYSCAL), a statewide association representing over 450 nursing homes and assisted living facilities issued the following statement in response to today’s Department of Health announcement allowing visitation in nursing homes.“We applaud Governor Cuomo and Commissioner Zucker for opening up nursing homes to visitation throughout New York. It has been since early March of this year that our residents have been unable to receive visitors in person as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. While our residents have become skilled at using various digital communication platforms to connect with their loved ones, digital interaction doesn’t compare to the joy of in-person interaction. Nursing homes throughout New York have made incredible strides in eradicating COVID-19 from their facilities and today’s visitation policy recognizes the success of their enormous efforts in battling this virus. The policies announced today by the Department of Health are thoughtful and truly safeguard residents, staff and visitors while allowing in-person resident visitation. Among other things, the Department of Health guidelines require a nursing home be free of COVID-19 for 28 days; two visitors per resident may visit at one time, and visitors must have their temperature taken prior to entry and utilize a face mask and socially distance themselves while in the nursing home. Additionally, no more than 10 percent of the residents of a nursing home may receive visitors at any one time. As such, a nursing home must develop a facility specific visitation plan and provide it to the Department of Health."

July 10, 2020

Galleria Mall stores prepare to reopen at their own pace

Cheektowaga, NY (WBEN) - Shopping Malls are getting the green light to re-open in Western New York, and retailers and attractions inside are ready to get back to business."I had prepared for this probably two or three weeks ago when we thought we were going to be in Phase 4," said Michael O'Hara from Laux Sporting Goods. "I've kept in constant contact with my employees, called them yesterday and they're ready to come in today."O'Hara said that his store in the Galleria Mall will be enforcing social distancing, mask wearing, and installing shields at the register to makes sure that customers stay safe. Those safety measures will be in place in stores throughout the Galleria and other area malls.Not everyone is ready to open."We were kind of sitting in limbo a little bit," said Zephyr Goza from 5 Wits, an escape-room type attraction inside the Galleria Mall. Because of the short notice on malls reopening, Goza said that 5 Wits will not be opening until next week."We're in the process now of training our staff," Goza said. "We're opening slightly later than the rest of the mall because we want to make sure that we approach it responsibly and train people on how to handle the situation." Malls are able to re-open if their HVAC system filtration meets the highest rated filtration compatible with the currently installed filter rack. Malls Opening Again - Reaction from Michael O'Hara of Laux Sporting Goods & Zephyr Goza of 5 Wits

July 10, 2020

Democrats, Republicans clash over decision to reopen schools

BUFFALO (WBEN) - Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been recently chiming in on the looming decision to reopen schools for the coming fall.Earlier in the week, Governor Cuomo laid out a plan in which school districts submit reopening plans to the state by the end of the month, so that a decision on whether to reopen or not can come during the first week of August.CDC head sticking to school-opening guides Trump criticizedCuomo also went after President Trump, who tweeted Wednesday morning that schools need to reopen and that he'd consider pulling funding from states that decide not to reopen their schools."School reopenings are a state decision, period. That is the law, and that is the way we are going to proceed - it's not up to the President of the United States," said Cuomo. "There is something called the Constitution that guides government power, and then there are a series of laws that are based on that Constitution, and the President does not have the authority to open schools."On Thursday, Republican Congressman Tom Reed was asked about his thoughts on reopening, and he's all for it."If you don't have school come this fall, the kids that were typically going to school from K-12, who's going to be watching them? What are we going to do in regard to the daycare needs there?" said Reed. "I can go on and on and on about the issues of not reopening school...and that's why we need to do it now - that's why we need to have the decision made."Reed then commented that Cuomo is completely right about one thing, but completely wrong about another."I caught the governor's comment that opening the schools is not the President's choice - that's true," Reed began, while noting that he agrees with Trump's tactics on threatening to pull funding. "That is a local determination, but it's not a state determination."Listen to Reed's full comments below: Reed, Ortt on Whether to Reopen Schools in the Fall Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer posted a tweet Thursday:"We all want schools to reopen, but if that is going to happen, we have to keep our kids and teachers safe.President Trump: our schools and child care providers need more federal funding - not less - to be able to open safely."To open schools safely for teachers and students, President Trump can’t be undermining the CDC guidelines.We need clear, science-based guidelines, not political pronouncements. https://t.co/KSyyzWSXhj— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) July 9, 2020 President Trump himself was asked about schools Thursday."We have to get our schools open and stop this political nonsense, and it's only political nonsense - it's politics," said Trump. "(Democrats) don't want to open because they think it will help them November 3, but I think it's going to hurt them on November 3 - open your schools."Germany, Norway, so many countries right now, their schools are open and they're doing just fine, and they're opening in the fall, so we have to get our schools open."

July 10, 2020

Can Canalside boat tours accommodate social distancing?

Mike Baggerman: Can Canalside boat tours accommodate social distancing? BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) – Usually, a consistent stretch of high heat would mean more people who want to participate in waterfront activities at Canalside. This would include hundreds of people packing into boats that are docked along Buffalo’s Waterfront.The COVID factor, though, has forced tour operators to modify that experience. However, they don’t believe it will change the adventure for customers, though fewer of them can now get in boats.“We are operating at such a deficit in passenger count that I don’t see us having an okay year,” Rich Hilliman, Captain of Buffalo River History Tours, Spirit of Buffalo, and the newly unveiled Big Kahuna, said. “We’re working on it though.”New York State has ordered 50 percent occupancy for companies like Hilliman’s. Buffalo River History Tours normally allows 150 people to tour the waterfront. They’re only allowing 50. Big Kahuna can comfortably have 50 passengers, though it now maxes out at 20 to 24 passengers, depending on group sizes. READ MORE: Big Kahuna launches at Canalside There are similar challenges just up the road. Peter Cromwell, the Captain of Moondance Cat, said they’re staying busy but have cut their capacity in half from 90. Boat tours find themselves in a unique position where they have to follow social distancing guidelines mandated by the state. The experience for passengers is akin to a restaurant. You can sit in a specific spot and not need a mask. However, if you plan to walk around the boat, you must wear a mask.“This boat is so wide. It’s 55 feet long,” Cromwell said. “We don’t have a problem with social distancing on the boat. People automatically spread out. You have to have a mask as you come on a boat or as you’re waiting to come on the boat. If you’re walking within six feet of anyone or going to the bar or the bathrooms, you have to have a mask on then.”Hilliman said people shouldn’t be concerned about going on boats because they will enforce the mask policy. They’ve also marked six feet of distance with green tape on various parts of the boat to help people better gauge proper distancing. “When you get to your seat we’re going to ask you to stay in your seat,” Hilliman said. “Whatever green mark you’re at, you can see the next green mark…If you’re within that, we’re going to enforce that they wear the mask.”AUDIO EXTRAS Moondance Cat Captain Peter Cromwell highlights boat tours and social distancing Big Kahuna, Spirit of Buffalo, and Buffalo River History Tours Captain Rich Hilliman highlights boat tours and social distancing

July 10, 2020

CDC head sticking to school-opening guides Trump criticized

ATLANTA (AP) — Federal health officials won't revise their coronavirus guidelines for reopening schools despite criticism from President Donald Trump, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. What they will do, he said, is provide additional information to help states, communities and parents decide what to do and when. “Our guidelines are our guidelines,” Dr. Robert Redfield declared. In draft CDC documents obtained by The Associated Press, the agency says there are steps that schools can take to safely reopen but that it “cannot provide one-size-fits-all criteria for opening and closing schools or changing the way schools are run.” “Decisions about how to open and run schools safely should be made based on local needs and conditions,” the documents say. They also include a checklist that encourages parents to carefully consider whether they should send their kids back to school in person or seek virtual instruction. Many districts nationwide are offering parents a choice of either mode of instruction. New York City, among other school districts, has announced that students will only return part-time in the fall. That runs counter to Trump's messaging. He has been repeatedly pressuring state and local officials to reopen schools this fall, even threatening to withhold federal funds from those that keep teaching and learning remote. Trump on Wednesday criticized the CDC’s guidelines as “very tough and expensive” and said the agency was “asking schools to do very impractical things.” Speaking of CDC officials, he tweeted, “I will be meeting with them!!!” And Vice President Mike Pence said revised guidelines would be issued next week. But in an appearance on ABC's “Good Morning America,” Redfield firmly stuck to the existing CDC guidelines. “It’s really important, it’s not a revision of the guidelines, it’s just to provide additional information to help schools be able to use the guidance that we put forward.” Asked about the apparent discrepancy between Redfield's and Pence's statements, White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany said they were on the same page. She said “supplemental guidelines” would be forthcoming. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has said that schools will be failing kids if they don't provide full-time, in-person instruction. But the draft CDC documents, which have yet to be released publicly, say decisions like that should be left to local officials. They say, “Each school and each community will have different needs and should implement the strategies best designed to meet them.” The documents say that in-person schooling will lead to at least some infections but that there are steps schools can take to lessen the risk. A graph of the CDC's disease modeling indicates there's likely to be significantly more virus spread if all students attend school five days a week. The graph projects alternate schedules could cut infections by as much as 80%, although the agency acknowledges there is much more to learn about the disease. “Scientists are still learning about how it spreads, how it impacts children and what role children may play in its spread,” the introduction to the parent checklist states. Redfield said the upcoming reference documents in part would cover how to monitor for symptoms and use face masks in schools. The CDC’s current guidance recommends that students and teachers wear masks whenever feasible, spread out desks, stagger schedules, eat meals in classrooms instead of the cafeteria and add physical barriers between bathroom sinks. When asked about the documents AP obtained, CDC spokesman Benjamin Haynes wrote in an email that the agency would distribute additional guidance next week and pointed to what has already been released. The White House declined to comment on the documents. The 30-question parent checklist asks about a child’s health, use of special education services, comfort with local school plans and whether parents can facilitate at-home learning. It warns that if parents check multiple items on the “stay-at-home” column, that “could be an indicator that your family should consider alternative learning formats other than in-person schooling.” The checklist says parents should evaluate school district plans, including how districts are “preparing for when someone gets sick.” “If your child, members of your household, or individuals with whom you interact frequently are at increased risk for severe illness, the best way to reduce risk of getting sick is to limit your interaction with other people," it states. In his tweet on Wednesday, Trump did not clarify which of the CDC guidelines he opposed. But McEnany said, for example, that the president takes issue with the CDC's suggestion that students bring their own meals to school when feasible. “There are 22 million children in this country who depend on these meals at schools, who depend on access to nutrition in schools,” she said. Democrats have warned Trump to keep out of the CDC's work. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, ranking Democrat on the Education Committee, said the agency needs to be trusted to make decisions based on scientific evidence, “not on President Trump's Twitter outbursts.” ___ Feldman reported from Washington.

July 09, 2020