The Home Page Network

Since May 29th when Tioga County moved to the Green Phase, we’ve seen a 90% increase in positive COVID-19 cases throughout the county. That’s 15 additional positive cases in 6 weeks. Seven of those positives have been in just the last 2 weeks alone. Looking at a trend rate, that puts us on track for 14 new positive cases in the month of July. This is a stark realization that the virus in still present in our community, and with summer events and people returning from vacation, now is the time for heightened vigilance and strict adherence to the CDC and DoH guidelines.

Also, over the past 2 weeks there have been some additional mandates at the state level with Health Secretary Levine signing a mandatory masking order on July 1st and yesterday Governor Wolf announced new restrictions on businesses, bars and nightclubs.

Presently, there is much controversy over masking and what this simple task does to protect our community. The commissioners fully support masking in Tioga County and recently gave an excellent update in the Wellsboro and Mansfield Gazette, talking about the importance of masking. In today’s broadcast, Commissioner Mark Hamilton addresses our community with his thoughts and encouragement.

In addition, Dr. Edmund Guelig and Dr. Barry Clark weigh-in on mask wearing, what we know about its effectiveness, and the science behind the mandates. Be sure to watch the video listed above for their professional perspective.

The simple act of wearing a mask is how we protect everyone’s health, and the fastest course to restoring our economy and returning to some degree of normalcy. So pleasem, mask up when you’re in public, continue to follow social distancing guidelines and wash your hands.