COVID-19 Update 8/27: Wolf announces $10M grant for vaccine, treatment and therapy response
Butler County on Thursday added two new confirmed cases of COVID-19 to its overall pandemic total.
According to Thursday's report by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, a total of 697 county residents have tested positive for the virus at some point since January. The county's death toll remains at 18.
Also Thursday, Gov. Tom Wolf announced $10 million in grant funding to support the rapid advancement of vaccines, treatments and therapies in response to COVID-19.
Three Pittsburgh institutions received some of the grant funding allocated toward vaccine research. Carnegie Mellon University received $643,359; the University of Pittsburgh received $633,769; and University of Pittsburgh-Center for Vaccine Research received $976,922.
“We know that the only way we can get back to our normal lives is by developing a robust testing and tracing infrastructure combined with effective, safe and affordable treatments and vaccines,” said Wolf in a news release Thursday.
The following numbers on the coronavirus pandemic were compiled from regular news releases from the state Department of Health.
Thursday's COVID-19 statistics:
Confirmed cases: 697Probable cases: 63Negative tests: 17,453Deaths: 18
New cases: 620Total cases: 131,156New deaths: 11Total deaths: 7,635Recovered: 81 percent
Allegheny: 9,753 confirmed cases; 142,498 negative; and 304 deathsArmstrong: 299 confirmed; 5,246 negative; and 9 deathsBeaver: 1,488 confirmed; 15,997 negative; and 96 deathsClarion: 90 confirmed; 2,622 negative; and 3 deathsLawrence: 392 confirmed; 6,515 negative; and 18 deathsMercer: 472 confirmed; 9,699 negative; and 13 deathsVenango: 55 confirmed; 3,990 negative; 1 deathWestmoreland: 1,721 confirmed; 36,403 negative; and 49 deaths