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In-person visits to resume at prisons
HARRISBURG -- The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections announced Monday that three correctional facilities have finalized plans to reimplement in-person visitation.
The latest facilities to confirm dates to welcome back visitors are SCI Rockview, SCI Huntingdon and SCI Mahanoy.
Visitors will be allowed at Huntingdon beginning July 22; Rockview visits commence Aug. 2. As previously announced, SCI Houtzdale also will resume in-person visitation on July 22.
Visitors are reminded that visits must be scheduled online at least three days in advance. To comply with reduced visiting room capacity limits, visitors who arrive at a facility without an appointment will be turned away. Available visitation timeslots are determined by each facility, based on an inmate's housing location within the prison. Each visit will be least one hour in duration. No-cost video visits remain an option for people to connect with incarcerated loved ones.
Information on scheduling an in-person or video visit and the reopening of DOC facilities is available at cor.pa.gov. Visitors may begin scheduling in-person visits via the inmate visitation system seven days before the start date. Dates are subject to change.
Established visiting rules remain in effect. Visitors are also required to complete a COVID questionnaire and temperature screening. All inmates and visitors ages 2 and older are issued a disposable facemask, which must be worn for the duration of the visit. Visiting rooms have been configured in a way that allows for social distancing between each visiting group. Visits can be cancelled by the facility if the rules are not followed.
Red Cross needs more donors now
YORK -- While donors across the country have rolled up a sleeve to give this summer, the need for blood and platelets remains crucial for patients relying on lifesaving transfusions. The American Red Cross continues to experience a severe blood shortage and donors of all blood types -- especially type O and those giving platelets -- are urged to make an appointment to give now.
Right now, the Red Cross needs to collect more than 1,000 additional blood donations each day to meet current demand as hospitals respond to an unusually high number of traumas and emergency room visits, organ transplants and elective surgeries.
To thank donors who help refuel the blood and platelet supply this month, all who come to give July 7-31 will receive a $10 Amazon.com Gift Card via email and will also receive automatic entry for a chance to win gas for a year (a $5,000 value). More information and details are available at rcblood.org/fuel.
Also, all those who come to donate throughout the entire month of July will be automatically entered for a chance to win a trip for four to Cedar Point or Knott's Berry Farm. To learn more, visit rcblood.org/CedarFair.
Schedule an appointment to give blood or platelets by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device.
In most cases, those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine can donate. However, knowing the name of the manufacturer of the vaccine they received is important in determining donation eligibility.
Upcoming blood donation opportunities July 16-31 in the region are:
¯ July 16, St. John's Lutheran Church, Lewistown, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
¯ July 26, Locust Grove Mennonite Church, Belleville, 1 to 7 p.m.
¯ July 30, Thompsontown Ambulance League, 1 to 6:30 p.m.
To donate blood, individuals need to bring a blood donor card or driver's license or two other forms of identification that are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age in most states (16 with parental consent where allowed by state law), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also must meet certain height and weight requirements.
The Red Cross has updated its pandemic safety protocols in alignment with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fully vaccinated individuals, including staff and donors, no longer need to wear masks or socially distance. Unvaccinated individuals continue to be required to wear masks and socially distance. Donors are asked to schedule an appointment prior to arriving at the drive.