Around Maryland

The City of Taneytown has temporarily slowed its search for a new police chief after a leading candidate pulled himself out of consideration, City Manager Jim Wieprecht said. “Since the prior candidate withdrew his application, we have not re-advertised nor accepted more applications, so nothing’s changed there since the last search,” Wieprecht said.

The U.S. is nowhere near out of the woods from the dangers of smoke billowing from hundreds of wildfires burning throughout Canada. A grayish haze continued to linger over much of the Northeast on Monday, nearly a week after the air quality emergency in the region began to confine millions of people indoors. Philadelphia’s Air Quality Index measured at 101 on Monday morning, or “Code Orange,” which is unhealthy for sensitive groups such as young children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with pre-existing lung and heart conditions, according to AirNow.gov.

The U.S. Office for Civil Rights is investigating 17 recent data breaches at Maryland businesses that affected more than 100,000 people, the 11 News I-Team has learned. The OCR, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, opens investigations into all “breaches of unsecured protected health information affecting 500 or more individuals,” according to its website.

At 275 years of age, Frederick County looks good, Maryland State Delegate Christopher Eric Bouchat said on Saturday. Bouchat was among several government and elected officials who spoke at a jubilee at Utica District Park, a festive celebration marking the county’s 275th anniversary of June 10, 1748.

The Maryland Department of Health said nearly 25,000 Marylanders — or 21% of the 120,000 up for renewal in April — lost their Medicaid coverage as of June 1 as part of the massive redetermination process the state is undertaking due to the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency. These are the first enrollees to lose benefits as part of this effort.

Howard County’s school system held its first-ever “Pride Prom” Saturday at the Harriet Tubman Cultural Center in Columbia. The event was open to all high school students in the LGBTQIA+ community. Students were encouraged to dress in clothing that they found affirming to their gender and were encouraged to visit the Prom Closet Pop-Up if they didn’t have anything to wear.

The Westminster Veterans Memorial Park will soon add a sidewalk for better access to the planned memorial garden. The 33-acre park, on Crest Lane in Westminster, already includes a walking trail, playground, picnic pavilion and play area. Plans for a memorial garden honoring county veterans are underway. The memorial garden is intended to be a place for reflection and remembrance.