Town Of Bedford Publishes Coronavirus Update For August 27

Bedford MA

28 August, 2020

5:00 PM

Description

Press release from the Town of Bedford: August 27, 2020 The Bedford COVID-19 Task Force met Thursday, August 27, 2020 to review the latest guidance from the Department of Public Health, the office of Governor Charlie Baker, and Town Legal Counsel. The COVID-19 Task Force is comprised of the following Town officials: Sarah Stanton, Town Manager Philip Conrad, Superintendent of Schools Heidi Porter, Director of Health and Human Services Robert Bongiorno, Police Chief David Grunes, Fire Chief Taissir Alani, Facilities Director Christopher Laskey, Code Enforcement Director Case Counts The MA DPH is now reporting COVID-19 data on a community level and releasing the data weekly on Wednesdays. Based on this data, each city or town will be designated a color – gray (formerly designated white), green, yellow or red. Gray and green are lower risk communities, yellow represents a moderate risk community, and red represents a higher risk community. Based on data reported by the state through yesterday, Wednesday, August 26, 2020, Bedford is unchanged from last week and is currently a gray, lower risk community. The color-coded relative risk designation established by the state is a tool that can be used by the Town to set policy and implement safety protocols for the protection of the community. In the coming weeks, this data will continue to be updated by the state on a weekly basis. For the current color-coded risk map, please navigate to: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/community-level-covid-19-data-reporting. The total case number presented in the dashboard includes residents of the Town of Bedford, including but not limited to those in: single-family homes, apartments, the VA campus, Hanscom Air Force Base, special needs group homes and other larger assisted living/care facilities in Bedford, as reported to us by the MA DPH. Positive cases in any segment of our population affect the overall town-wide case counts and the assigned risk category due to the consideration that staff and, in some cases, folks residing at these facilities have the opportunity to come and go, visit Bedford businesses, attend camp and school and utilize our parks and open spaces. A chart depicting case trends over time can be viewed here: https://www.bedfordma.gov/bedford-board-of-health/pages/covid-19-coronavirus. The BOH continues to do the appropriate follow-up and outreach to those residents and close contacts known to us and the VA is conducting follow-up and contact tracing of the Veteran's under their care. Many of the identified close contacts of some of the Bedford cases never exhibited symptoms, have completed their required quarantine period and have been released from quarantine by the BOH. Please note, in part to alleviate the community concern, the VA does do a daily report of their numbers, which includes inpatients, outpatients and staff, many of whom do not call Bedford home. The information can be found here: https://www.accesstocare.va.gov/Healthcare/COVID19NationalSummary Back to School Supports for Parents As any new school year approaches, there is stress for families. Back to school in 2020 will bring new stressors into the mix. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is offering a free webinar - Ask the Expert: In-Person, Virtual and Everything In Between – Supporting Families and Children Returning to School" on August 27th at 4pm ET. Dr. Meghan Walls and NAMI's Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ken Duckworth will discuss how to prepare and support your child for return to school. Register here: https://bit.ly/2EiYmY8 Additionally, MassSupport, a Crisis Counseling Program, is providing free community outreach and support services across the state in response to COVID-19, in an effort to help alleviate stress. As part of this effort, they are hosting a statewide, virtual "Back-to-School" Town Hall on August 27 from 7-8:30 p.m. with Dr. Nicole Christian-Brathwaite, MD and Robert Macy, PhD. You can register here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qW71iljaSki_-fTZSqgzTw Finally, Bedford Health and Human Services will also be offering Bedford focused back to school support webinars for parents in the coming weeks. Please stay tuned for those announcements. Influenza Vaccine Requirement and Flu Clinics Last week, state public health officials announced that influenza immunization will be required for all children 6 months of age or older who are attending Massachusetts child care, pre-school, kindergarten, K-12, and colleges and universities. The new vaccine requirement is an important step to reduce flu-related illness and the overall impact of respiratory illness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students will be expected to have received a flu vaccine by December 31, 2020, for the 2020-2021 influenza season, unless either a medical or religious exemption is provided. Also exempted are K-12 students who are homeschooled and higher education students who are completely off-campus and engaged in remote learning only. This new flu immunization requirement to enter school in January is in addition to existing vaccine requirements for all those attending child care, preschool, K-12, and colleges and universities in Massachusetts. Elementary and secondary students in districts and schools that are using a remote education model are not exempt. The Bedford Board of Health will host the first of its planned weekly drive-thru flu clinics for the Bedford community on Monday, September 14th. Details on the location/time and registration requirements will be released in the coming days. While the drive-thru clinics will be open to all residents over the age of 6 months, additional clinics for Bedford's school-aged population are being planned with the Bedford Public Schools and will be announced once school starts. Election Information All voters are reminded to wear a face mask or covering when voting, and to maintain social distancing at all times. More information on the September 1 primary election can be found here: https://www.bedfordma.gov/home/news/primary-election-information-september-1 Mask Up MA! Governor Baker issued an Order that went into effect on May 6th requiring face masks or cloth face coverings in public places where social distancing is not possible. This applies to both indoor and outdoor spaces. Exceptions include children under the age of 2 and those unable to wear a mask or face covering due to a medical condition. So, when you go out, make sure you wear a mask or face covering. Masks slow the spread of COVID-19. They protect you. They protect everyone around you. And they help Massachusetts move in the right direction. When you wear a cloth mask, it should: Cover your nose and mouth, Fit snugly but comfortably against the side of the face, Be secured with ties or ear loops, Include multiple layers of fabric, Allow for breathing without restriction, and Be able to be laundered and machine dried without damage or change to shape. When putting on and taking off a mask, do not touch the front of it, you should only handle the ties or ear straps, and make sure you wash the cloth mask regularly. Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer after touching the mask. Cloth masks should not be placed on young children under age 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance. So, Mask Up, Massachusetts! For more information, navigate to: https://www.mass.gov/news/mask-up-ma. Need a COVID-19 test? – Free Testing expanded to September 12th Free COVID-19 testing sites are open in twenty-one (21) communities as part of the Baker-Polito Administration's "Stop the Spread" initiative. Testing sites in the following communities are free to all residents of the Commonwealth regardless of symptom state and will now remain open until September 12th to help stop the spread of COVID-19: Agawam, Brockton, Chelsea, Everett, Fall River, Framingham, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, Lynn, Marlborough, Methuen, New Bedford, Randolph, Revere, Salem, Saugus, Springfield, Taunton, Winthrop, and Worcester. Visit www.mass.gov/stopthespread to find out more. If you need testing closer to home or beyond September 12th, consider navigating to https://memamaps.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=eba3f0395451430b9f631cb095febf13 to find a testing site. Check with your insurance company for covered services prior to booking an appointment for testing. Common Sense Actions to Protect Yourself and Others from COVID-19 Employ Social Distancing Basics: Stay Home, especially if you're feeling sick, have a fever, or a cough as to avoid contact with other individuals. If you are sick, stay at home and contact your healthcare provider for further instructions. Call/Facetime/Online chat with friends and loved ones If you go out for essential needs: Avoid Crowds Stay 6 feet away from others Don't shake hands or hug Wear a face covering or mask if physical distancing is not possible. Always have a face covering with you. You cannot always predict or control when someone will be close to you. This press release was produced by the Town of Bedford. The views expressed here are the author's own.