Hit By COVID-19, Worcester City Councilor Postpones Fundraiser

Worcester MA

12 April, 2022

1:02 PM

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WORCESTER, MA — District 1 City Councilor Sean Rose said Tuesday he has tested positive for coronavirus, which comes as cases are heading back up in the city and across Massachusetts. Rose announced the diagnosis in a tweet on Tuesday, and also canceled a fundraiser planned for Thursday at Olo Pizza. "Unfortunately, after dodging Covid for nearly two years and being vaccinated and boosted, I was recently bit by the bug," Rose said in the tweet, while also promising to reschedule the fundraiser. Rose is at least the second high-ranking official in Worcester to publicly announce a COVID-19 diagnosis. City Manager Ed Augustus Jr. contracted the virus in late 2020. Other officials in Massachusetts have also tested positive recently, including U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark last week and Quentin Palfrey, a Democrat running for state Attorney General, on Tuesday. Last week, city officials reported a new rise in Worcester's coronavirus cases. The city hit a low point in late March not seen since July following the post-Christmas omicron wave. An omicron subvariant, BA.2, is now circulating widely in the U.S. Health officials say the subvariant is extremely transmissible, just like its omicron parent. State health officials reported about 4,000 new cases statewide over the weekend, and noted a rise in positive test results up to 3 percent. Worcester has largely done away with precautions put in place earlier this winter, including mask mandates for indoor spaces and public schools. The city is also moving toward rescinding a vaccine mandate for municipal employees in mid-May.