Fenway Civic Association

COVID-19 CASES

ANTIBODY TESTING INITIATIVE

BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS UPDATE

EXPIRATION OF MAY 4TH STATE OF MA STAY-AT-HOME ADVISORY

BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS

REMINDER TO SEEK MEDICAL HELP

CITY OF BOSTON COVID-19 OPERATIONS

CONSTRUCTION

HIRING BPHC POSITIONS

HELP COVID-19 EFFORTS

STAY INFORMED

 

COVID-19 CASES

The City of Boston has 8,421 positive cases of coronavirus (confirmed and presumptive) in Boston residents. So far, 1,724 of these 8,421 residents have fully recovered. There have been 315 COVID-19 related deaths in Boston residents. 

 

The City posts race and ethnicity data for deaths, as well as for confirmed cases on boston.gov/coronavirus. As of yesterday, the data shows that of the 193 deaths in Boston, where race is known, 42% are white, 33% are black, 8% are Asian or Pacific Islander, 12% are Latino, and 4% are identified as other. The City of Boston’s COVID-19 Health Inequities Task Force meets regularly. They are identifying key strategies to address inequities including expanded testng, data sharing and analysis, and strengthening neighborhood outreach.

 

The Boston Public Health Commission will be providing the updated total of cases in Boston residents as it is received from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Information can be found at boston.gov/coronavirus or bphc.org.

 

Massachusetts has 56,462 positive cases of coronavirus (confirmed and presumptive) and 3,003 deaths reported at this time. Massachusetts has also tested 244,887 individuals to date. 

 

The City of Boston has two dashboards to provide statistics on COVID19 cases in Boston and throughout Massachusetts.  View them here.

 

The City of Boston has a free texting service to provide daily updates and information about the coronavirus. Text BOSCOVID to 888-777 to opt-in for English. Language and communications access remains a priority for Mayor Walsh, so this text service which was available in Spanish, Haitan Creole, French, Cabo Verdean Creole, and Portuguese, now includes Somali, Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese and Russian.

• Text BOSEspanol to 888-777 for Spanish

• Text BOSKreyol to 888-777 for Haitian Kreyol

• Text BOSFrancais to 888-777 for French

• Text BOSKriolu to 888-777 for Cabo Verdean Creole

• Text BOSPortugues to 888-777 for Portuguese

• Text BOSSoomali to 888-777 for Somali

• Text BOSChi to 888-777 for Simplified Chinese

• Text BOSbilAraby to 888-777 for Arabic

• Text BOSViet to 888-777 for Vietnamese

• Text BOSRus to 888-777 for Russian

Updates in 10 total languages can additionally be accessed through boston.gov/coronavirus#multilingual-help. Each language has its own page and hosts multilingual print materials distributed citywide. 

 

ANTIBODY TESTING INITIATIVE

On April 27th, Mayor Walsh announced that the City of Boston is launching an antibody testing initiative. 

• In partnership with Mass General Hospital, the City will test 1,000 residents of East Boston, Roslindale and the 02121 and 02125 zip codes of Dorchester. These neighborhoods reflect the diversity of our City and will give us important information about how different populations are being impacted.

• Residents who agree to participate will be tested for both the COVID-19 virus and COVID-19 antibodies. This information should help the City understand and contain the virus more effectively, and chart the path to recovery.

• Regular testing detects the presence of the virus and shows whether someone is currently infected. Antibody testing helps show how many people have already recovered from the virus.

• Testing in the community will give a better idea of how widespread the outbreak really is in Boston, and give an estimate of how many more people will likely be infected. It will help the City plan and use resources in a smart way, and target areas that are the most vulnerable.

• The Mayor gave an overview of the City’s expanded testing efforts, including:

  • Setting up 15 testing sites across Boston’s neighborhoods. 

  • Creating a map which shows the locations, hours, and contact information for all testing sites in Boston.

  • Collecting and and sharing data on testing, including race, ethnicity, and neighborhood information. 

  • Increasing testing by over 30% in the last week, with increases as big as 57% in some areas.

  • Universal testing for our homeless population after securing 1,000 additional tests last week.

BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS UPDATE:

Boston Public Schools will be closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. The next phase of learning from home starts on Monday, May 4. Families will receive additional information from the Superintendent later this week about attendance, grading, and schedules.

• Schools will be creating individualized learning plans for students with the highest needs, to make sure no one falls behind. These expectations may continue to evolve as the City gets further guidance from the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the US Department of Education.

• The City of Boston continues to support remote learning for BPS students, including setting up more than 2,000 wifi hotspots, distributing more than 30,000 laptops, and serving free breakfast and lunch every single weekday to youth and children at 65 locations. To date, the City has served more than half a million meals at youth meal sites. We also operate six adult meal sites for grab-and-go meals. A map of Boston’s food resources can be found here. 

• We are focused on students’ social and emotional health. Going forward, every school will have a Student Support Team to monitor students’ well-being, engagement, and progress. 

• We will continue to share more details about our plans for the Boston Public Schools throughout this week.

Meal Distribution sites near Fenway, Kenmore, and Mission Hill include the following:

BCYF Tobin at 1481 Tremont Street — 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM 
Boston Latin School at 78 Avenue Louis Pasteur — 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM

YMCA at 316 Huntington Ave — 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Blackstone Elementary School at 380 Shawmut Ave — 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM

Vibrant Boston Community Center at Lenox/Camden at 136 Lenox St — 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM

 

EXPIRATION OF MAY 4TH STATE OF MA STAY-AT-HOME ADVISORY

Mayor Walsh today stated that May 4 will be too early to relax any of the local or state measures in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. 

• He acknowledged the financial hardships that people are going through and pledged to continue providing support. 

• The City of Boston is building a recovery framework that will give us a flexible guide for short, medium and long-term recovery steps, based on data-driven public health benchmarks and including public health guidelines for how to re-open. 

• The Mayor promised continued transparency about the reasoning and the timeline for every decision.

 

REMINDER TO SEEK MEDICAL HELP

Mayor Walsh reminded everyone that if they are feeling sick, they should call their doctor or the 3-1-1 Health Line before going to the hospital. But if they are having a medical emergency of any kind, they should call 9-1-1 immediately. 

• That includes difficulty breathing or pain in your chest, as well as anyone facing domestic violence or abuse. 

• The City of Boston has the capacity to treat everyone who needs care. No one should be afraid to call 9-1-1.

• Please help us get this message to people who need it.

 

CITY OF BOSTON COVID-19 OPERATIONS

All essential City of Boston services such as public safety, public health and maintenance operations including street cleaning, parks maintenance, trash and recycling pick up, etc will continue to be in operation.

• City Hall is open to the public only on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9 am.to 5 pm

• Public access to 1010 Massachusetts Avenue is limited to the Boston Public Health Commission on the 2nd Floor and residents must be accompanied when entering the building. 

• Everyone entering City Hall, including employees and members of the public, will be required to complete a self-screening for COVID-19 symptoms, including elevated temperature.

• Residents are required to make appointments if they need to visit any of the essential services offered out of City Hall, and can learn more about the status of city departments and hours of operation here. 

 

Residents are asked not to call 9-1-1 unless you are experiencing a medical emergency. All COVID-19 questions should be directed to the Mayor’s Health Line at 617-534-5050 or 311. The City and BPHC will continue to provide updated information on bphc.org and boston.gov/coronavirus.

 

CONSTRUCTION

Due to the public health emergency caused by the spread of COVID-19, Mayor Walsh announced that he is extending the City of Boston’s order to pause non-essential construction for City of Boston permitted sites. The initial order announced on March 16th was set for 14 days and will now continue until further notice. Additional information can be found here. 

 

HIRING BPHC POSITIONS

The City is actively hiring candidates for critical positions such as homeless counselors, recovery services, public health advocates and public safety officers. Please go to bphc.org for job listings.

 

HELP COVID19 EFFORTS

• Stay home. If you must go outside, practice physical distancing from others (6 feet apart); avoid crowded places.

• Wear a face covering if you absolutely must go outside. Face covers help reduce the risk of a person spreading the virus, especially if they are asymptomatic. Visit CDC guidelines on face coverings for more information and guidance. 

• Observe the recommended curfew for everyone in Boston except for essential workers to stay at home from 9 pm to 6 am daily 

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds; use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol; avoid shaking hands

• Cover your coughs and sneezes; clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces; and avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• If you think you might be sick, please call your doctor or 311 to be connected to the Mayor’s Health Line 617-534-5050. Buoy Health has created a free online diagnostic tool which screens for COVID19 at buoy.com/mass.

• Donate supplies to first responders here

• Donate to the City of Boston Resiliency Fund here

• Volunteer with the City of Boston here 

• For Food access needs, visit our Food Resources Map or call 3-1-1

• Fill out the 2020 Census. The Census informs how billions of dollars in federal funds will be allocated by state, local and federal lawmakers annually for the next 10 years. It’s more critical than ever to ensure that all Bostonians are counted. 

 

STAY INFORMED

Receive the latest COVID19 info from reliable sources. Visit: bphc.org/coronavirus; boston.gov/coronavirus; mass.gov/2019coronavirus. Call: 311 or 211

 

We will keep you informed as we receive updates. Stay healthy and stay safe.