Sources: https://malegislature.gov/Bills/191/HD4974.pdf https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOw-FOoRkX8

On March 24th, Governor Baker held a press conference reporting on the creation of a text alert system to provide reliable information to Baystaters and the proposal of “An Act to Further Address Challenges Faced by Municipalities and School Districts Resulting from COVID-19” he proposed.

The Governor announced during the press conference the creation of a emergency text alert system to provide reliable news on the coronavirus and new actions taken.

You can sign up for this new emergency text alert by texting COVIDMA to 888-777. I personally have signed up for this alert.

If you sign up, you’d only receive “1 or 2 alerts” everyday until the crisis ends. S

The alerts that I have been sent were both information you could find in the press conference, simply a way to get information faster and easier.

I, myself have not gotten anything from the text alert system since I write and watch Baker’s press conferences, but I think this is really neat!

The second part of the press conference focused on the legislation Governor Baker proposed the same day, “An Act to Further Address Challenges Faced by Municipalities and School Districts Resulting from COVID-19.”

The Act would essentially allow municipalities to push back due dates on anything municipalities needed to do but were unable to due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Some things that this Act would do are:

Push back the submission of the plan provided to muncipalities by the Student Opportunity Act.

Allow the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to “modify or waive” the standards of grade-level “competency determination for high school graduation.”

Allow the Commissioner to “modify or waive” the requirement for MCAS this year.

These 3 changes may only be put in force if needed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Furthermore, the Act will make changes to permitting regarding the time of acceptance of permit applications and the submission of permit applications.

The Act will allow municipalities to use qualified retirees to supplement their workforce.

It will also allow for electronic signatures for search warrant applications and criminal complaints to prevent the spread of the virus.

Finally, the Act would allow restaurants to sell beer and wine for takeout, “subject to certain conditions.”

My thoughts on this Act are generally positive, although I disagree with the ability of the Commissioner to cancel MCAS, which is absolutely ludicrous.

Furthermore, I also disagree with the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education’s ability (with the approval of the Commissioner) to waive high school graduation standards.

Besides for those two changes, I’m completely for this Act and applaud Baker on his swift action, although he still needs to work on changing the stay-at-home advisory into a stay-at-home order.

Sources: https://www.c-span.org/video/?470604-1/massachusetts-governor-baker-coronavirus-news-conference (for transcript and video) https://twitter.com/massgovernor/status/1242095740563881985?s=21 (for comments) https://twitter.com/massgovernor/status/1242090118741028865?s=21 (for comments) #shutdownma (for comments)

Hi there, Cosmical here. I just wanted to give an opinion on a subject that has been bothering me ever since this morning when Governor Baker said that he wouldn’t support an order for all Baystaters to stay-at-home.

Massachusetts needs a stay-at-home order, not an advisory. Plain and simple, no icing on the top.

When the lives of myself and people are at risk, I will do the best to avert the danger. When I can do something, I will do it. Will Baker?

Baker said in the press conference I wrote about earlier today that, “I do not believe I can or should order U.S citizens to be confined to their homes for days on end.”

Charlie, you can, you won’t. Why the hell not? People are dying to a novel virus, and we’re just going to release an advisory? We shouldn’t be taking risks here, lives aren’t a joke.

You continue, saying, “It doesn’t make sense from a public health point of view, and it’s not realistic, especially, if people need to get to work and essential businesses or go to places like grocery stores, pharmacies, or hospitals, or healthcare providers.”

Charlie, Charlie! Containment and quarantine is the best repellant of viruses and diseases. An advisory doesn’t legally need to be conformed to, and I know damn well people aren’t going to conform to it and are going to play off and underestimate the situation.

Furthermore, your advisory is odd and confusing. For example, mentioned on Twitter by one user, “Is this a suggestion or order?” What’s the point of advising something if you’re not going to enforce it?

Everyone who was already staying at home is going to abide by this! It changes nothing. If you want to defeat this virus, you must act swiftly and strongly.

If you want this virus to be ended swiftly and life to return back to normal, you must order all Baystaters to stay-at-home.

You say that this order will prevent people from going places, like hospitals, but many states aren’t even enforcing their order with police, like Delaware.

Furthermore, in a stay-at-home order, you can go to essential places, like you listed. It’s what we have now, your guidelines, but with actual enforcement.

Ironic, however, that you said earlier in the conference that, “Acting now to prevent more person to person interaction and spreading the virus will buy us more time so our health-care system can better prepare for a challenge.”

You’re right. We need to act now. A wimpy, confusing advisory won’t do anything. We must act NOW to stop spreading this virus and buy more time.

Baystaters agree with me. Hell, according to one guy, #shutdownma was trending! I’ll just let this one tweet speak for me. “Thanks, but it’s not enough. An advisory is not an order and people will continue to ignore it! #shutdownma PLEASE!”

Or perhaps another one, “This needs to be mandatory, not a guideline.” Like I said, this simply won’t be followed.

Baker, clear up this mess, confusion, and controversy by ordering a shutdown. Not only does it sound serious, but it’s effective.

People will take this coronavirus seriously and the crisis will be averted. Action must be taken, not silly guidelines that no one’s going to read. Yada, yada, yada, 6 feet distance. You weren’t even standing 6 feet away from the audience in your press conference.

I will say, in your defense, however, that it isn’t fair that people are saying that you haven’t done enough with essential services. Some people can’t cook! Restaurant take-out needs to be open, just be safe, oh, and uh, follow the GUIDELINES.

Seriously, however, you need to take action to enforce your guidelines. They have less effect than a resolution in the General Court. A stay-at-home order would alleviate the spread and show that this situation is serious!

If things get more serious, Boston could be like New York City. Do you want that?

Baker, close down Massachusetts. To defend the state from the coronavirus, ensure that its spread will be minimized and lives saved, please, order all Baystaters to stay-at-home.

In conclusion, I agree with #shutdownma. It’s crazy that Baker won’t shutdown the state and instead implement guidelines practically no one abides by (like himself) nor have read, and in the end, it sacrifices lives. A stay-at-home order would put these guidelines into effect with real enforcement, and Baystaters would know that this is the real deal, a real threat. One to be taken seriously.

We must shutdown Massachusetts!

Sources: https://www.c-span.org/video/?470604-1/massachusetts-governor-baker-coronavirus-news-conference (for transcript and video)

Today, Governor Baker held a press conference in response to his stay-at-home advisory and closure of nonessential businesses amid the pandemic.

The Governor began the conference by announcing an emergency order, which, he says, will be “effective Tuesday, March 24 at noon, all nonessential businesses shall close their physical workplace and facilities to all workers, customers, and the public.”

This order followed after he had discussed with federal officials and reviewed similar orders in the states.

Baker continues, saying, “This order will remain in effect until Tuesday, April 7 at noon.” This means that the order would last 14 days in total.

Following this, Governor Baker notes that he will also be “directing the Department of Public Health to issue a stay-at-home advisory outlining self isolation and social distancing protocols.”

Furthermore, he advises that “people over the age of 70 and those with underlying health issues to stay home and limit their interactions with others as much as possible.”

The Governor wants Baystaters to know that “we will always allow all grocery stores, pharmacies, and other types of business that provide essential goods and services to Massachusetts residents to continue to operate.”

Baker acknowledges the impact of the order, “I want to acknowledge the incredible impact this action could have on businesses and individuals.”

Continued, he states, “It’s not lost on me or anybody else in our administration that many businesses, locally grown and owned by our neighbors and friends, are the businesses most unlikely to be able to put in place remote or telework policies.”

However, Governor Baker defends the order, saying, “I also know that by taking this action now, we can significantly improve our position in this fight to slow the spread of the virus.”

Furthermore, he says, “Acting now to prevent more person to person interaction and spreading the virus will buy us more time so our healthcare system can better prepare for a challenge unlike any they have seen before.”

The goal is, the Governor remarks, “to slow the spread by limiting person-to-person contact in a concerted effort now to help us get back to work and back to school.”

Baker continues, speaking about the effect of this order for everyone at home, “There has been a lot of talk about a government mandating people in their homes.”

He gives his opinion, saying, “I do not believe I can or should order U.S. citizens to be confined to their homes for days on end.”

Governor Baker urges “people to stay-at-home and avoid any unnecessary activities because this will help avoid any unneeded person to person interactions that could spread the virus.”

Elaborating, he states, “everyone can still buy food at the grocery store, get what they need at the pharmacy, and of course, take a walk around the block or the park.”

The Governor asks Baystaters to use “common sense and consider how they can avoid unnecessary close contact with one another.”

We should do this, he says, to “protect these high risk individuals.” (In regards to 70 year olds and older with underlying health issues.)

Governor Baker lists a few businesses that will remain open, such as, “All grocery stores and businesses that support them like shippers, producers, farms, packaging plants and wholesalers will remain open.”

Baker continues, remarking, “Gas stations will remain open. Pharmacies and all medical facilities will remain open. Manufacturers of medical products, pharmaceuticals, and similar businesses that are developing and making many of the things that we need to battle COVID-19 and other diseases will continue to operate.”

The Governor assures Baystaters that “We are not prohibiting travel. Our transportation system, roads, bridges, tunnels are open and our buses, trains and subways will continue to run.”

Finally, Governor Baker says that “restaurants and other businesses that sell food may continue to offer as take-out or delivery as long as they follow social distancing measures.”

Baker concludes, affirming, “There is purpose in these drastic changes in the way we live. We must all embrace this new way of life and appreciate that here we can all find purpose as we battle the virus together.”

Sources: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DmCBWA8R79s&t=322s (for video)

Earlier this week, the Governor spoke at a press conference regarding a discussion between the Commonwealth and Army Corp of Engineers in expanding Massachusetts’s health care capacity amid the coronavirus pandemic, along with emergency child care.

The Governor and the Army Corp of Engineers had meet to work out ways the Army Corp of Engineers could assist Massachusetts in this time. Governor Baker claims he got a “sense” of the kind of work the Army Corp of Engineers could do to assist the Commonwealth, along with private sectors at the meeting.

Private sectors were at the meeting to assist Baker’s Administration in finding appropriate facilities to convert to expand Massachusett’s health care capacity as hospitals overflow.

He also claimed Mary Lou Sudders, the Secretary of Health & Human Services in the Commonwealth, was working with the health industry in the Commonwealth to “expand existing capacity within their forewalls and find alternative medical facilities.”

Baker has already “identified a number of sites” to work with the Army Corp of Engineers in renovating to meet the state’s needs.

The Governor also gave a “status update” as to testing kits for the coronavirus regarding “the Commonwealth’s testing capacity” and how the state could “increase testing for more residents.”

Baker touts a 85% rise in coronavirus testing in the state, almost double previously.

He further states a 65% increase in coronavirus testing capacity, mixed with the rise in tested residents.

The Governor reports the recent opening of “the first privately owned urgent care center in Massachusetts” this urgent care center will conduct drive-thru testing for the coronavirus.

The center is located in Waltham, Massachusetts, already screening patients during the press conference.

CVS will also be used to expand the state’s testing capacity, expanding the reach to as many Baystaters as possible.

The Governor urges Baystaters with symptoms of the virus to contact “their medical care provider” and stay at home.

Beginning Monday, “we will open, as many other states have, some selected sites to serve as emergency drop-in child care services for families with no other options to continue going to work” he said.

Baker says that “child care is meant to be for those who must report to work, outside of the obvious emergency responders and medical professionals, this will include critical service workers like grocery store employees.”

Governor Baker reports on the emergency health care centers, “As of Friday, we have over 300 sites to start operation on Monday.”

He notes that they should “only be used as a last resort” and expects more to come.

The Governor concludes the conference by giving Baystaters a pat on the back, saying “I want to thank the residents of the Commonwealth for their resiliency throughout this outbreak.”