City of Boston & State of MA Updates

COVID19 CASES as of March 28, 2020

The City of Boston has 614 positive cases of coronavirus (confirmed and presumptive). To date 40 of these 477 residents have fully recovered. There have been 2 COVID-19 related deaths in Boston residents.

Massachusetts has 4,257 positive cases of coronavirus (confirmed and presumptive) and 44 deaths reported at this time. 

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS UPDATES

On Friday, March 27th, Governor Baker issued travel recommendations instructing all travelers entering the Commonwealth to self-quarantine for 14 days. The State is also asking people outside of Massachusetts not to travel here with the exception of first responders and front line workers. Information is being distributed at        port, South Station, truck stops, gas stations and highway signs.

On March 27th, the State announced that the tax filing deadline will be extended to July 15th to ease the financial burden on taxpayers during this ongoing state of emergency. Those with questions can call the Department of Revenue at 617-887-6367, or send a secure e-message. I (Senator Collins) had recently called on the DOR to delay the deadline and am glad that individuals and families will have more time to adapt to this rapidly changing financial reality. View Senator Collins Covid 19 Legislative Update in its entirety.

The State of Massachusetts has partnered with South End based Buoy Health: a free health assistance tool to provide medical advice remotely. Buoy Health is not a replacement for emergency care. It provides a free online diagnostic tool which screens for COVID19. Additional information can be found at buoy.com/mass.

On Tuesday, March 24th at noon, Governor Baker ordered all businesses and organizations that do not provide “COVID-19 Essential Services” to close their physical workplaces and facilities to workers, customers and the public as of Tuesday, March 24 at noon until Tuesday, April 7 at noon. A full list of “COVID-19 Essential Services” can be found here.

On March 24th, Governor Baker directed the Department of Public Health to issue a Stay at Home advisory outlining self-isolation and social distancing protocols. This advisory goes into effect as of Tuesday, March 24 at noon until Tuesday, April 7 at noon. The Order limits gatherings to 10 people during the state of emergency, a reduction from the 25-person limit established in an earlier order.

Residents are advised to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel and other unnecessary activities during this two-week time period.  Residents over 70 years of age or with underlying health conditions, who are considered at high risk when exposed to COVID-19, should limit social interactions with other people as much as possible.  

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.

While City Hall is still open and running for critical operations, we discourage anyone from coming into City Hall or any municipal building unless they have an urgent need for services that cannot be done by phone or online. If you have questions about whether a department is open to the public, please call the City's hotline at 3-1-1 to get connected to a department.

The following departments have moved to by appointment only: 

• Registry
• Parking Clerk
• Age Strong
• Elections
• City Clerk 
• Assessing
• Collecting
• Bid counter for Public Facilities 
• Inspectional Services Department

If constituents would like to schedule an appointment at these departments, they should reach out via phone or email. Department contacts can be found on boston.gov. 

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.

ZONING BOARD OF APPEAL / LICENSING BOARD APRIL HEARINGS

Please be advised that the following Zoning Board of Appeal April Hearings have been canceled due to the ongoing COVID19 Public Health Emergency:

• April 7th, 2020 ZBA Hearing
• April 16th, 2020 ZBA Subcommittee Hearing
• April 28th, 2020 ZBA Hearing

To mitigate the spread of COVID19, public access to the Inspectional Services Dept offices at 1010 Massachusetts Ave is restricted to appointment only. Applicants requesting relief of the zoning or building code, or anyone inquiring about upcoming hearings, should email ISDBoardOfAppeal@boston.gov or call 617-635-4775.

The City of Boston’s Licensing Board has canceled hearings until further notice. Any Licensing Board questions should be directed to the Board’s Executive Secretary, Lesley Delaney Hawkins, Esq., who can be reached at (617) 635-4170 or Lesley.hawkins@boston.gov.

FIRST RESPONDERS TESTING SITE AT SUFFOLK DOWNS

Mayor Walsh announced that the City of Boston will be opening a COVID19 testing site for Boston’s first responders at Suffolk Downs in East Boston. This testing site will serve qualified EMTs, firefighters, and police officers only. This is a joint effort between the Boston Public Health Commission and the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center. First responders will first be screened to make sure they meet the State criteria for testing. This is an important step to keep our first responders healthy. This facility will not be open to the public or media.

NEWTON PAVILION

The former Boston Medical Center hospital building known as the Newton Pavilion will be temporarily reopened and used to meet COVID-19 related medical needs of local homeless residents. Newton Pavilion is currently owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The facility will be operated by a consortium of providers, including Boston Medical Center, Boston Healthcare for the Homeless, shelters including the Pine Street Inn, and the City of Boston’s COVID-19 response team. The 250 hospital beds at this facility will be essential to relieving stress on our health care system and increasing medical care for our homeless population as we continue to respond to this public health crisis.

BOSTON TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT:

Click here for updates to parking enforcement policies, which are in effect until further notice in the City of Boston

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. 

Related Posts